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Farmina Pet Foods began in 1965 as Russo Mangimi, a family company in Naples, Italy, that specialized in animal nutrition. In 1999, they collaborated with Farmina, an English company specializing in food research and formulation. Farmina Pet Foods has its headquarters in Italy and operates manufacturing facilities in Italy, Brazil and Serbia. In 2021, Farmina added a location in Reidsville, NC that includes manufacturing, research and development, and warehousing operations.
Farmina Pet Foods has 9 lines of wet and dry dog foods. The canned foods are considered low risk foods, and their dry food ranks as moderate to high risk.The company also has 2 lines of veterinary foods that are only available from veterinarians so they’re not covered in this review.
All 4 lines of Farmina’s canned foods scored the highest of all canned foods we’ve rated. They are high in protein and low in carbohydrates which is what you expect in a canned dog food. Some recipes have minimal added vitamins, however most have excessive added minerals and amino acids, reflecting lower quality ingredients that need supplementation to meet nutritional standards.
It’s good to see that Farmina uses non-GMO grain and starch ingredients, but they don’t mention alfalfa which is a known GMO crop and appears in many recipes. All other ingredients appear to be conventionally farmed which affects ingredient safety because of likely high pesticide/herbicide residues. Some recipes don’t contain high pesticide ingredients, but that’s usually because they include limited whole food ingredients.
The 5 lines of dry foods don’t fare as well. Most are high in carbohydrates with lower protein than we’d like to see. The Quinoa Dry line has exceptionally high average carbohydrates of 43% as calculated, and average protein of 25%, levels we’d prefer to see reversed. Dogs have no nutritional requirement for carbohydrate but starch is needed for extrusion in dry foods. Foods that are high in carbohydrate can raise insulin and cause obesity.
Dry foods are also ultra-processed which requires the addition of vitamins, minerals and amino acids to replace lost nutrients. Like the wet recipes, these dry foods have non-GMO grains but the rest of the ingredients are among crops are known for high herbicide/pesticide residues.
The company notes that its animal protein sources are fed a GMO-free diet and are raised without antibiotics and hormones. Farmina sources ingredients from Italy, France, Belgium, Germany, and Denmark. However, it can’t guarantee that suppliers don’t use ingredients from China. And with the addition of a US manufacturing plant, it’s assumed produce will be sourced in North America as well.
It’s also worth noting that Farmina doesn’t state the omega-6:omega-3 ratio in their foods. While this is true of most foods, it’s unfortunate since AAFCO allows a very inflammatory limit of 30:1. They also don’t mention whether fish ingredients are farmed or wild caught. Wild caught fish is more nutritious and has a better fatty acid profile, so this is of special concern in the “Ocean” recipes that rely on many fish ingredients.
The average score of each Farmina food line is listed below. Click on any line to view the individual foods and scores.
Farmina’s N&D Quinoa Dry dog food is considered a high risk dog food. There are 14 recipes that average 25% protein and 43% carbohydrate as calculated. These foods rank low in ingredient quality for having high carbohydrates, added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. On the ingredient safety side, these foods are ultra processed, which destroys nutrients, and they have high pesticide foods listed in their top 5 ingredients.
Farmina’s N&D Quinoa Wet dog food is considered a low risk dog food. There are 12 recipes that average 47% protein and 13% carbohydrate as calculated on a dry matter basis, which is what we expect to see in a canned dog food. Two recipes have higher carbohydrates. All recipes have a few added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. On the safety side, these foods are highly processed, which destroys nutrients. However, they have no high pesticide foods listed in their top 5 ingredients.
Farmina’s N&D Prime Dry dog food is considered a moderate risk dog food. There are 8 recipes that average 34.5% protein and 27% carbohydrate as calculated. These foods rank low in ingredient quality for having high carbohydrates, added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. On the safety side these foods are ultra processed. which destroys nutrients, and they have high pesticide foods listed in their top 5 ingredients, and contain some GMO foods.
Farmina’s N&D Prime Wet dog food is considered a low risk dog food. There are 8 recipes that average 52% protein and 11% carbohydrate as calculated on a dry matter basis, which is what we expect to see in a canned dog food. However, 2 recipes have carbohydrates a bit higher than we’d like to see. All recipes have a few added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. On the safety side, these foods are highly processed, which destroys nutrients, and have some high pesticide/herbicide ingredients.
Farmina’s N&D Ocean Dry dog food is considered a moderate risk dog food. There are 11 recipes that average 31.6% protein and 30.5% carbohydrate as calculated. These foods rank low in ingredient quality for having higher carbohydrates, added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. On the safety side these foods are ultra processed which destroys nutrients, and they have high pesticide foods listed in their top 5 ingredients plus a possible GMO ingredient.
Farmina N&D Ocean Canine wet dog food is considered a low risk dog food. There are 12 recipes in this fish-based line that have average protein of 55% and low carbohydrates of 2% as calculated on a dry matter basis, which is very low for canned dog food. These foods have some vitamins added. However there are excessive minerals and amino acids added. There are no GMO or high pesticide/herbicide ingredients used.
Farmina’s N&D Pumpkin Dry dog food is considered a high risk dog food. There are 12 recipes that average 31% protein and 31% carbohydrate as calculated. These foods rank low in ingredient quality for having high carbohydrates, plus excessive added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. On the ingredient safety side these foods are ultra processed which destroys nutrients, and they have high pesticide foods listed in their top 5 ingredients.
Farmina N&D Grain-Free Pumpkin Wet dog food is considered a low risk food. It averages protein of 55% and low carbohydrates of 2% as calculated on a dry matter basis, which is very low for canned dog food. These foods have excessive minerals and amino acids added but only a few vitamins. There’s a high pesticide/herbicide ingredient in some recipes.
Farmina’s N&D Ancestral Grain Dry dog food is considered a high risk dog food. There are 13 recipes that average 31% protein and 32% carbohydrate as calculated. These foods rank low in ingredient quality for having high carbohydrates, plus excessive added vitamins, minerals and amino acids. On the safety side these foods are ultra processed which destroys nutrients, and they have high pesticide foods listed in their top 5 ingredients.
To date, Farmina has not had any recalls or voluntary withdrawals in the United States or Europe.
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