Food scores are based on ingredient quality and safety. For more information, view our evaluation criteria.
Life’s Abundance is a multi-level marketing company started by Dennis and Carol Berardi in 1998. It began in their home in Palm City, FL by offering products for people and pets. In 1999, they began partnering with product formulators including a holistic veterinarian that formulates the line of pet foods.
Today the home office is located in Stuart, FL. The pet products are made by Ohio Pet Foods based out of Lisbon, OH. Life’s Abundance dog food and pet products are offered alongside other lines of unrelated products through direct sales marketing or through the website.
Life’s Abundance has 6 recipes that average 27% protein and 35% carbohydrate as calculated. With a score of 3.3/10, it’s considered a high risk dog food according to our evaluation criteria.
Life’s Abundance offers a line of dry dog food with 3 adult recipes, 2 puppy recipes and an adult weight loss recipe. Overall, these recipes are low in protein and high in carbohydrates, which is standard for most dry dog foods, but still disappointing.
In the past, the company has offered canned foods with 3 recipes. A message on its website states there are supply chain issues that are affecting manufacturing so they’re not available. However, as with most canned and wet foods, they scored a bit better than the dry foods for having minimal carbs and less processing.
Online customer reviews of the company note that Life’s Abundance is a multi-level marketing company which is a different business model from most dog food manufacturers that retail to consumers. The concerning aspect is that there is no information on the sourcing or the quality of the ingredients used, and foods are made in a third-party facility.
The company notes that it uses a holistic veterinarian to formulate its dog food recipes, and yet they all have extensive amounts of added vitamins and minerals, and some amino acids, to balance them to AAFCO standards. This usually implies ingredients of poor nutritional value or excessive processing. When vitamins, minerals and amino acids come from whole food sources, they include the full spectrum of cofactors, which makes them safe and bioavailable to dogs.
It’s also worth noting that this line contains sodium selenite as a source of selenium. Dogs need selenium, and it’s usually added in very small amounts. However some research suggests that sodium selenite may be associated with potential toxicity, so selenium yeast is the preferred form of this mineral.
Their formulating veterinarian has stated online that they include numerous vegetables for their antioxidant properties but these are listed far down the list beyond salt meaning they are included in such small amounts that they provide very little nutritional value. Dried beet pulp and tomato pomace are listed higher up. They are waste by-products from the manufacture of human-grade foods. They’re used for fiber in dog food but there are whole food ingredients that would serve the same purpose and contribute other nutrients.
It’s also stated that flaxseed meal and flaxseed oil are used for their antioxidant qualities, among others. It would be preferred if whole food ingredients like fruits and vegetables were added in greater qualities for their antioxidants and other micronutrients, which would also reduce the need for synthetic vitamins and minerals.
These foods are said to address skin and coat health, and yet 2 or 3 of the first 5 ingredients, and subsequent ingredients on the list, are starches including chickpeas, peas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, oats, rice, barley and sorghum. Grains and starches are known to be inflammatory and can lead to skin issues and food sensitivities.
Dogs have no nutritional requirement for carbohydrate but starch is required for extrusion in dry foods. Excessive carbohydrate is an indicator of food quality as it can be used to reduce manufacturing cost. Foods that are high in carbohydrate can raise insulin and cause obesity. Some studies also show that dogs fed a high carbohydrate content have changes to their gut bacteria.
The ingredients don’t differ between recipes but protein, carbohydrate and fat content vary slightly between the weight loss recipe and the other adult recipes. Although formulated for weight loss, carbohydrates remain high at 37%, but protein is a little higher than other recipes, and fat is also lower at 11%.
Another quality concern is the use of fish oil which is an unnamed animal protein that is often a less expensive ingredient that can be made from rendered waste of many proteins. Sunflower oil is also used which is a highly processed and inflammatory seed oil. It’s rich in omega-6 fatty acids, which can cause systemic and gut inflammation.
On a positive note, these recipes include probiotics and they have guaranteed the amount of colony forming units (CFUs).
There are several food safety concerns.
Like all kibbles, Life’s Abundance is ultra-processed. The individual ingredients in dry dog foods are heated several times during processing, which can cause a significant loss of enzymes, vitamins, amino acids and phytonutrients. Ultra processed foods are often supplemented as we see here. Processed foods are also linked to higher mortality rates in many species.
These recipes use ingredients known to contain higher pesticide/herbicide residues in the top 5 ingredients like lentils, chickpeas, peas, barley and oats. Crops spray-dried with Roundup, have more glyphosate/herbicide residue than other crops, even genetically modified ones. Glyphosate is an antibiotic that can kill beneficial gut bacteria and has been linked to cancer and other diseases.
Potatoes are a known GMO ingredient that appears in several recipes and in the top 5 ingredients. Natural flavor is also used. This is often animal digest or MSG, both low quality ingredients with limited safety studies. Rice is also an ingredient of concern as it can contain arsenic, which is linked to chronic health issues.
These recipes also use ingredient splitting in these foods, which is the practice of splitting ingredients into subcategories to make them appear lower on the list, and this also can move more desirable protein ingredients higher.
It’s not stated whether the fish products in these recipes are farmed or wild caught. Wild caught fish is more nutritious and has a better fatty acid balance providing healthy omega-3s.
Finally, Life’s Abundance doesn’t provide the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. They certainly aren’t the only company that doesn’t provide this information but it’s important to know since diets rich in omega-6 fats can cause chronic inflammation and disease, and AAFCO allows a very high ratio of 30:1.
The average score of Life’s Abundance dog food is listed below. Click on any food to view the individual food score.
Life’s Abundance has no product recalls to date.
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