Attention conscious canine owners: you can help change the world, one bowl of sustainable dog food at a time. The environmental pawprint of pets is huge—the equivalent of driving a large SUV!
If cats and dogs established their own country, they would rank 5th in the world for meat consumption. Pet food releases ~64 million tons of CO2 a year, or 30% of meat consumption’s total environmental impact.
If you choose one of these dog food brands, you (and your pooch) can take a bite out of the methane emissions associated with pet food.
For this article, we looked for brands who opt for lower impact ingredients, while maintaining a science backed diet for pooches. We also looked for green business practices, local, ethical sourcing and a community focus.
Going forward, we’ll be moving to a more robust Brand Rating System to help us find the dog-gone best brands out there. This new system will expand what we look for to 22 criteria, such as ingredient sourcing policies, climate action, and product safety (which we definitely want from a brand taking care of our precious fur babies!). Read about these criteria here and look out for rated brands on the list below.
We independently research all featured brands and we ask them to confirm their claims. In many cases we personally review recommended products. This post contains affiliate links which means we may earn a commission if you buy something. Learn more here.
Our Top Eco-Friendly Dog Food Picks
The Honest Kitchen’s healthy whole food ingredients will have your pup feeling like they’re dining à la five star Michelin restaurant.
Certified B Corp Petaluma is one of the few vegan sustainable dog food companies. Their food is veterinarian formulated and extensively lab-tested
Holistic Vet Blend® offers a Dog Food Premix, a nutritional supplement you can use with homemade dog food (one of the most sustainable choices if you opt for sustainable ingredients)
Index: Sustainable Dog Food Brands
- The Honest Kitchen Jump to brand
- Petaluma Jump to brand
- Holistic Vet Blend Jump to brand
- Jiminy's Jump to brand
- Wild Earth Jump to brand
- Lily's Kitchen Jump to brand
- Pezzy Pets Jump to brand
The Honest Kitchen
Price Range: $9–$150
The Honest Kitchen were one of the first to create 100% human-grade food for pets. Most pet food is deemed “feed grade”, while human grade pet food contains higher quality ingredients and safer standards.
The dog food from The Honest Kitchen is designed to match the individual needs of your pooch—including both grain-free and whole-grain options. Their dog food includes: whole food clusters, dehydrated food, one-pot stews, butcher block pâté, toppers, and a base mix (just add protein).
The Honest Kitchen tucks its tail to GMOs, chemical preservatives, and unhealthy ingredients typically found in dog food. 84% of ingredients come from North America, some of which are organic or MSC certified.
They share a list of ingredient origins and only work with suppliers who use fair trade channels, provide proof of food origins, screening, handling, cleaning, and adherence to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs), and do not source from China.
The company has a discount program for non-profit rescues.
Petaluma
Price Range: $17–$94
To Petaluma, healthy dog food means that which is veterinarian formulated, extensively lab-tested, and meat-free. Even so, each cup of Petaluma has 33 grams of protein—as well as a complete amino acid profile and balance of omega-3 and omega-6 fats.
They’ve published a full nutrient analysis and have conducted vitro digestibility tests showing dogs can absorb ~80% of the nutrients.
They offer a Roasted Peanut Butter & Sweet Potato for adult dogs or Baked Pumpkin & Peanut Butter for seniors. They also sell Sweet Potato jerky chews.
All contain non-GMO and about 50% organic-certified ingredients like chickpeas, potato protein, pea protein, peanut butter, flaxseeds, whole grains, and vegetables sourced (as much as possible) from organic, biodiverse farms.
Purchase their five or 18-pound bags once or sign up for a delivery subscription. If you’re not already barking up their tree, you can request a free sample scoop.
Petaluma is a Certified B Corp, Climate Neutral Certified, and a member of 1% for the Planet. They bakes everything in a solar-powered facility. Treats come in home compostable bags and they’re still working on more sustainable dog food packaging solutions.
Holistic Vet Blend
Price Range: $46–$53
Holistic Vet Blend’s Dog Food Premix is designed as a complete nutritional supplement you can use with homemade dog food (more on that at the bottom of the brand list).
The supplement was developed by vet, Dr Dody Tyneway Robi DVM, “to empower the consumer to choose healthy ingredients, whether they are organic, humanely reared, seasonal or local ingredients, and provide the necessary minerals and vitamins to balance them”.
Choose between the Limited Premix as a basic supplement or the Regular Premix, an elevated mix that contains nutrient rich grass fed beef liver from New Zealand.
Simply create a large batch using Dr Robi’s recipes (provided with purchase), feed your pet the amount indicated by the recipe for their weight, and refrigerate or freeze the rest, making more once you run out.
You can buy the premix though The Kind Pet which operates a carbon-neutral warehouse, while also allowing buyers to further their carbon offset with the EcoCart option at checkout.
Jiminy's
Price Range: $22–$50
Jiminy’s Cravin’ Cricket and Good Grub dry dog foods utilize crickets (humanely raised in ‘cricket condos’) and dried black soldier fly larvae proteins, respectively.
Both are complete forms of protein that are good for skin conditions and dogs who need an anti-inflammatory diet.
The kibble is free of corn, wheat, soy, and animal meat, instead utilizing oats (so not grain-free), quinoa, sweet potato, and other all-natural, minimally-processed ingredients.
