ACANA Cat Food Review
ACANA are one of the top brands, call it premium if you will. They really focus on what a carnivorous cat really needs in their diet, using really decent ingredients. For our ACANA Cat Food Review we’ll focus on the Grasslands formula, but the others are definitely on par.
What the marketing says
ACANA make some bold claims which really set them apart from many brands. It’s nice to see they use the term obligate carnivore, as most cat food manufacturers seem to think they’re obligate grain eaters – epic fail.
These claims are taken from the ACANA website:
- Rich in Whole Animal Ingredients
- WholePrey Superfood
- Fresh or Raw & Regional
- Craveable Flavour (from being infused with freeze dried liver)
These are fantastic statements, and thankfully true as you’ll find out within this review. As they say in Australia – BONZA!
What the label really says
From the off we find the food contains a wonderful range of meat and fish ingredients – lamb, duck, pollock, perch, herring, and salmon. This is fantastic as cats are carnivores. Not many cat foods can boast a range such as that!
Acana comes from Champion Petfoods, the same company that gives us Orijen. If you know your cat foods then you know that’s a very good thing. They get their ingredients delivered fresh every day, and use local fisherman and farmers. Their ingredients are “human grade”, which says so much about the quality and ethics of the company.
But how does Acana compare to Orijen? Let’s see…
The ingredients start off with boneless lamb. That’s good, but even better as it’s backed up with lamb meal and a range of fish ingredients for a very nice protein punch. Having named fish products is great to see, and means your cat is getting a great source of omega oils and other essential nutrients.
Acana have recently replaced russet potato in their foods which is good as cats don’t really need such ingredients. Whole eggs and peas provide an additional source of protein. The food is packed to the brim with fresh and exquisite fruits, vegetables, and herbs, including alfalfa, spinach, chickpeas, cranberries, and more. With this food you can be assured your cat is getting a great assortment of nutrients.
Like Orijen, it’s one of the more expensive foods, but you can’t really go wrong with it. Cats who eat this will eat less, and they will be healthy. It’s definitely on par with Orijen in my book.
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Where to buy
For the best prices why not order on Amazon.com?
Review summary
ACANA cat food is an excellent choice, full of the right ingredients, and none of the bad. If you’re feeding your cat one of the many cat foods filled to the brim with nasty grains, or even full of potato, then this is much more appropriate for your carnivorous cat!
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Ingredients
The ingredients of ACANA Grasslands dry cat food (as of January 2021) is as follows:
Raw grass-fed lamb (8%), fresh duck (8%), fresh eggs (8%), lamb meat meal (8%), whole herring meal (8%), turkey meal (8%), whole green peas, whole red lentils, whole chickpeas, lamb fat (6%), fresh wild-caught northern pike (5%), raw lamb liver (4%), fresh duck giblets (liver, heart, kidney) (4%), fresh turkey meat (4%), whole green lentils, whole pinto beans, whole yellow peas, pollock oil (2%), sun-cured alfalfa, dried lamb cartilage (1%), raw lamb tripe (1%), dried brown kelp, fresh pumpkin, fresh butternut squash, fresh parsnips, fresh green kale, fresh spinach, fresh mustard greens, fresh turnip greens, fresh carrots, fresh apples, fresh pears, freeze-dried liver (lamb and duck) (0.1%), fresh cranberries, fresh blueberries, chicory root, turmeric root, milk thistle, burdock root, lavender, marshmallow root, rosehips. ADDITIVES (per kg): Technological additives: tocopherol-rich extract of natural origin. Nutritional additives: Choline chloride 1000 mg, zinc chelate of amino acids hydrate: 100 mg, Copper chelate of amino acids hydrate: 10 mg. Zootechnical additives: Enterococcus faecium NCIMB10415: 600×10^6 CFU.
METABOLIZABLE ENERGY: 4040 kcal/kg (485 kcal per 250ml/120g cup), with 37% from protein, 21% from carbohydrates, and 42% from fat.
