Eden 80/20 Puppy Cuisine review

Eden 80/20 Puppy Cuisine settles into our Excellent band, a step above the Good band where the typical puppy dry food sits. Nutritional balance and transparency both read Outstanding, with protein and processing at Good and value at Excellent, which is the mark of a food with no weak side rather than one standout number.

Its strongest cards are the meat share, the light carbohydrate load and a calcium figure both printed and in range.

Ingredients, as declared: Freshly Prepared Salmon (23.5%), Freshly Prepared Chicken (20.5%), Dried Chicken (10.5%), Freshly Prepared Turkey (9%), Dried Sweet Potato (8.5%), Dried Field Beans (7%), Turkey Fat (5%), Lucerne, Dried Salmon (2.5%), Dried Egg (2.5%), Dried Herring (2%), Dried Duck (2%), Turkey Liver (2%), Salmon Oil (1%), Minerals, Glucosamine 890 mg/ kg, Methylsulfonylmethane 890 mg/kg, Chondroitin Sulphate 625 mg/kg, Dried Chicory Root Extract (as a source of Fructooligosaccharides (Prebiotic FOS; 0.048%)), Dried Apple, Dried Carrot, Dried Spinach, Dried Pumpkin, Burdock Root Powder, Dried Camomile, Dried Cranberry, Dried Seaweed, Dried Rosehips, Dried Aniseed, Dried Fenugreek, Dried Mixed Herbs (Oregano, Sage, Thyme, Parsley and Marjoram).

The front of this list is unusually crowded with animals. The bulk of it is freshly prepared salmon at 23.5% and freshly prepared chicken at 20.5%, then dried chicken at 10.5% and freshly prepared turkey at 9%. Behind them come dried salmon at 2.5%, dried egg at 2.5%, dried herring at 2%, dried duck at 2% and turkey liver at 2%.

The fresh and dried distinction matters when you read those figures. Freshly prepared meat still has its water in it when it goes on the scales, so 23.5% fresh salmon shrinks considerably during cooking. The dried entries have already given up their water and carry their protein through as printed. The declared protein of 40.0%, converting to 43.5% of dry matter, is the proof that the combination adds up in the finished kibble.

Dried sweet potato at 8.5% and dried field beans at 7% are the whole of the starch base, lucerne sitting behind them. No grain appears anywhere on the label. That holds carbohydrate down to an estimated 24.0% as fed, or 26.0% of dry matter. A puppy dry food typically carries 39.0%. Turkey fat at 5% and salmon oil at 1% cover the added fats, and both are named to their species rather than left as a category.

Calcium is printed, converting to 1.52% of dry matter and landing inside the range growth works to. That counts for more here than on most labels, because the food carries no breed size restriction and will end up in front of large breed pups. The joint package behind it is a serious one, with glucosamine and methylsulfonylmethane at 890 mg/kg each and chondroitin sulphate at 625 mg/kg.

The prebiotic side is lighter, with dried chicory root extract supplying fructooligosaccharides at 0.048%. From there the list runs on through apple, carrot, spinach, pumpkin, burdock root, camomile, cranberry, seaweed, rosehips, aniseed, fenugreek and a mixed herb blend. None of those carries a weight, so the whole tail reads as a finish. The added panel is properly dosed though, with the trace elements supplied as amino acid chelates and taurine at 962 mg per kilogram.

£7.42 a kilo, sold in 2kg, 6kg and 12kg bags, with a 100g sample bag also available.

Growth changes the sums week by week, so feed to the bag's chart for your pup's weight and age, then let their condition have the final word. The printed guide starts at 20g a day for a 1kg pup and reaches 735g a day at the very top of its range.