While Rachael Ray started off her career by cooking for humans, she soon morphed into an all-around domestic diva — and then into a pet care guru. How did she go from people food to pet food? Rachael recalls that she decided to create her own dog food because she wanted her beloved pit bull, Isaboo, to eat as well as the rest of the family (meaning Rachael and her hubby, since she has no kids). She said she had difficulty finding a dog food that would taste good as well as being nutritious — which makes us wonder, was she actually tasting different foods herself? Reading between the lines, it would seem that Isaboo was just a picky eater.
Anyway, Rachael enlisted the aid of Ainsworth Pet Nutrition, and the Nutrish line of pet foods was born in 2008. Just eight years later, it had become the fastest-growing U.S. pet food brand (via PR Newswire), so obviously Isaboo wasnt the only dogger to find it yum-o!
The Nutrish brand of dog foods by now encompasses five different lines: Nutrish, Nutrish Dish, Just 6 (referring to the number of ingredients), Zero Grain, and the protein-rich Peak. Dog Product Picker rates Nutrish products very highly: a 99 percent approval rating for Nutrish, 96 percent for Zero Grain, 93 percent for Dish, 89 percent for Peak, and 85 percent for the Nutrish line of wet dog food.
Dog Food Advisor, however, is a little less enthusiastic about the product, awarding Nutrish 3 out of 5 stars and calling it an average dry product as far as nutrition goes. The Just 6 line also received only 3 stars, but the Zero Grain varieties earned between 3.5 and 4 stars.
As to how the product tastes — well, dogs, like people, have their own individual preferences. Consumer Affairs, however, reports a consumer satisfaction rating of just over 3 out of 5 stars for the entire Rachael Ray Nutrish line of dog food products, so it seems that some pups like it, while others are less enthused.
A 2018 lawsuit filed against Ainsworth Pet Nutrition, manufacturers of the Rachael Ray Nutrish line of pet foods, proved to be quite the embarrassment for the Food Network as well as for one of its biggest stars. According to Fortune, a consumer claimed that the Nutrish brand was practicing deceptive advertising by claiming that their product was all-natural when, in fact, it contains glyphosate, a potentially harmful herbicide. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the lawsuit was dismissed in 2019 because there was no indication that the trace amounts of herbicide contained in Nutrish had any detrimental effect, and that the phrase “natural” in and of itself was no guarantee against a product containing such an ingredient,
While neither Ainsworth nor the Rachael Ray Foundation was on the hook for the $5 million that the plaintiff was seeking, the lawsuit was still not the kind of PR that you want for pet food, or for any food product. While Nutrish continues to sell quite well and hasnt been indicated in any cases of doggie illness or death, there may always be some doubt remaining in the minds of pet parents.
Is Rachael Ray a Good Dog Food?
Rating:
Rachael Ray Nutrish Dog Food earns The Advisor’s second-highest rating of 4 stars.
The Rachael Ray Nutrish product line includes 8 dry dog foods.
Each recipe below includes its AAFCO nutrient profile when available… Growth (puppy), Maintenance (adult), All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.
Use the following links to check prices and package sizes at an online retailer.
Rachael Ray Nutrish Real Chicken and Veggies was selected to represent the other products in the line for detailed recipe and nutrient analysis.
Label and nutrient data below are calculated using dry matter basis.
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient ContentProtein =
Ingredients: Chicken, chicken meal, dried peas, soybean meal, whole ground corn, dried plain beet pulp, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), pea starch, corn gluten meal, brown rice, dicalcium phosphate, natural flavor, calcium carbonate, salt, alfalfa nutrient concentrate, dried carrots, zinc sulfate, vitamin E supplement, choline chloride, beet powder (color), iron sulfate, l-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), biotin, niacin, copper sulfate, manganese sulfate, selenium supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, vitamin A supplement, riboflavin supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vitamin K), thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, potassium iodide, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 4.4%
| Estimated Nutrient Content | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Protein | Fat | Carbs |
| Guaranteed Analysis | 26% | 14% | NA |
| Dry Matter Basis | 29% | 16% | 48% |
| Calorie Weighted Basis | 25% | 33% | 42% |
The first ingredient in this dog food is chicken. Although it is a quality item, raw chicken contains up to 73% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.
After processing, this item would probably account for a smaller part of the total content of the finished product.
