Kiwi Kitchens Dog Food Review

New Zealand has provided us with the fabulous ZIWI Peak and K9 Natural pet foods, both of which have proven to be really decent. In our Kiwi Kitchens dog food review we’ll take a look at this third option from our sisterly nation to see if it stacks up against these two reputable brands.

Note: This review is for the “gently air-dried” variety of Kiwi Kitchens. They also offer wet food, treats, and at the time of writing a new freeze-dried range of pet foods (not yet available in Australia).

Kiwi Kitchens review

Let’s take a look at Kiwi Kitchens Chicken Dinner air-dried formula for this review (the beef and lamb formulas are very similar).

On the packet they boast 93% barn raised chicken which is excellent, especially when you consider pretty much all commercial pet foods are around 20% meat if you’re lucky.

The first two ingredients, which we can assume amount to the 93%, are chicken and chicken liver. It’s likely the chicken part is by far the most significant and comprised of a variety of parts of the chicken. Chicken liver is a great inclusion to be fed in moderation, which we assume is the case in this food.

Unlike ZiwiPEAK and K9 Natural that seems to be where the good points end. Vegetable glycerin comes next, a sugar alcohol derived from plant oils (usually soy, coconut, or palm oil – it doesn’t specify which).

Vegetable glycerin will have been added for a few reasons – to act as a preservative, to sweeten the food, and also to keep it moist. Other than that it has no real nutritional benefit for a dog.

We find a couple of oils included in the food to aid health, wellbeing, and glossy coat. Fish oil is slightly ambiguous compared to other dog foods which specify a source (such as salmon oil), and we also find sunflower oil. It’s nice to see flaxseed included but it’s in a small amount with questionable benefit.

A summary of Kiwi Kitchens – is it worth feeding?

There are pros and cons with Kiwi Kitchens dog food, and although I wouldn’t feed it as the only product in my dog’s diet, it could be worth feeding as part of a diet.

The obvious pro is Kiwi Kitchens is mostly meat, including liver as a wonderfully nutritious ingredients which all dogs should have in their diet.

There’s very little carbs, and given carbs turn to sugar this is a very good thing. Dogs are essentially carnivorous so carbs should be minimal in their diet – that’s a big tick as far as Kiwi Kitchens is concerned.

One downside of Kiwi Kitchens is the price tag. Air-dried and freeze-dried foods often appear far more expensive than dry dog foods, but generally contain better ingredients (most kibbles are fillers). What many people do is feed a food such as this as part of the diet or sprinkle some on top of their other food as a topper or appetiser.

So, is Kiwi Kitchens good for your dog? Yes – but note there are better foods in the alternative dog food category for a similar price.

Where to buy Kiwi Kitchens dog food

Ingredients

The ingredients of Kiwi Kitchens dog food (air dried chicken formula) as of October 2021 are as follows:

Chicken, Chicken Liver, Vegetable Glycerin, Fish Oil, Sunflower Oil, Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Mixed Tocopherols (preservative), Flaxseed, Iron Glycinate, Vitamin E, copper Sulphate, Selenium, Vitamin B1, Vitamin B3, Vitamin, B5, Manganous Oxide, Vitamin B2, Biotin, Vitamin A, Vitamin B12, Calcium Iodate,
Vitamin B6, Vitamin D3, Vitamin K, Folic Acid.

Guaranteed Analysis

The guaranteed analysis of Kiwi Kitchens dog food (air dried chicken formula) as of October 2021 are as follows: