Glossary

AAFCO—The Association of American Feed Control Officials is made up of state and other regulatory officials charged with animal food safety and quality. AAFCO defines food ingredients and pet nutrient requirements.

Additive—An ingredient or combination of ingredients added to food to fulfill a specific need.

Animal By-Product Meal—Cleaned, cooked, dried and ground muscle meat, skin, bone and internal organs.

Animal Meal—Created by cleaning animal parts, removing the fat, then grinding to a fine texture. Animal meals used in pet food include meat meals (from animal muscle), meat by-product meals (from animal organs, blood or bone), meat and bone meals (from a combination of animal muscle and bone) and blood meal (from animal blood).

Antioxidants—Substances that can slow aging and help fight disease by protecting against the effects of free radicals, molecules that can damage cells.

By-Product—Secondary products produced in addition to the principal product; typically refers to animal products other than whole meat.

Carnivores—Animals that eat a diet of meat, such as other animals, fish and/or insects.

Emulsifier—An additive that, when added to food, causes fat or oil to remain suspended in liquid, rather than separating.

Enzyme—A protein made up of amino acids or their derivatives, which cause a defined chemical reaction.

Fat—A substance composed mainly of triglycerides of fatty acids of animal origin, which is solid or mostly solid at room temperature.

FDA—The U.S. Food & Drug Administration, which regulates pet food ingredients, labeling and recalls.

Flour—Finely ground meal that includes starch and gluten, obtained by milling cereal grains or other seeds.

Free Feeding—Leaving a supply of food out at all times so that pets can eat whenever they choose.

Gluten—The enriched protein that remains when wheat or other grain flour is washed to remove the starch.

Grain—Seed from cereal plants.

Guaranteed Analysis—The statement on a pet food label that confirms that the product meets minimum or maximum requirements for certain nutrients, including protein, fat, fiber, water and some vitamins and minerals.

Herbivores—Animals that eat a diet made up exclusively of plants and other vegetative matter.

Meat By-Products—Parts of slaughtered animals other than muscle, including organs (lungs, kidneys, livers, etc.), blood and bone.

Meat—Clean flesh or muscle tissue from slaughtered animals; due to cost, whole meat is generally not included in pet food. Examples of meat include beef (from cows), pork (from pigs), lamb (from sheep) and poultry (from chicken).

Micro-Ingredients—Vitamins, minerals and other ingredients added in only very small amounts and measured in milligrams, micrograms or parts per million (ppm).

Oil—A substance composed mainly of triglycerides of fatty acids of plant origin, which is liquid at room temperature.

Omnivores— Animals that eat plants and other vegetation, as well as meat, including animals, fish and/or insects.

Preservative—A substance added to protect, prevent or slow food oxidation, discoloration or spoilage.

Protein—Any naturally occurring combination of amino acids.

Shelf Life—The period during which food can be eaten safely without risk of spoilage or loss of freshness.

Stock/Broth—Liquid produced by cooking animal bones, parts and/or muscle tissue with water.

Supplement—An ingredient that is added to a pet food formulation to improve the nutrient balance or performance of the final product, or fed to a pet to address specific health concerns.

Trace Minerals—Mineral nutrients required by animals in only very small amounts.