Food scores are based on ingredient quality and safety. For more information, view our evaluation criteria.
Smallbatch Freeze-Dried Dog Food rates a 10 for all 6 foods in the line, with no points deducted for light processing or ingredient quality or safety. Freeze-dried foods don’t lose nutrients during processing because there’s no heat applied. The foods contain minimal carbohydrates.
Smallbatch’s manufacturing is done by third party facilities. The company states they closely monitor all production, and they have a goal of acquiring their own freeze-drying equipment.
The Freeze-Dried line has 6 meat-based formulas (including bone and organ meats) combined with 10% organic produce. This line offers foods in 6 protein “sliders” and 2 package sizes: 14 and 25 oz for Chicken, Beef and Turkey, and 14 oz for Duck, Lamb and Pork. They advise rehydrating the sliders with 1/c cup of warm water per 4 sliders
The foods all have a lower percentage of fat than protein, which is desirable in a freezedried food.
There are no added vitamins or minerals (except vitamin E as a preservative). This suggests indicates higher quality ingredients because the nutrients comes from whole foods.
Smallbatch does source quality ingredients, but the label does use unsubstantiated descriptions like “humanely raised and harvested” to describe their animal protein sources. These are purely marketing terms that have no legal meaning under pet food regulatory standards.
The products in this line contain added salmon oil, so it’s advisable to store the food in a sealed container to minimize oxidation. The company doesn’t state whether the oil is from farmed or wild-caught salmon. Wild-caught fish is more nutritious than farmed and has a better fatty acid balance.
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.
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