Natural, Safe Diet for Dogs

A dog food made entirely from natural and safe ingredients has been released onto the Japanese market by Kankyokagaku Co, an environmental business in Iwate, northern Japan. Called "Ihatov", a nickname for Iwate in Esperanto phonetics, the pre-moistened food is made mostly from local chicken and brown rice, and is completely free from chemical additives. The product comes in 160-g packets, with each packet corresponding to a single meal for a small dog.

Jointly developed with Iwate University, Ihatov was formulated through a variety of tests on dog foods, including the dogs' appetite for prepared foods and analysis of key nutrients for dogs' health. The ingredients for the product are quite simple: farm-raised, drug-free chicken and organic brown rice. The limited ingredients also ensure the safety of the food because of their traceability.

In Japan, food safety has received increased attention in the wake of series of BSE problems, prompting consumers to demand food with labels clearly identifying its producer. Pet foods, on the other hand, are mostly produced in overseas factories where raw materials are often kept secret by manufacturers, exploiting a delay in bringing domestic legislation governing pet foods. Experts believe that these factories lack proper measures to protect against chemical additives used in the production process or pesticide residues.



Posted: 2007/01/31 10:43:09 PM
Japanese version