The challenges of meeting clean label expectations for pet food

Preservatives have long played a role in meeting consumers’ expectations of 24/7 availability of the products of their choice. But in recent years, as consumer demand has shifted to include a greater focus on health and sustainability, many common preservatives have become the target of consumer suspicion – including in pet food.

Preservatives excluded

Common preservatives such as propionates, sorbates and benzoates are all likely to be excluded by consumers seeking ‘clean label’ products, according to Eric Altom, a technical nutritionist specializing in animal health and nutrition for Balchem. Definitions of what it means for a food product to be ‘clean’ vary from one person to the next, but many health-conscious consumers will simply weed out products containing any chemical-sounding names they can’t pronounce.

Clean label comes at a cost

Alternative preservation options do exist, including natural extracts, vitamins and even new production techniques. In many cases, however, it will be necessary to reign in people’s expectations – both at the production level and among the customers themselves. “I personally like the idea of the clean label,” says Greg Aldrich, a research professor focused on pet nutrition at Kansas State University in the US. “But you have to understand there’s a cost associated with it, and that cost is a limit on what’s in the food and a shorter shelf life.”

Natural preservatives

One of the most straightforward preservation solutions in clean label products is the use of more natural or more familiar ingredients that can serve the same purpose, according to Altom. Citric acids, vinegars, lactic acids and similar options can all be used to reduce microbial and mold growth, he says.

Aldrich explains that many of these natural preservatives – such as rosemary extract or vitamin C, for example – are created by plants as self-defense mechanisms, allowing them to combat pathogens or oxidation: “In the world of plants, there are all sorts of antioxidant molecules that a plant uses to ‘detoxify’ all of the UV radiation as it performs photosynthesis. So we can harvest those and think of them as beneficial.”

Many natural acids are also used to lower the pH of products, creating a barrier to bacterial growth and helping to prevent the loss of moisture and natural flavors, Altom says. However, these solutions also come with some drawbacks. “Natural preservatives tend to be less pure than conventional ones, which means they must be used in larger quantities to achieve the same results,” he states. “This may impact the palatability of the product, or ultimately limit the amount of the preservative that can be added.” On top of this, many natural alternatives don’t last as long as conventional preservatives in food products due to their own limited shelf life, Aldrich adds.

Changing expectations

Given the limits of these plant-based, natural preservatives, Aldrich believes a focus solely on swapping one chemical for another could be misguided. “We have to think about what the real question is here,” he says. “Is it about the food form, or is it about the technique to preserve it?” He explains that, using today’s technology, it may not be possible to take a traditional kibble with a one-year shelf life and make it fit clean label expectations – but it may not be necessary either, because a raw pet food product may not require the same form. A refrigerated product with a 12-week shelf life may also be sufficient.

That’s why a certain recalibration of expectations may be necessary, both within the industry and among consumers. According to Aldrich, today’s retailers envision pet food with a two-year shelf life, and shoppers expect to be able to buy nearly any product, any time – and it’s easy to understand where these ideas originate from. “Consumers have come to expect that they can have fresh fruit out of season that has not had anything done to alter it,” he comments. “And we’ve probably created that illusion over the years with food chemistry. In many cases, we’ve solved the most challenging issues in terms of bringing food out of season. But some technology had to be invented to do it, and in the past that technology was preservatives.”

Educating consumers

Further advances in technologies such as microencapsulation may help to solve the problems of today. But for the time being, Aldrich says, the ultimate solution to the clean label challenge may be breaking away from the bag of year-old dry kibble, and educating consumers on why new product forms fit the bill they’re seeking. “What I try to get across is that this is a perishable product – it’s food for nourishment, not a leash or a collar or a fence,” he states. “If customers are really motivated by the clean label with no chemicalsounding names, they may have to compromise on some other things, and one of those things may be a two-year shelf life.”