The second ingredient is chicken meal. Chicken meal is considered a meat concentrate and contains nearly 300% more protein than fresh chicken.
The third ingredient includes dried peas. Dried peas are a good source of carbohydrates. Plus they’re naturally rich in dietary fiber.
However, dried peas contain about 27% protein, a factor that must be considered when judging the meat content of this dog food.
The next ingredient is soybean meal, a by-product of soybean oil production more commonly found in farm animal feeds.
Although soybean meal contains 48% protein, this ingredient would be expected to have a lower biological value than meat.
And less costly plant-based products like this can notably boost the total protein reported on the label — a factor that must be considered when judging the actual meat content of this dog food.
The fifth ingredient is corn. Corn is an inexpensive and controversial cereal grain. And aside from its energy content, this grain is of only modest nutritional value to a dog.
For this reason, we do not consider corn a preferred component in any dog food.
The sixth ingredient is beet pulp. Beet pulp is a controversial ingredient, a high fiber by-product of sugar beet processing.
Some denounce beet pulp as an inexpensive filler while others cite its outstanding intestinal health and blood sugar benefits.
We only call your attention here to the controversy and believe the inclusion of beet pulp in reasonable amounts in most dog foods is entirely acceptable.
The seventh ingredient is chicken fat. This item is obtained from rendering chicken, a process similar to making soup in which the fat itself is skimmed from the surface of the liquid.
Chicken fat is high in linoleic acid, an omega-6 fatty acid essential for life. Although it doesn’t sound very appetizing, chicken fat is actually a quality ingredient.
The eighth ingredient is pea starch, a paste-like, gluten-free carbohydrate extract probably used here as a binder for making kibble. Aside from its energy content (calories), pea starch is of only modest nutritional value to a dog.
The ninth ingredient lists corn gluten meal. Gluten is the rubbery residue remaining once corn has had most of its starchy carbohydrate washed out of it.
Although corn gluten meal contains 60% protein, this ingredient would be expected to have a lower biological value than meat.
And less costly plant-based products like this can notably boost the total protein reported on the label — a factor that can’t be ignored when judging the actual meat content of this dog food.
From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.
But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of this Nutrish product.
With 4 notable exceptions…
First, this recipe contains alfalfa nutrient concentrate, a vitamin and mineral-rich extract made from alfalfa.
Even though it contains over 50% protein, this ingredient would be expected to have a lower biological value than meat.
And plant-based products like this can notably affect the total protein reported on the label — a factor that must be considered when judging the meat content of this dog food.
Next, we find no mention of probiotics, friendly bacteria applied to the surface of the kibble after processing to help with digestion.
In addition, the minerals listed here do not appear to be chelated. And that can make them more difficult to absorb. Chelated minerals are usually associated with higher quality dog foods.
And lastly, this recipe contains menadione, a controversial form of vitamin K linked to liver toxicity, allergies and the abnormal break-down of red blood cells.
Since vitamin K isn’t required by AAFCO in its nutrient profiles, we question the use of this item in any canine recipe.
Based on its ingredients alone, Rachael Ray Nutrish Dog Food appears to be an average dry dog food.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 29%, a fat level of 16% and estimated carbohydrates of about 48%.
As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 29% and a mean fat level of 15%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 48% for the overall product line.
And a fat-to-protein ratio of about 52%.
Which means this Rachael Ray product line contains…
Above-average protein. Near-average fat. And near-average carbs when compared to a typical dry dog food.
When you consider the protein-boosting effect of the dried peas, soybean meal, corn gluten meal and alfalfa, this looks like the profile of a kibble still containing a notable amount of meat.
Who Makes Rachael Ray Dog Food?
Rachael Ray Nutrish was purchased from Ainsworth Pet Nutrition in 2018 by Big Heart Pet Brands… a division of The J. M. Smucker Company of Orville, Ohio.
All dry foods are produced in the United States. Wet recipes are made in Thailand.
What Are Rachael Ray’s Best Recipes?
Based on the weighted average of their popularity and ratings, here are our 7 most recommended Rachael Ray flavors and recipes.
FAQ
Why was Rachael Ray’s dog food recalled?
Is Rachael Ray peak dog food good?
Who makes Rachael Ray’s dog food?
Is Rachael Ray dog food high in protein?