A Detailed, Evidence-based response to Petco’s Ban on “Artificial” Food Ingredients

Here is an article from Veterinary Practice News responding to the ridiculous marketing ploy by Petco declaring a ban on “artificial” food ingredients.

Since the late 1980s, individuals and organizations have been trying to warn the public about a deadly chemical known as DHMO. Though widely used in the home and in commercial settings, including the healthcare industry, this substance has been shown to cause severe lung damage and even death if inhaled in small quantities. Hundreds of thousands of people die annually from this cause.1

DHMO can also cause electrolyte disturbances and potentially fatal neurologic symptoms when taken orally, and it can cause severe burns and even explosions when heated.2A number of surveys have found high levels of support for banning DHMO, and elected officials in several countries have explored taking such action, but DHMO remains ubiquitous.3,4

Given the obvious dangers of this chemical, why do public health agencies not take action to restrict it? It is possible that funding and political influence from industry impedes regulatory action. However, it is more likely that governments have chosen not to ban DHMO because it is essential for life. Most people are surprised to learn this until they recognize the non-technical name for this chemical—water.

The campaign against DHMO (dihydrogen monoxide) has been used as a humorous illustration of the problem of chemophobia or chemonoia. These terms refer to the potent and widespread fear of anything labeled a “chemical.”5–7Nonscientists often assume that chemicals are inherently dangerous, even though the word properly refers to nearly every substance we encounter in daily life, from the deadliest poison to the basic necessities of life and even the materials that makes up our own bodies.

A concept integral to chemophobia is the Appeal to Nature Fallacy, the misconception that substances which occur naturally are inherently healthy and safe while those produced by humans, even if chemically identical to natural substances, are dangerous. Of course, it is easy to find examples that belie this notion. Nothing could be more natural than the E. colior Salmonella. Radioactive uranium, asbestos, and cyanide are completely natural. 

In contrast, the vaccines which have eliminated smallpox and polio are undeniably artificial. Antibiotics, synthetic vitamin supplements, blood transfusions, organ transplants, prosthetic limbs, insulin for diabetics, and even such simple and unheralded public health technologies as indoor plumbing and toilet paper have saved lives and reduced suffering for millions. Yet these are not “natural” in the usual sense of the word. 

Unfortunately, chemophobia and the Appeal to Nature Fallacy are widespread, and they often motivate pet care decisions. Some organizations and individuals take advantage of this by offering “natural” products or therapies and warning of the dangers of “chemicals” and anything “artificial.” A recent high-profile example of this exploitation of chemophobia is the announcement by Petco that the company “will not sell food and treats containing artificial colors, flavors and preservatives for dogs and cats.”8

The company’s public relations materials call this decision “a major step forward for pets” on “a momentous day.”8Petco effectively declares itself the arbiter of what constitutes healthy nutrition, even going so far as offering to “help pet parents affected by such a change to safely transition to a new food or brand that we believe is healthier for their pet” if customers are no longer able to buy a food they have been using.8Even though regulatory agencies and experts around the world have judged the additives on Petco’s list to be safe, the company has decided it knows better. 

The dramatic rhetoric in the Petco press materials may serve the purpose of creating a positive and profitable image for the company, but it obscures the danger of a marketing strategy that caters to unscientific reasoning and mostly unfounded fears. There is little in the way of scientific evidence, or even logical consistency, behind the Petco blacklist.9

For example, many of the “artificial” flavors and preservatives on the list occur naturally (see Table 1). Of course, the fact that these chemicals occur in nature doesn’t make them safe, just as flavors and preservatives are not necessarily unsafe if produced synthetically. However, the fact that Petco is banning naturally occurring substances for being “artificial” exposes the inconsistent logic behind this blacklist.

The health risks of most substances are related to the dose and route of exposure. And the risk of any substance should always be considered in relation to its benefits. Water is unsafe to drink only in very large quantities, but it is unsafe to breathe in even small amounts. It is also essential for life, taken at appropriate doses and by the appropriate route. The same logic, informed by scientific evidence concerning risks and benefits, should be applied to food additives, but Petco does not use this approach. 

