Analysers by YSI have been used to effectively measure cook and dextrose levels in pet food
Ensuring that pet food is both healthy and digestible is a challenge still faced by the industry.
According to YSI, its analysers have become a crucial tool for carrying out tests on the nutritional value of pet food quickly, simply and accurately.
It claims the completeness and balance of a diet can be determined by comparing the composition of the diet with the pet's nutrient requirements.
However, regardless of the composition of the diet it is essential that the nutrients are digestible, which is measured by comparing the level of undigested nutrients found in the pet waste.
Even if a diet is complete, balanced, and digestible, it must also be palatable enough to be eaten in sufficient quantities needed to support normal function.
For instance, dry dog food is generally made more palatable by improving the texture and visual appearance, and this is typically done by adding starch in some form to bind the meat together.
But although the starch is needed to act as a binding agent, it presents a nutritional problem, in that starches, or more importantly the sugars which the body breaks starch down into, are not a natural component of the canine diet.
To tackle this, the optimum level of starch must be determined.
YSI's 2700 Biochemistry Analyser and the newer 2900 model, both with unique enzyme technology, have proven their ability in achieving the required measurements.