Both the food and their dog treats are veterinarian formulated (by someone with two PhDs in animal nutrition and entomology) to meet AAFCO standards for adult dogs
The kibble is oven baked in the USA in small batches, rather than extruded (cooked in high heat and pressure), ensuring more nutrients remain. Compared to traditional dog food, you’ll also save 500,000 gallons of water per year switching your dog to theirs.
Wild Earth
Price Range: $17–$125
Wild Earth makes 100% plant-based superfood kibble and treats for all breeds—tiny terriers to massive-mastiffs.
They call it Clean High Protein Dog Food, with Zero Junk. Instead of fillers, “mystery” meat, and preservatives, their vegan dog food includes ingredients like dried yeast, oats, peas, sweet potato, and chickpeas.
This food is 31% natural clean protein, full of fiber, and provides all the joint and digestive support dogs need. Just like a meat-free (or even meat-reduced) human diet, getting rid of animal products helps to drastically reduce Fido’s environmental impact—by as much as 90%.
Not only is it better for the planet, but the 10 essential amino acids contribute to more energy, shinier coats, fewer allergies, and a healthier weight.
A survey of 3,000 of their customers showed that after just three bags of Wild Earth, 78% of dogs showed health improvements.
Lily's Kitchen
Price Range: £4–£155
UK-based Lily’s Kitchen gets the award for the most creative culinary selection. Clever names like Breakfast Crunch and cute packaging will catch the eyes of anyone wrapped around their dog’s (or cat’s) paw.
The company produces “proper food” in the form of both wet dog food and dry dog food. Instead of cheap fillers, you can expect to see wholesome, nutritious, and natural ingredients like real meat and/or vegetables.
Pezzy Pets
Price Range: $12–$46
Based in Berkeley, California, Pezzy doesn’t make dog food, per se, but they do make a food topper and waste free dog treats without any of the fillers and chemical preservatives.
Their solution to ensuring dogs get sufficient protein without the environmentally damaging meat industry?
100% invasive fish. Specifically, the devil fish (AKA armored catfish) that infests Mexican freshwaters, now accounting for up 70% of fish captured in some places. Fishing for these actually increases biodiversity by removing competition from necessary native species.
All fish are wild caught by “artisanal fishermen” in Mexico who earn 40% more on average than those in similar positions. So far, they’ve removed 100 tons of invasive fish.
After that, the fish are processed in an FDA-registered facility in Tabasco, Mexico where they are dried partially using solar dehydrators.
Their packaging (including stickers and boxes) is 100% compostable.
Making Your Own Sustainable Dog Food
As with most products, the most affordable, low waste and environmentally friendly dog food can be that which you make yourself.
Yes, this option takes time, but knowing exactly what’s going into Bruiser’s bowl can be well worth the added effort it takes to meal prep for your pup. Not only from a health perspective but also from a sustainability perspective.
Thankfully, it’s not about rolling and baking little bits of kibble. It’s mixing up a bowl of whole ingredients that will fill all your dog’s dietary needs. Ideally, you want equal parts protein, raw veggies, and root veggies (like sweet potato and pumpkin). You can even try sourcing these from local farmers who have meat and produce that maybe isn’t good enough to sell but would suit Fido just fine.
Have a look at Treading My Own Path’s dog food recipe for inspiration. This is just a brief idea of this process, but if it’s the path you choose to take, make sure you do your research and ideally chat with your vet about your pet’s nutritional needs.
And while you’re at it, discuss how much food your dog should be getting based on their activity level, because overfeeding is a quick way to waste food.
- Talk to your vet about your pet’s needs. This should always be step number one when changing your pet’s diet in any way.
- Know what foods are safe and unsafe for canine consumption.
- Research the nutritional needs of your dog’s specific breed and lifestyle
- Only commit to this if you have the time to follow through. Switching your dog’s food too often can be unhealthy, too.
- Check out our guide on freezing meat without plastic as it’s important to keep your doggy mince fresh, too!
Consider supporting one of these dog food brands who are doing better for the planet and sharing the love with fellow dog lovers.
If you want a vegan pet, get a rabbit. Cats and dogs CANNOT be vegan, and it’s irresponsible and neglectful to try and force them to be.
What is your evidence? I haven’t seen any peer-reviewed vet studies saying so.
Hi I agree with Nick… there are so many pet foods claiming sustainability just because they plant a lot of trees to absorb the carbon that they produce.
Those trees can’t absorb the pesticides and fertiliser runoff from growing feed crops, or the damage that farm animal’s waste does to local water supplies.
The problem with relying on just offal in pet food is that the multi multi billion dollar pet industry can’t support itself just on scraps, there aren’t enough to go around.
Even vegan pet foods need so much soya that they’re not particularly sustainable.
Black Soldier Fly larvae based pet foods have a much smaller environmental footprint than vegetable or cricket based diets. BSF larvae can eat a wider range of vegetable waste and grow much more quickly and efficiently, and their neural systems are much less complex than fully formed insects.
There’s an amazing food called Yora in the UK that is by far the most sustainable. There’s no such thing as sustainable meat.
These are NOT eco friendly dog foods. The most sustainable pet foods use animal by-products that would otherwise be discarded to rot down releasing greenhouse gases. Giving your dog “ human grade meat” is the most environmentally damaging way to feed your pet.