Some of the substances on the list have no clear health implications. The color additives, for example, are almost certainly safe, but they serve no nutritional or health purpose.10,11,20–25,12–19These chemicals are added to pet food to appeal to the emotions and aesthetics of pet owners. While they serve no health-related purpose, banning these compounds is itself a way of appealing to the emotions of owners and their irrational fears, and there is no sound reason to believe this will benefit the health of pets.

For other items on the list, the impact of discouraging their use is less clear. Flavorings, for example, make nutritious and affordable commercial foods more palatable. Removing them may make it harder to provider appropriate nutrition to pets, and it may encourage owners to switch to homemade or other alternative diets that are often nutritionally inferior.26–31

The most clearly beneficial chemicals on the blacklist are the preservatives. Preventing spoilage, pathogen growth, and loss of nutrients in pet food is critical to providing healthy diets. In the absence of convincing evidence that commonly used and legally approved preservatives are actually harmful, removing them can only lead to less safe and healthy food for pets.

The evidence of health risks for most of the additives on the list is weak and based primarily on in vitroand lab animal studies that do not reliably predict the effects of normal use in pet foods. Most of these additives have been used for decades and reviewed periodically by regulators with no convincing evidence of negative health effects in humans or pets. Some may have risks that warrant removing them from use, but the evidence to make this case is lacking.

One can make the argument, of course, that any substance which has shown any hint of toxicity in lab animal studies ought to be avoided. There is little evidence, however, that this precautionary approach actually reduces harm. If the substances that are abandoned are actually safe, then there is no benefit. And there is always the potential that new, less thoroughly tested alternatives may have greater risks, even if they are “natural.”32

There is even evidence that some of the additives on the Petco list may actually have health benefits (see references from Table 1). Many have antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, anti-neoplastic, and antioxidant activity or other potentially beneficial uses. While the evidence for these effects is weak and based mostly on in vitroand lab animal studies, this is no less convincing than the evidence for negative health effects Petco has used to justify banning these compounds. 

Irrational and unscientific reasoning is not likely to lead to good healthcare choices. Unjustified fear of grains has led to grain-free diets making up about 25% of the dog food market. There is no reason to believe these diets have health benefits, and there are beginning to be signs that feeding these diets may be harming dogs.33–35The same reasoning that underlies this blacklist has also led Petco to sell raw diets, which have well-established health risks,28,36–42and to offer worthless homeopathic remedies43–47that pet owners may mistakenly substitute for effective, science-based medical treatment.  

The best way to protect our pets’ health is to rely on sound scientific evidence to help us weigh the risks and benefits of the food and medicine we provide, not to cater to irrational fears like chemophobia and meaningless distinctions such as “natural” and artificial.”  Table 1 provides a partial list of the sources, regulatory approvals, and evidence for safety and potentially beneficial effects of the items on the Petco blacklist. This is not a comprehensive review, simply an illustration that the items on this list are often “natural,” are judge by government experts around the world to be safe as used in food for humans and animals, and may have beneficial uses that offset any risk they may present. 

Veterinarians have a responsibility to support and educate pet owners and to challenge unscientific, fear-based marketing ploys like the Petco blacklist. The movement towards dangerous “natural” practices like feeding raw diets and avoiding vaccination is a real threat to animal welfare, and it is exacerbated by companies seeking market advantage through feeding and capitalizing on misconceptions and fear. 

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20 Responses to A Detailed, Evidence-based response to Petco’s Ban on “Artificial” Food Ingredients

  1. Gail Bradford says:

    Great article! I don’st have to be embarrassed that I have always fed PPP!

  2. Sara says:

    Very informative and confirms my suspicions. My cats want nothing but Purina Pro Plan – and I’ve always felt that was a good, reputable brand. So off to Petsmart for me. My cats don’t understand ‘marketing strategies’. Even if Petco’s intentions are good, they should not be able to tout misinformation and tell customers what they should and shouldn’t purchase.

