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Evanger's Grain-Free Whitefish & Sweet Potato Recipe with Salmon Meal Dry Dog Food, 30-lb bag
Evanger's

Grain-Free Whitefish & Sweet Potato Recipe with Salmon Meal Dry Dog Food, 30-lb bag

Evidence Fair
dry $3.00/lb

Evanger's Grain-Free Whitefish & Sweet Potato Recipe with Salmon Meal Dry Dog Food, 30-lb bag earns a Sniff Score of 54/100 (C) with Fair evidence. 1 controversial ingredient flagged. Score capped at 59 due to no AAFCO statement.

Graded by The Sniff System

Why this score

Quality fat sources: named fat with marine oil (EPA and DHA source).

FQI

Includes egg, named fish, or organ meat for diverse high-bioavailability protein.

STACK

Score capped at 59 due to no AAFCO statement.

CAP why?

No AAFCO statement. Nutritional completeness unverified.

ACF

Contains high legume stacking. Multiple pulse-family ingredients in top 15. Mitigated by taurine supplementation or organ meat (natural taurine precursor) in top 10..

CIP
Guaranteed analysis
Dry-matter protein: 30%
Protein
27%
min (as fed)
Fat
12%
min (as fed)
Fiber
5%
max (as fed)
Moisture
10%
max
Ingredients

Read why each ingredient is good or bad for dogs.

39 total
Good Neutral Watch Flagged
  1. 1
    whitefish meal

    Whitefish cooked into a dry concentrate. Strong protein source, common in premium formulas.

  2. 2
    sweet potato

    Complex carb with fiber and beta-carotene. Gentle on the stomach.

  3. 3
    lentils

    Same concern as peas. Affordable plant protein, but when they pile up in the top 5 ingredients, it's a flag. See why →

  4. 4
    peas

    Cheap protein bulk. Fine in small amounts, but when peas stack with lentils and chickpeas in the top ingredients, it's the pattern the FDA flagged in its heart-disease investigation. See why →

  5. 5
    buffalo meal
  6. 6
    sunflower oil

    Common plant oil. Useful in moderation for omega-6, though too much skews the omega ratio against the dog's favor.

  7. 7
    tapioca starch

    Refined cassava starch, used as a binder. Easy to digest, low on nutrition.

  8. 8
    salmon meal

    Salmon cooked into a dry concentrate. Carries both protein and natural omega-3s in one ingredient.

  9. 9
    pea protein

    Concentrated plant protein. Inflates the protein number on the label without matching the amino acid quality of meat.

  10. 10
    flaxseed

    Plant source of omega-3. Helpful for skin and coat, though dogs absorb omega-3 from fish more efficiently.

  11. 11
    natural flavors

    Same as natural flavor. Usually hydrolyzed liver or broth, adds palatability.

  12. 12
    menhaden fish oil

    Omega-3 from menhaden, a small oily fish. Same skin and coat support as salmon oil.

  13. 13
    coconut oil

    Saturated fat with medium-chain triglycerides. Mostly marketing in the doses kibble uses, but harmless.

  14. 14
    pumpkin meal
  15. 15
    dried kelp

    Natural source of iodine and trace minerals. A common premium-brand inclusion.

  16. 16
    monosodium phosphate

    Mineral source and preservative. Standard inclusion at small doses.

  17. 17
    dl-methionine

    Essential amino acid. Often added when plant proteins dominate, since methionine is naturally lower in pulses than meat.

  18. 18
    salt

    Sodium chloride. Required at small doses for normal physiology. Not a quality concern in standard amounts.

  19. 19
    calcium carbonate

    Source of calcium. Functional. Required in complete dog foods, especially those without bone-in meat meals.

  20. 20
    choline chloride

    Essential nutrient for liver and brain function. Standard inclusion in complete dog foods.

  21. 21
    potassium chloride

    Required mineral. Sometimes used as a salt substitute. Standard inclusion in complete diets.

  22. 22
    fructooligosaccharide

    Prebiotic fiber, often abbreviated FOS. Feeds beneficial gut bacteria.

  23. 23
    cranberries

    Often added with a urinary-tract-support marketing angle. Real cranberry compounds help in concentrate form, but kibble doses are small.

  24. 24
    blueberries

    Antioxidants, real. But the amount in any kibble is too small to do much. Mostly marketing.

  25. 25
    yucca schidigera extract

    Plant extract added to reduce stool odor. Functional, not nutritional. Fine in trace amounts.

Showing first 25 of 39. Position 1-5 has the largest weight in the recipe.

23 of 25 ingredients have a curated note. Coverage grows over time.