Palatability differences between grain-free and ancient grain dog foods
In her research, Guazzelli studied the processing characteristics and palatability of two dog foods with identical carbohydrate contents, but different carb sources. The palatability trial lasted two days and included 20 dogs.
The ancient grain kibble contained ingredients, such as sorghum, millet and spelt, while the grain-free formulation used items such as potatoes, peas and tapioca starch.
“One very interesting results of the palatability study, dogs really preferred the grain free diets, compared to the ancient grains,” Guazzelli said. “Ancient grains have some health benefits, such as low glycemic index. So, they are very promising to be used in pet foods. Although our study showed they preferred grain-free, that doesn't mean they didn't like the ancient grains. There may be something in the grain free diet that they prefer more.”
Extrusion of grain-free versus ancient grain dog kibble
On the manufacturing end, ancient grain carb sources also behaved differently in extruders than grain-free dog food formulations.
“Different carbohydrate sources behaved differently during processing,” Guazzelli said. “So when you're formulating, even though you have the same amount of carbohydrates, if they're coming from legumes, tubers or grains, they’re going to behave differently. You have to let the operator know that, so they can change the inputs during processing.”
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