Filler (animal food)
Encyclopedia
In processed animal foods, a filler is an ingredient added to provide dietary fiber
, bulk or some other non-nutritive purpose.
Products like corn and corncobs, feathers, soy, cottonseed hulls, peanut hulls, citrus pulp, screening, weeds, straw, and cereal by-products are often included as inexpensive fillers or low-grade fiber content.
Dietary fiber acts as a calming base for forming the stool in the colon, and it should help develop good fecal consistency, in addition to other health benefits such as reduced blood sugar
uptake.
According to critics, many commercial pet foods contain fillers that have little or no nutrition
al value, but are added to decrease the overall cost of the food, especially when pet food manufacturers attempt to keep their pet foods at a desired price point
despite rising manufacturing, marketing, shipping, and related costs. Critics allege that low-grade fiber fillers actually aggravate the intestinal walls instead of promoting health, and that carnivores such as cats are not able to successfully digest vegetable matter.
In rare cases, contaminated fillers have led to large-scale recalls at significant expense to the pet food companies. Two recent examples are aflatoxin
on corn in the 2006 Diamond Dog Food Recall and melamine
, which may have contaminated wheat gluten
and other protein concentrates, in the 2007 pet food recalls
.
Dietary fiber
Dietary fiber, dietary fibre, or sometimes roughage is the indigestible portion of plant foods having two main components:* soluble fiber that is readily fermented in the colon into gases and physiologically active byproducts, and* insoluble fiber that is metabolically inert, absorbing water as it...
, bulk or some other non-nutritive purpose.
Products like corn and corncobs, feathers, soy, cottonseed hulls, peanut hulls, citrus pulp, screening, weeds, straw, and cereal by-products are often included as inexpensive fillers or low-grade fiber content.
Dietary fiber acts as a calming base for forming the stool in the colon, and it should help develop good fecal consistency, in addition to other health benefits such as reduced blood sugar
Blood sugar
The blood sugar concentration or blood glucose level is the amount of glucose present in the blood of a human or animal. Normally in mammals, the body maintains the blood glucose level at a reference range between about 3.6 and 5.8 mM , or 64.8 and 104.4 mg/dL...
uptake.
According to critics, many commercial pet foods contain fillers that have little or no nutrition
Nutrition
Nutrition is the provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary to support life. Many common health problems can be prevented or alleviated with a healthy diet....
al value, but are added to decrease the overall cost of the food, especially when pet food manufacturers attempt to keep their pet foods at a desired price point
Price point
Price points are prices at which demand for a given product is supposed to stay relatively high.- Characteristics :Introductory microeconomics depicts a demand curve as downward-sloping to the right and either linear or gently convex to the origin...
despite rising manufacturing, marketing, shipping, and related costs. Critics allege that low-grade fiber fillers actually aggravate the intestinal walls instead of promoting health, and that carnivores such as cats are not able to successfully digest vegetable matter.
In rare cases, contaminated fillers have led to large-scale recalls at significant expense to the pet food companies. Two recent examples are aflatoxin
Aflatoxin
Aflatoxins are naturally occurring mycotoxins that are produced by many species of Aspergillus, a fungus, the most notable ones being Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus. Aflatoxins are toxic and among the most carcinogenic substances known...
on corn in the 2006 Diamond Dog Food Recall and melamine
Melamine
Melamine is an organic base and a trimer of cyanamide, with a 1,3,5-triazine skeleton. Like cyanamide, it contains 66% nitrogen by mass and, if mixed with resins, has fire retardant properties due to its release of nitrogen gas when burned or charred, and has several other industrial uses....
, which may have contaminated wheat gluten
Wheat gluten (food)
Wheat gluten, also called seitan , wheat meat, mock duck, gluten meat, or simply gluten, is a food made from the gluten of wheat...
and other protein concentrates, in the 2007 pet food recalls
2007 pet food recalls
The 2007 pet food recalls comprise the contamination and wide recall of many brands of cat and dog foods beginning in March 2007, and the ensuing developments involving the human food supply. The recalls in North America, Europe, and South Africa came in response to reports of renal failure in pets...
.