I Want the Truth on Raw Dog Food Labels!

At All Raw, we want the truth on raw dog food labels. Owners should be able to see exactly which animal species are going into their dog’s bowl.

A product called “rabbit mince” can sound like a single-protein choice. But what if the meat is rabbit, the bone is chicken and the offal is beef?

Look at the illustrative pack below. The front says “RABBIT — 80% meat, Bone 10% & cuts of Offal 10%”. That wording alone does not tell you which animals supplied the bone and offal.

For example, a hypothetical mince containing rabbit meat, beef organs and chicken bone contains three animal species. Calling it “rabbit mince” on the front does not tell you the whole story.

Mixed-protein food is not automatically poor quality. The problem is when owners do not realise they are feeding it.

In our experience at All Raw, this labelling issue comes up across many raw products. The rabbit mince above is an illustrative example of the wider problem: naming the main meat does not necessarily tell you which animals supplied the bone and offal.

We want to see the source of the meat, bone and offal made clear, so you can choose with confidence.

If the label doesn’t identify which animal the bone or offal comes from, and you need to avoid chicken, treat it as potentially containing chicken until the manufacturer confirms otherwise. An unspecified source is not proof that chicken is present, but it is not confirmation that the recipe is chicken-free either.

What does “single protein” actually mean?

In this context, single protein means the animal ingredients come from one animal species.

A single-protein beef recipe should contain beef meat, beef bone and beef offal. If it contains chicken bone or lamb organs, it is a mixed-protein recipe—even if beef is the main ingredient.

Why does this matter for dogs with allergies?

If your dog has a confirmed allergy to chicken, chicken ingredients matter wherever they appear in the recipe—not just in the main meat portion.

Chicken can trigger food allergies in some dogs, as can beef, lamb and other ingredients. It is not a problem for every dog, and itching or digestive upset can have causes unrelated to food. Suspected allergies should be investigated with your vet, usually through a carefully controlled diet trial. PDSA explains food allergies and diagnosis here.

For everyday ingredient avoidance, a clearly identified single-protein recipe can make food choices easier. It does not automatically make a product suitable for a diagnostic elimination trial: manufacturing cross-contact controls matter too.

At All Raw, we have spent years helping customers spot chicken in recipes they had assumed were another protein. You should not need detective skills to understand your dog’s dinner.

Why we’re excited about Raw Roll

This is why we are so excited about Raw Roll, made by Just Natural: affordable single-protein options, with straightforward ingredients.

Single-protein Raw Roll examples

• Raw Roll Beef 80/10/10 460g — beef meat, beef bone and beef offal.
• Raw Roll Lamb 460g — lamb meat, lamb bone and lamb offal.
• Raw Roll Turkey 460g — turkey meat, turkey bone and turkey offal.

These are examples of one animal species supplying the meat, bone and offal. Choose the plain recipe named here, and check the ingredients of any flavoured or blended version separately.

What has Just Natural confirmed about Raw Roll?

That means chicken is not being used as an unlisted ingredient to make up their non-chicken single-protein recipes.

There is an important distinction, though: the whole Raw Roll range is not single protein. It also includes clearly named mixed recipes.

John confirmed that all their tripe is ox tripe. Lamb and tripe therefore contains lamb and beef-derived tripe; it is not a single-protein lamb recipe. Chicken and salmon and the three-bird mix are also blends.

We will help you choose the individual recipe that fits your dog’s needs.

Why we think Raw Roll offers such good value

Single-protein feeding can become expensive, particularly with a large dog or several dogs to feed.

Just Natural has explained to us that its aim is to make higher-quality raw feeding more accessible, at a price and margin that keep it within reach of more owners. Its own description of Raw Roll places quality and affordability at the centre of the range. Read Just Natural’s introduction to Raw Roll.

That is what makes it stand out for us: single-protein choices at an everyday price.

John also told us that most Raw Roll raw materials arrive fresh daily, and finished rolls go into the freezer within 20 minutes. The fine texture has a practical purpose: it allows the mince to pass through the filling machinery and the ends to seal correctly.

We believe that combination makes Raw Roll excellent value.

A low price alone cannot tell you which ingredients a food contains, and a sausage-shaped pack cannot tell you its quality. Read the composition, check every animal source and ask questions when something is unclear. That applies at every price point.

Does 80/10/10 mean a complete meal?

An 80/10/10 recipe generally describes 80% meat, 10% bone and 10% offal. Those proportions alone do not establish that a food supplies every essential nutrient in the right amounts.

Check each recipe: the Raw Roll range also includes boneless products and other formulations, so they should not all be fed as though they are identical.

For a complementary raw diet, the whole feeding plan matters. Depending on the recipe and your dog, that may involve an appropriate source of essential fats, fibre and additional vitamins or minerals.

Leafy greens, Dorwest Keeper’s Mix, SmartBarf and oils such as Proflax Skin & Coat are possible additions to discuss with us. They serve different purposes and are not interchangeable or a universal recipe for balancing any mince. Follow the relevant product’s instructions and check suitability, particularly for a dog avoiding ingredients.

Adding a splash of oil and a spoonful of greens does not, by itself, prove a meal is nutritionally complete. UK Pet Food explains complete and complementary raw foods here.

If you prefer the nutritional formulation already done for you, look at foods specifically labelled complete for your dog’s life stage, including suitable recipes from Bella & Duke, Raw Made Simple’s complete range and Cotswold Raw.

Clear ingredients. Affordable choices.

We want more owners to have access to clearly labelled raw food, including single-protein options that fit their budget.

Raw Roll gives us another way to help make that happen.

Ask us about Raw Roll at All Raw. We will help you check the ingredients, choose suitable recipes and understand how they fit into your dog’s overall diet.