Northwest Naturals Dinner Bars Review

Northwest Naturals Dinner Bars Dog Food is considered a low risk food with an average score of 8.9%. The foods are all manufactured in house at the company’s facility In Portland, Oregon. 

No points are lost for light processing. The line is generally low in carbohydrates, averaging 5% on a dry matter basis (meaning with the moisture removed, for comparison with dry foods). However, carbohydrates as calculated in the Beef recipe exceed 15% and the recipe loses a point for that. 

The Dinner Bar line is the raw food in a bulk format. They offer 9 raw protein formulas (including organs and 10% ground bone) combined with 18.75% locally grown (but not organic) produce. This bulk food comes in 25 lb bars scored in 4 oz servings, so it’s a good option for multi-dog households with plenty of freezer space. 

It’s preferable for raw dog foods to contain more protein than fat, but the Trout and Beef & Trout recipes are higher in fat. Since animal proteins are the most expensive ingredient, raw food manufacturers sometimes use fattier proteins to keep costs down. A high fat diet can cause unwanted shifts in gut bacteria and can add toxins, since toxins are stored in fat. 

The foods lose a quality point for excessive added minerals, suggesting a lower quality food that’s lacking naturally occurring minerals from whole food sources.

The company states that their salmon is wild-caught in Alaska, but other fish in the recipes, including their fish oil, appear to be from farmed fish. Wild-caught fish is more nutritious and has a better fatty acid balance than farmed fish. 

The food does not provide the omega-6:omega-3 ratio, which is a concern since AAFCO allows a very inflammatory ratio of 30:1.