Natures Menu

Natures Menu Hearty Stew Pouches: With Salmon & Herbs review

Name: Natures Menu Hearty Stew Pouches: With Salmon & Herbs
Brand: Natures Menu

41.4/100Average

WetAdult

Flavour

Soft stew in gravy, in a 100g pouch sized for small dogs and small appetites. All four sit in Average because the pack says so little, with the named animal only 4% of each. Nutritional balance reads Outstanding, so the analysis holds up better than the wording.

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Our view

Likely to suit

Toy and small dogs, for whom one pouch is close to a whole meal
No waste: each pouch is opened fresh
Fussy eaters, who often take a soft stew more easily than a firm loaf
Topping a dry bowl with something wet
Dogs who do better on less fat, at 19.4% of dry matter

Worth watching

Only 4% of each recipe tied to a named animal, so no use for an elimination diet
Various sugars on every label
No vitamin A on any panel, and no D3 on the salmon

Written by our editorial team. Independent guidance, not veterinary advice.

How this scores

How we score

41.4/100Average

Protein and processingGood

Nutritional balanceOutstanding

TransparencyGood

ValueAverage

The details

Dog fit

Listed for adults of every size, but scaled for small dogs or for topping a bowl. A 15kg dog would need about 11 pouches a day by our estimate.

Food type

Wet

Life stage

Adult

Breed size

Toy, Small, Medium, Large, Giant

The score, in context

With Salmon 41.4
With Turkey 32.4
With Chicken 32.1
With Beef 31.9

All four Average. Typical wet food: Excellent.

The analysis underneath is respectable; the wording on the pack, not the food, is what keeps all four in Average.

What's in it

Meat and animal derivatives31%A legal catch-all for the flesh and by-products of land animals; only the named animal is fixed.
Fish and fish derivatives, incl. salmon4%Fish and land meat together in one pouch.
Derivatives of vegetable origin, incl. chicory inulin0.1%A soluble fibre the gut bacteria feed on, at a light touch.
Minerals
Herbs: parsley, coriander, thyme, dill0.015%A quarter each.
Various sugarsThere for taste, amount unstated.

Vitamin E at 100 IU, with manganese at 3 mg and zinc at 20 mg per kilo; no vitamin A or D3.

Carries both fish and land meat, and no vegetables.

Named ingredients

Meat and animal derivatives 31%, fish and fish derivatives (salmon 4%), derivatives of vegetable origin (chicory inulin 0.1%), minerals, herbs (0.015%, one quarter each of parsley, coriander, thyme, and dill), various sugars.

Against the range

Land animal: 31%; 35% on the other three.
Vitamin D3: Not listed; 200 IU on the others.
Protein and processing: Good; Poor on the other three.

The odd one out, and the best reading of the four.

Three pouches lead on meat and animal derivatives at 35% with the named animal at 4% inside it; the salmon drops that to 31% and adds fish. Vegetables are declared dried with their fresh equivalent. Chicory inulin, minerals and various sugars close every list.

Nutritional analysis

Declared analysis

Energy

72.8 kcal/100g

Estimated using Modified Atwater factors*

Protein

Fat

3.5%

Fibre

0.4%

Ash

1.8%

Moisture

82%

Dry weight

Protein

44.4%

Fat

19.4%

Fibre

2.2%

Ash

10%

Carbs

24%

As-fed composition

Estimated breakdown of the finished product by ingredient category, from the declared ingredient list and ingoing weights. These are estimates, not measurements.

Meat

57%

Added water

17%

Carbs

21.3%

Other

4.7%

Pricing & size