Guaranteed analysis
The guaranteed analysis of ACANA Grasslands dry cat food (as of January 2021) is as follows:
| Protein | (min) 37% |
| Fat | (min) 20% |
| Crude Fibre | (max) 3% |
| Carbohydrates * | Estimated 24.5% |
Stay away from acana for cats, my cat are vomitting frequently and i just learn that there is a lawsuit in the US. I have no clue about Canada but hey my cat are vomiting so something is wrong with this food.
I am very disappointed that when you moved your mfg from Canada to US you chsnged the formula of the Pacifica & removed the cranberries. Thats one if the main ingredients I look for as my 8 yr ild cat has frequent UTI’s. Recommendations?
When it comes to dry foods an ingredient such as cranberries would be a trace amount. For a cat with frequent UTIs it’s worth feeding a more wet diet and ensuring they have an adequate water intake (a water fountain might help).
I am feeding my 6 month old to 14 year old acana grasslands mixed with Pacifica is it ok for my kitten?
Hi Michelle, yes that’s fine.
Just bought Acana Pacifica for my 6 and 3 year old cats and surprisingly they love it. I was especially surprised by my 6 year old cat.
A friend suggested I buy Acana because I was giving them Kirkland dry cat food and noticed in both cats that they were scratching… especially my older cat. They both seem to have developed an allergy to the food, my oldest cat was licking himself everywhere, almost like he had flees (which he doesn’t). I’m hoping this will help with the skin issue.
My only concern is I read online that it isn’t good to give your cats fish on a daily basis… that this may cause crystals (urinary infection). Is this true and should I be worried? I bought a 7 kg bag and it was pretty expensive 🙁
Hi Patricia, a cat’s natural diet doesn’t really include fish as they feed off land-based prey. There’s no harm in feeding fish, but it’s not wise to feed it as an extended diet. Rotation is always good.
I started feeding my cats this food after adopting a kitten when he was 3 months old. He is now 9 months, the older cat is 2.5 years old. Since the kitten is approaching the “Cat” stage, I suppose we no longer need the Cat+Kitten formula. Would you suggest we switch them to a Cat only formula, or stick with this? (I do also have to admit, the older cat is packing on the weight, for now I’m not concerned because she was always underweight previously)
Hi Nicole, in general kitten formulas are more expensive as they contain a higher percentage of ingredients such as meat, which is a good thing. You can continue to feed Cat + Kitten and there’s no harm in doing so, but continue to monitor the weight of your older cat just in case.
I’m curious who sponsors this site. I like what I’m learning but I’d like to know who’s behind the curtain so to speak. Are there any corporate or commercial affiliations with any pet food makers or promoters?
Hi Derek, it’s 100% independent and unbiased. I have no affiliations with any other organisations or manufacturers.
I was looking at the freeze dried and wow, that is a lot of fish in the top ingredient list. Also, spinach depletes calcium and in cats and I’ve read that alfalfa is not good for them. Even if the amounts are minimal, why bother to add them at all. The fish isn’t minimal and though quality is a concern for anyone, fish isn’t species appropriate , nor is it that great for cats. Even wild foods I’ve looked at, sneak some kind of fish in there in the top five. I realize no food is perfect unless you make a homemade, raw food, but putting just one known, unhealthy or questionable ingredient in, is a deal breaker when considering the cost. It’s like…pick your cats’ poison.
I am currently feeding my 1 year old and 5 month old the Cat and Kitten formula. The kitten has really loose and smelly stools. I’m wondering if this is too rich for her. Any suggestions on what to try?
Hi Tracey, I’ve heard this a few times with Acana and Orijen, but the main thing is your cat is healthy. Alternatively you could try one of the other foods on our best rated list (https://www.petfoodratings.org/best-dry-dog-food/) or rotate between 2 or 3 foods.
