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yourockglencoco

macrumors newbie
Mar 28, 2007
14
0
Why do pet foot makers import wheat gluten and other grain products from China? Today's farming is highly mechanized, so I don't like lower labor prices would explain the importing. Wouldn't it just logistically easier to use domestic grain, especially since we produce so much of it?
 

CanadaRAM

macrumors G5
Why do pet foot makers import wheat gluten and other grain products from China? Today's farming is highly mechanized, so I don't like lower labor prices would explain the importing. Wouldn't it just logistically easier to use domestic grain, especially since we produce so much of it?

Normally they wouldn't but there simply wasn't enough supply of this low-grade gluten in NAmerica, so they went overseas for it. It wasn't a matter of labour price (although the Chinese supplier would have had to bid against, say, Argentinian and Ukranian suppliers).

The sad part is, that this ingredient is cheap filler -- especially in cat food, cats cannot digest it so they just poo it right out. It's in there because it's cheap bulk so that you can get that nice big bag or can of food for a budget price.

Look critically at the ingredients of your pet food and see what is in it.
Cereals are there to make bulk. Meat 'byproducts' are the left over bits (skin, feathers, tendons) and are substandard to the meat itself. Look for foods where the 'real' stuff comes first on the label.
 
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