  3. S Ghosh says:

    All Petco did was a marketing ploy for their stores. They continue to sell these “harmful” products online. Thanks for the article. I was hoping you would address Petco this year.

  4. J says:

    Thank you for fighting the good science-based fight! I logged in to the website today to reorder some food and discovered the “we’ll be discontinuing this soon” banner and a ridiculous page about “setting a new standard for nutrition” or something. It’s disappointing to see a nationwide pet supply store contribute to the chemophobic hysteria out there.

  5. kitty says:

    Thanks for the article. I am so annoyed by this. I have a Petco in a 5-minute walking distance from my home. Like Sara’s cat above, my cats like Purina Pro Plan, and I’ve been buying it there. I felt it was a good brand, and both of my cats like it. Now, most flavors are gone. Thankfully, I found it in a small pet store that still has it – for now, so I am going to shop there from now on. I might mention this Petco’s marketing ploy to that store, maybe they’ll carry “non-natural” food to make it easier for them to compete with Petco.

    The whole thing is ridiculous.

  6. v.t. says:

    I’m hoping Petsmart/Chewy.com do not copy this ridiculous policy.

    For concerned pet owners, smaller local pet stores generally will order your preferred brand for you, just make the request.

  7. Sabra Ewing says:

    They should just be selling dog food that is available. They should not be making nutritional recommendations.

  8. v.t. says:

    But, Sabra, the employees are all experts on the *best* pet foods, didn’t you know that?! 🙂

  9. S Ghosh says:

    What truly has me shaking my head is that Petco is implying they have either done the research, published it in a peer reviewed journal, allowed criticism of how the studies have been formulated, and that these results are repeatable. The average consumer is probably not skeptical when they are used to stores they regularly purchase from.

  10. v.t. says:

    ^ I guess I’m not an average consumer for pet food. I’m skeptical of holistic food, natural food, raw food, supplements, and dangerous OTC flea/tick products and other “health” products sold in pet stores (and now, ridiculous store policies). Just point me to the normal cat food on the tiny shelf between the rows and rows of “boutique and designer” pet food.

    When Rachel Ray and GNC et al get into the pet food industry, you know there is a problem!

  11. Mary Lanese says:

    You may want to consider joining this FB Group–they also have a group established JUST for veterinarians to join. They are a group of vets and breeders collecting data on nutritional DCM. They have a lot of data from affected dogs, testimonials, copies of studies from Tufts, UC Davis and others, and some very interesting data they’ve compiled on the diets these affected dogs were on at the time of diagnosis or death. Please consider it. Thanks!https://www.facebook.com/groups/TaurineDCM/

  12. skeptvet says:

    Thanks for the tip. I do follow a couple of FB groups on this topic (there are several), but I hadn’t seen this one yet.

  13. v.t. says:

    Mary Lanese, thank you so much for that link!

  14. L says:

    Have you heard of this one? https://www.drharveys.com/
    It never ends. I am so glad I went back to traditional veterinary medicine.

  15. skeptvet says:

    Yeah, and “Dr.” Harvey is a chiropractor, not a vet or veterinary nutritionists, so not an “expert” in any relevant way.

  16. L says:

    https://www.answerspetfood.com/index.html

    Here’s another one. No mention of a vet or vet nutritionist. Nothing.

  17. L says:

    “These statements and products have not been evaluated by the FDA. They are not intended to diagnose, treat,cure, or prevent any disease condition. If your pet has a health concern or condition, consult a Veterinarian”

    LOL

  18. Mo says:

    Great article! I don’t understand why Hill’s has acceded to this marketing ploy by reformulating their pet foods. Boo Hiss!!!!! The inmates have taken over the asylum.

  19. Pingback: Book Review- The Forever Dog: Surprising New Science to Help Your Canine Companion Live Younger, Healthier, and Longer |

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