A “Guaranteed Analysis” is used to put a value on four nutrients in your pet’s food: protein, fat, fiber, and moisture. But it doesn’t consider the water content of your pet’s food, which can a little be misleading. Even the Food and Drug Administration admits to this on their website stating, “To make meaningful comparisons of nutrient levels between a canned (or fresh) and dry product, they should be expressed on the same moisture basis.”
To determine the amount of protein on a dry matter basis:
Subtract the moisture percentage from 100% to determine the dry matter percentage
Divide the protein percentage by the percent of dry matter percentage
Multiply by 100
For a simple example, a food with 10% protein and 75% moisture is within the range of Freshpet foods:
100% – 75% moisture = 25% dry matter
10% Protein /25% dry Matter = .4
.4 x 100 = 40% dry matter protein content
This same formula can be used to determine the dry matter fat and fiber contents.