I have two senior cats. One is fat and one is thin. Can I feed it to both?
Hi Katrina, yes you can feed it to both. Weight management is as much about feeding quantity and lifestyle, but feeding a decent food that isn’t bulked up with waste products and fillers is a great start whether a cat is underweight or overweight.
I am looking at the Acana Pacifica recipe and it is LOADED with fish. I have always heard that fish based diets are really bad for cats, but I read nothing but great reviews. What do you think about the Pacifica line (mostly the amount of fish) and fish based hard food in general? Thanks
Hi Kevin, we often find many foods use cheap fish ingredients or fish meals. With Acana Pacifica we find a better quality source of named fish ingredients such as herring and pollock. The concern with fish, and cheap fish ingredients is the level of phosphorous – that’s an issue for cats suffering urinary tract or kidney issues. I always see a varied diet to be more balanced, so perhaps mix Pacifica with other Acana formulas or other brands – there’s no harm in that.
This is the best food for my senior kitties. We feed them Wild Prairie. They love it, have no trouble digesting it, and it does wonders for their coats! Reduced shedding, no dander and SOOO soft! I love that meat by-product or meat meal is in the ingredients or a leading ingredient and that there are no grains. Well worth the cost.
Hello,
Both of my cats sensitive stomachs . I have tried so many pet foods to try to get something that is the best for them .. Which of your products would you recommend that I try?
Hi Jennifer, have a look at our list of best-rated cat foods.
Your website is an absolute Godsend! I have been feeding my 4 cats Regal Adult Bites for 2 years now (I think you should review that pet food and add it to your list, its quite popular in Europe)
And a week ago 2 of my 4 cats got bleeding bladder infection at the same time, one of them is 10 year old female and has never had any issues and the other is 4 year old male, They are both suffering so much right now, on antibiotics but the healing is being rather slow.
After a lot of research I found your website and I must say; What a great resource this website is, I’ve been scratching my head for months, years even, trying to figure out the best dry food for my cats and after reading your website I have decided to buy Acana for my cats + a water fountain to encourage them to drink more water.
Please consider reviewing Regal, there are a lot of people here that use it and seem to think its really good but few are good at reading ingredients, me included.
Thanks for your website!
Markús
Hi Markús,
Thanks for your feedback! I’ve written a review of Regal Cat Bites for you here – https://www.petfoodratings.org/dry-cat-food/regal-cat-bites/
Hi,
So it says Cat & Kitten for this brand. We are just starting to try it for our3 month old female kitten and our3 year old male. They are both Ragdolls. Would they both get the same nutrition they need if we feed them the same thing? I know that kittens need their fat to gain, while our bigger cat we want to have proper nutrition without gaining weight. This is also what our breeder suggested, but I am just concerned about the content in the food since our two cats vary in age.
Hi Rio, the food meets all requirements for a kitten diet as well as an adult diet, so it’s ok to feed to both your cats. It’s a very good food so worth trying. As with any diet it’s worth monitoring your cat’s weight over time and adjusting how much you feed accordingly.
Arcana is a fantastic choice of food for your cats. The only thing that I would really suggest is that unless your cats take issue with keeping on weight, eg. Sphynx, bengals, and other thinner breeds, really make sure you are controlling the amount your animals are eating. I was feeding my cats with this food for about a year and they were both gaining weight. Beyond that, it is one of my favorite brands.
Michael
How does Acana compare to Orijens in terms of price?
Acana and Orijen are the same company just acana is lower in price. Many people don’t know that.
Acana has lower prices than Orijen. Its the best food ever.
This product does not include taurine in the ingredient list. Is taurine being supplied through the whole ingredients at sufficient levels? Thanks for all the great info on the site.
Hi Dawn, taurine occurs naturally in animal-based protein sources so isn’t always listed as an ingredient. Acana Grasslands states taurine content is 0.2% so you can rest assured with this food ;o)