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Blackwood Cat Food Ingredients

According to our research, Blackwood manufactures 13 cat food recipes using 107 unique ingredients. To evaluate the quality of ingredients used by Blackwood, we've studied all 107 ingredients. In this article, we'll share our findings on Blackwood ingredients.

Cat Food Recipes13
Unique Ingredients107
Artificial Colors0
Animal By-Products0
Anonymous Meats0
Controversial4
Harmful0

First 5 Ingredients

Cat food ingredients in the United States are listed in descending order of pre-cooked weight. The first 5 ingredients typically constitute a significant portion of the recipe.

For Blackwood, these are the most common ingredients found within the first 5 cat food ingredients.

  1. chicken meal
  2. brown rice
  3. egg product
  4. pumpkin
  5. natural flavor

As you can see, the most common first ingredient in Blackwood is chicken meal. The most common 2nd ingredient is brown rice, followed by egg product, pumpkin, and natural flavor.

Artificial Food Coloring Dyes

Blackwood does not use any artificial food coloring dyes. According to our records, none of the 13 Blackwood cat foods contain artificial food dyes.

Artificial food coloring dyes are unnecessary and potentially harmful ingredients. In general, we not not recommend feeding any pet foods that contain artificial dyes.

In 2010, the CSPI raised serious concerns regarding the safety of many artificial dyes. Most of the studies referenced by the CSPI involved prolonged or excessive consumption. Since most cats consume the same foods throughout their lives, concerns raised by the CSPI are alarming to say the least.

To read more about Artificial Food Dyes, click here.

Animal By-Products

According to our records, Blackwood does not contain any animal by-products.

Animal by-products are basically the leftover parts of the the carcass after its been processed for meat. AAFCO defines by-products as the non-rendered, clean parts, other than meat, derived from slaughtered mammals.

Although by-products are still fairly nutritious ingredients, consumers have equated them with slaughterhouse waste. Therefore, most premium brands, including Blackwood have decided to remove by-products and instead use named organ meats (beef liver, chicken gizzards).

For further reading on the controversy over animal by-products, click here.

Anonymous Meat Ingredients

Anonymous meats are inexpensive low-quality ingredients that can come from practically any animal. These type of ingredients are often used to produce very inexpensive cat foods.

In general, we prefer ingredients which specify the animal source used to derive the ingredient. For example, ingredients such as duck fat are much better than animal fat or poultry fat.

In our analysis, we've looked through all 107 Blackwood ingredients. According to our data, Blackwood does not contain any anonymous animal-based ingredients.

Cereal Grains

Certain Blackwood cat food recipes contain one or more grains. The specific ingredients are listed below.

For cats, we typically recommend choosing a grain-free recipe. Cats are obligate carnivores and therefore grains are not species appropriate.

The kibble production requires a binding agent. Grains are commonly used for this purpose in cat food. When purchasing grain-free cat food, grains are often replaced with another starchy source. This is also not ideal.

To avoid grains and other starchy additions, consider feeding wet or frozen recipes.

millet
4 Recipes
ground grain sorghum
3 Recipes

Ground grain sorghum is a gluten-free carbohydrate source. This cereal grain also provides a modest amount of B vitamins and minerals such as magnesium, iron, phosphorus, and manganese.

The following recipes contain ground grain sorghum:

brown rice
4 Recipes

Brown rice is naturally rich in fiber and various minerals including manganese, phosphorus, and magnesium. Relative to other grains, brown rice is easy to digest.

The following recipes contain brown rice:

oat groats
1 Recipes

Oat groats are obtained by removing the inedible outer husk of oats. Unlike other ingredients derived from oats, groats are not processed further and therefore contain the whole grain.

Oat groats provide a notable amount of dietary fiber, B vitamins, and various minerals. Whats more, non-contaminated oats are gluten free; however, oats are typically processed and grown near ingredients which contain gluten and therefore contamination is not unusual. Always check the packaging to ensure the product is gluten free if your pet has allergies to gluten.

The following recipes contain oat groats:

Controversial Ingredients

In most cases, ingredients which are given the controversial classification can be substituted with higher-quality alternatives. You should evaluate each controversial ingredient independently to see if there is truly a valid cause for concern.

Keep in mind, certain sacrifices often must be made to produce cat foods at a reasonable price. In general, the more expensive the product, the fewer controversial ingredients you'll find.

In our analysis, we've identified 4 controversial ingredients inside Blackwood products. These controversial ingredients are listed below. Click on each ingredient for more information.

dried tomato pomace
4 Recipes

Dried tomato pomace is a by-product of tomato manufacturing. It's considered a controversial ingredient because many people believe it is an inexpensive low quality filler. However, tomato pomace provides a notable amount of dietary fiber, B vitamins, Lycopene, and vitamin A. Although it is a very inexpensive ingredient, it is not nutritionally empty.

