Europa 50/50 Grain Free Large Breed: Salmon & Trout review

Both bags land in our Good band. The wider adult dry-food market averages out in our Good band too, so this pair sits right on that mark. Neither bag is ahead of the other, even though they read quite differently on the analysis. The turkey carries more protein and less starch; the fish leans the other way, and its nutritional balance reads Average against the turkey's Good. Neither of those differences should weigh as heavily with you as which animal your dog eats happily, because on construction the two are the same food.

Ingredients, as declared: Salmon and Trout 50% (including Freshly Prepared Salmon & Freshly Prepared Trout 33%, Dried Salmon 15%, Salmon Stock 2%), Sweet Potato (24%), Peas (9%), Potato, Beet Pulp, Linseed, Omega 3 Supplement, Minerals, Asparagus (0.3%), Glucosamine (170 mg/kg), Methylsulfonylmethane (170 mg/kg), Chondroitin Sulphate (125 mg/kg), Fructooligosaccharides (FOS, 96 mg/kg), Mannanoligosaccharides (MOS, 24 mg/kg)

Both labels break their 50% into parts, which is the detail that makes the headline checkable. On the fish label that is 33% salmon and trout freshly prepared, then 15% dried salmon and 2% salmon stock. On the turkey label it is 28% freshly prepared and 18% dried, plus 2% turkey fat and 2% turkey stock. Baking takes the water off fresh meat, and that leaves the dried figure to carry protein into the kibble. The analysis shows 26.1% of dry matter for the fish and 31.5% for the turkey.

The plant side starts with sweet potato at 24% in both, then peas at 9% in the fish and 7% in the turkey, then potato and beet pulp. There is no cereal in either bag. Estimated carbohydrate reaches 47.3% of dry matter on the fish, 42.4% on the turkey, against 46.2% for the typical adult dry food. On starch, then, the turkey is the lighter bag.

The joint pack is the reason this shelf exists apart from the standard range, and every part of it is dosed in print. Glucosamine and methylsulfonylmethane come at 170 mg/kg each, with chondroitin sulphate at 125 mg/kg. Glucosamine and chondroitin are cartilage components that any meaty food supplies in traces. Adding them at a declared level is the sensible way to do it for a breed that will carry weight on those joints for a decade.

The turkey recipe reaches for pea protein and potato protein to lift its protein figure. Both are refined plant proteins, useful for topping up amino acids but no substitute for meat. The honest reading of its 29% declared protein is that the bird supplies most of it and not all of it. The fish recipe uses neither.

Linseed provides plant omega 3 in both bags. Beside it is an omega 3 supplement, and the label never says where that one comes from. Fructooligosaccharides at 96 mg/kg and mannanoligosaccharides at 24 mg/kg are the prebiotic pair, quantified on both labels. Beet pulp handles fibre. On both labels the trace minerals are sulphates and not chelates, with zinc and iron at 50 mg/kg and manganese at 35 mg/kg.

Salmon and trout make the 50%, with asparagus at 0.3%: 33% of it freshly prepared fish, 15% dried salmon, 2% salmon stock. On protein at 24% it is the lighter bag, and on starch at 47.3% of dry matter it is the heavier. That suits a big dog with a steady routine.

£4.05 a kilo for the salmon and trout and £4.87 for the turkey, both sold in 15kg bags.

Take the usual yardstick of a 15kg adult dog in moderate condition eating about 840 kcal a day (110 × bodyweight^0.75, the standard maintenance estimate). On that, the fish comes to £0.94 a day and the turkey to £1.11. These are large-breed recipes, so scale up from there: the labels themselves ask 285 to 330 grams a day for a dog between 25kg and 30kg.