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Vital Essentials vs Hill's Bioactive Recipe

Vital Essentials vs. Hill's Bioactive Recipe

In this comparison article for Vital Essentials vs Hill's Bioactive Recipe, we'll highlight the key differences between these two pet food brands. To properly compare Vital Essentials and Hill's Bioactive Recipe, we'll use up-to-date nutritional and price information.

There are many factors to consider when choosing the best pet food brand for your pet. Factors such as ingredient quality, guaranteed analysis, product safety, brand history, and cost are among the most important factors to consider.

Throughout this Hill's Bioactive Recipe vs Vital Essentials comparison, we've utilized average data to make general comparisons. If you'd like to see individual product reviews, visit our Vital Essentials Review Page or Hill's Bioactive Recipe Review Page.

Guaranteed Analysis: Hill's Bioactive Recipe vs. Vital Essentials

According to AAFCO, all pet food labels must provide a guaranteed analysis of nutrient content. The analysis must provide guaranteed minimum percentages of crude protein and crude fat, and maximum percentages of crude fiber and moisture.

All percentages used in this comparison are averages reported on a dry matter basis.

Vital Essentials Dog Food vs. Hill's Bioactive Recipe Dog Food

Dry Dog FoodVital EssentialsHill's Bioactive Recipe
Crude Protein52.2%25.2%
Crude Fat28.7%12.7%
Crude Fiber4.1%5.6%
Wet/Canned Dog FoodVital EssentialsHill's Bioactive Recipe
Crude Protein53.7%27.5%
Crude Fat31.0%21.7%
Crude Fiber5.6%3.2%

Crude Protein Comparison For Dog Food

Protein is an extremely important part of your dog's diet. Without sufficient protein, dogs can develop a wide-range of serious health problems.

When you look at the average percentages of crude protein for dry dog food, it's clear that Vital Essentials provides significantly more protein. On average, Vital Essentials guarantees about 27.00% more protein than Hill's Bioactive Recipe. Similarly, Vital Essentials wet dog foods provide significantly more protein than Hill's Bioactive Recipe wet foods.


Crude Fat Comparison For Dog Food

Fats are an absolutely vital component of a balanced canine diet. Not only do fats provide energy, but they also serve important roles in the normal development and function of your dog's body. For example, fats help dogs produce prostaglandins, which reduce inflammation among many other significant functions.

The comparison table above shows that Vital Essentials dry dog foods provide significantly more fat than Hill's Bioactive Recipe. More specifically, Vital Essentials guarantees at least 16.00% more fat. Similarly, Vital Essentials wet dog foods provide significantly more protein than Hill's Bioactive Recipe wet foods.


Vital Essentials and Hill's Bioactive Recipe both provide roughly the same amount of crude fiber. For wet dog foods, Vital Essentials typically provides a little more fiber (about 2.48% more).

Vital Essentials Pet Food Ingredients vs. Hill's Bioactive Recipe Pet Food Ingredients

Here are some of the controversial ingredients used only by Hill's Bioactive Recipe.

Pea Protein
Pork Plasma
Brewers Rice
Caramel Color
Powdered Cellulose
Dried Tomato Pomace

Product Safety: Recall History of Vital Essentials & Hill's Bioactive Recipe?

Vital Essentials has been recalled 4 times.

  • July 8, 2015: Listeria monocytogenes
  • Jan. 15, 2016: Salmonella
  • Feb. 24, 2018: Salmonella
  • April 16, 2018: Salmonella

According to our records, Hill's Bioactive Recipe has never been recalled.


Disclosure: PawDiet has an affiliate relationship with stores featured (or linked-to) in this article. We are compensated for referring customers. Thank you for shopping with our retail partners!

Where To Buy Vital Essentials Pet Foods

You can purchase Vital Essentials pet foods from the following stores:


47 Recipes In-Stock Today

43 Recipes In-Stock Today

21 Recipes In-Stock Today

23 Recipes In-Stock Today

Where To Buy Hill's Bioactive Recipe Pet Foods

You can purchase Hill's Bioactive Recipe pet food products from these retailers:


Type Of Pet Foods Available

ProductVital EssentialsHill's Bioactive Recipe
Dry Dog FoodNone7 Recipes
Wet Dog FoodNone2 Recipes
Dog Treats30 TreatsNone
Dry Cat FoodNoneNone
Wet Cat FoodNoneNone
Cat Treats8 TreatsNone

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