The following recipes contain dried tomato pomace:

pea protein
6 Recipes

Pea protein is produced by removing the starchy parts of peas. Pea protein is considered controversial because it provides a substantial plant based protein boost. This boost is undesirable because plant based protein is typically lower in biological value when compared to meat based proteins.

The following recipes contain pea protein:

canola oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols)
1 Recipes

Canola oil is a plant-derived oil from the seeds of canola plants. Although fat is an essential component of any diet, canola oil is controversial in pet food. Proponents claim that canola oil provides a better fat profile in comparison to other plant based oils. However, opponents claim that canola oil is typically produced with genetically modified rapeseed and that rapeseed oil has multiple adverse health affects.

The following recipes contain canola oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols):

canola oil
1 Recipes

Canola oil is a plant-derived oil from the seeds of canola plants. Although fat is an essential component of any diet, canola oil is controversial in pet food. Proponents claim that canola oil provides a better fat profile in comparison to other plant based oils. However, opponents claim that canola oil is typically produced with genetically modified rapeseed and that rapeseed oil has multiple adverse health affects.

The following recipes contain canola oil:

Potentially Harmful Ingredients

Harmful ingredients are those which have been linked to adverse health effects. In general, we do not recommend feeding any product which contains any harmful ingredients.

During our review, none of the Blackwood ingredients analyzed were classified as harmful by our system. The absence of harmful ingredients is indicative of a relatively premium cat food brand.

Blackwood Cat Food Ingredient Lists

Blackwood

Bounty
Salmon & Rainbow Trout Recipe For Cats
Blackwood
Bounty Salmon & Rainbow Trout Recipe For Cats
First Five Ingredients
salmon
rainbow trout
egg product
catfish meal
whitefish meal

Blackwood

Bounty
Chicken & Herring Recipe For Kittens
Blackwood
Bounty Chicken & Herring Recipe For Kittens
First Five Ingredients
chicken
herring
egg product
duck meal
turkey meal

Blackwood

Bounty
Chicken & Turkey Recipe For Cats
Blackwood
Bounty Chicken & Turkey Recipe For Cats
First Five Ingredients
chicken
turkey
egg product
duck meal
whitefish meal

Blackwood

Kitten Food
Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
Blackwood
Kitten Food Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
First Five Ingredients
chicken meal
brown rice
chicken fat
millet
egg product

Blackwood

Adult Cat Food
Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
Blackwood
Adult Cat Food Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
First Five Ingredients
chicken meal
brown rice
ground grain sorghum
millet
chicken fat

Blackwood

Indoor Formula Cat Food
Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
Blackwood
Indoor Formula Cat Food Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
First Five Ingredients
chicken meal
brown rice
millet
ground grain sorghum
whitefish meal

Blackwood

Lead/Senior Cat Food
Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
Blackwood
Lead/Senior Cat Food Chicken Meal & Brown Rice Recipe
First Five Ingredients
chicken meal
brown rice
millet
ground grain sorghum
oat groats

Blackwood

Special Diet Cat Food
Chicken Meal & Field Pea Recipe
Blackwood
Special Diet Cat Food Chicken Meal & Field Pea Recipe
First Five Ingredients
chicken meal
whitefish meal
chicken fat
field pea
lentil

Blackwood

Special Diet Cat Food
Duck Meal, Salmon Meal & Field Pea
Blackwood
Special Diet Cat Food Duck Meal, Salmon Meal & Field Pea
First Five Ingredients
duck meal
salmon meal
field pea
lentil
chickpea

Blackwood

Adult Cat Food
Ocean Fish With Pumpkin
Blackwood
Adult Cat Food Ocean Fish With Pumpkin
First Five Ingredients
ocean fish
fish broth
pumpkin
pea meal
natural flavor

Blackwood

Adult Cat Food
Chicken & Chicken Liver With Pumpkin
Blackwood
Adult Cat Food Chicken & Chicken Liver With Pumpkin
First Five Ingredients
chicken
chicken broth
chicken liver
pumpkin
natural flavor

Blackwood

Adult Cat Food
Chicken & Salmon With Pumpkin
Blackwood
Adult Cat Food Chicken & Salmon With Pumpkin
First Five Ingredients
chicken
chicken broth
salmon
pumpkin
natural flavor

Blackwood

Adult Cat Food
Turkey & Turkey Liver With Pumpkin
Blackwood
Adult Cat Food Turkey & Turkey Liver With Pumpkin
First Five Ingredients
turkey
turkey broth
turkey liver
pumpkin
natural flavor