IS BONZA A HOLISTIC DOG FOOD?

By the strictest of definitions, a food itself cannot be holistic however your dog’s diet can be.

By general definition holistic relates to or is concerned with wholes or with complete systems rather than with the analysis of, treatment of, or dissection into parts.

Holistic in medical terms is defined as ‘being concerned with the care of the entire person in all aspects of well-being, including the physical, psychological, and social, rather than with diseases and symptoms in isolation, and often using natural or traditional remedies.’

Holism approaches the health of the person, or dog, from a ‘Prevention is better than cure’ standpoint.

What is holistic dog food?

There is no legally enforceable definition of a holistic dog food, but it is commonly used by dog food manufacturers for a food that is made from top-quality ingredients (no by-products) that have not been processed or refined, nor had fillers, or dyes added.

A more important characteristic of your dog’s food, and one that has some regulatory definition, is ‘natural’. As it relates dog food, the European Petfood Industry Federation (FEDIAF) states that natural pet foods should only contain components to which nothing has been added and have undergone only processing that maintains their natural composition. FEDIAF allows the use of synthetic vitamins and minerals with an appropriate disclaimer.

In the US, The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) defines natural food as “A feed or ingredient derived solely from plant, animal or mined sources, either in its unprocessed state or having been subject to physical processing, heat processing, rendering, purification, extraction, hydrolysis, enzymolysis or fermentation, but not having been produced or subjected to a chemically synthetic process and not containing any additives or processing aids that are chemically synthetic, except in amounts as might occur unavoidably in good manufacturing practices.”

As with the FEDIAF’s exception, AAFCO’s guidelines state that natural dog food products can include synthetic sources of essential amino acids, vitamins or minerals. The natural claim must include a disclaimer statement.

Unfortunately, the misuse of the term holistic dog food by marketers of foods has degraded what is a very appropriate approach to your dog’s diet. and in turn their best health.

A holistic approach to your dog’s nutrition and health involves addressing not just their diet and the impact of this on their physical health but equally on their mental health and overall wellbeing.

As with humans it is well understood that a diet composed of plants, with their abundance of antioxidants and anti-inflammatories, help to reduce the most prevalent markers of diseases including diabetes, cardiovascular, osteoarthritis and cancers – chronic inflammation.

Reducing your dog’s exposure to ingredients which may contribute to inflammation - additives, toxins, saturated fats, allergens – is part of a holistic, or preventative, approach to their nutrition and in turn their health.

Ensuring your dog is fed holistically with a natural dog food that is complete and balanced provides them with the best foundation for their overall health and wellbeing, physically and emotionally.

In developing Bonza plant-based food we considered our recipe from both natural and holistic perspectives. Our food had to be all natural at the same time be holistic from a nutrition, and health, point of view.

Our focus is on a preventative approach to nutrition, to establishing the strongest foundation for your dog’s continuing good health.

Our plant-based ingredients contain a balance of quality naturally occurring amino acids from a variety of quality sources including quinoa, oats, sweet potato, chickpeas, fava beans, potato, nutritional yeast and seaweed.

As methionine is a vitally important amino acid for your dog, we chose to include a synthesised version to guarantee there is sufficient in their food.

Bonza’s ingredients contain an abundance of the naturally occurring vitamins and minerals, understood to be more bioavailable than synthesised versions, to provide them with all they need for proper maintenance and function. To ensure our food contains sufficient levels we include high quality vitamins and chelated minerals from both naturally occurring and synthesised sources

The source of the carbohydrates, a necessary part of their diet, are complex carbohydrates selected for their low Glycaemic Index (GI) and Glycaemic Load (GL) values because these support lower blood sugar spikes and inflammation.

The fats in Bonza, all plant-based, include a blend of healthy fat sources including rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, olive oil, seaweed oil and coconut oil. Each of these contribute different benefits for your dog’s nutrition and health – Omega-3, Omega-6, EPA, DHA and MCT’s.

Our food contains a blend of soluble and insoluble fibres so important for your dog’s gut health and microbiome and the impact these have on their overall health and wellbeing.

Finally, and possibly most importantly in our view, our food includes PhytoPlus®, our proprietary blend of herbs, botanicals and adaptogens, packed full of phytonutrients that are both anti-inflammatory and antioxidative and elevate your dog’s food beyond simple nutrition.

To ensure your dog benefits from the premium ingredients in Bonza we use cold extrusion to gently cook our food to preserve the integrity of the quality nutrients found in our food.

To answer the question. While we do not market Bonza as a holistic dog food, by definition Bonza is both a natural dog food and a holistic food for dogs that is both functional and nutraceutical.

We also believe that feeding our dogs holistically cannot be taken in isolation from the impact their food has on the environment and the Planet as a whole.

For a food to be truly holistic it must account for the impact it has not just on your dog’s health but also the often significant impact it has on all other systems that help to enable life.

Our food was developed with the ambition of being the most sustainable dog food on the Planet.

We are very proud of the result.

Bonza – Inspiring a healthier everyday life for your dog and the planet.