Why plant-based?
Dogs are not wolves. And a well-made plant-based food can give them everything they need.
Over thousands of years of living side by side with people, dogs adapted to our diet: they became far better at digesting starch and plant foods than their wild ancestors ever were. A properly formulated plant-based diet gives a dog everything it needs: protein with all essential amino acids, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals, all in the right balance. That’s the idea behind PLANTZ®.
What the science says
- Just as digestible. In a randomised, blinded 12-week trial with 61 dogs, researchers found no difference in protein, fat or dry-matter digestibility between a vegan dry food and a meat-based dry food with a similar nutrient profile.
- Healthy dogs. In the largest study to date, covering 2,536 dogs (Knight, Bauer & Brown, Heliyon, 2024), owners reported one or more health disorders in 36% of dogs on a vegan diet, compared with 49% of dogs on a conventional meat-based diet.
These findings are based on owner reports and show an association, not proof of cause and effect. Every study shares one condition, and so do we: the food must be complete and balanced. Every PLANTZ® complete food is.
Why we chose plant proteins
- Free from the usual suspects. Beef, dairy, chicken, lamb and egg are among the proteins most often linked to food reactions in dogs. You won’t find any of them in PLANTZ®.
- New to most dogs. Very few dogs have ever eaten pea, fava bean, potato or lentil protein. That makes PLANTZ® dry food and PLANTZ® Harvest Blend a smart, hypoallergenic choice for dogs that react to common proteins. Both are also free from soy, grain and gluten.
- Complete, not compromised. Our recipes are formulated to meet every nutritional requirement of an adult dog, with added taurine.
- Straight to the bowl. Plant proteins go directly into the food, without first passing through a farm animal.
TenderCraft™: the bite that makes the difference
Most plant-based wet foods are a pâté or a mousse. We wanted dogs to really chew. So we developed TenderCraft™: our own plant-based chunks with a genuine, fibrous structure.
Our process unfolds the naturally folded plant proteins and lines them up in parallel fibres, much like muscle fibre. This open structure gives every chunk its tender, meaty bite and gives your dog’s digestive enzymes a structure they can work along. And because the fibres hold together, TenderCraft™ chunks keep their texture even after sterilisation, a step every wet food goes through.
Most wet food is swallowed. TenderCraft™ is chewed.
TenderCraft™ comes in two recipes: one based on pea and fava bean protein (free from soy, grain and gluten) and one based on soy protein.
The PLANTZ® range
- PLANTZ® dry food: Adult (from 1 year) and Senior (7+). Complete plant-based dry food, free from soy, grain and gluten.
- PLANTZ® wet food: complete wet food with TenderCraft™ chunks, in jelly or gravy.
- PLANTZ® Toppers: TenderCraft™ chunks to add to your dog’s usual food.
PLANTZ® is made for dogs. Cats have different nutritional needs, so for them, discover our insect-based Pro Life Science® range.
Explore our other proteins
- Why insects? Pro Life Science® for dogs and cats
- Why fermentation? LEVENDO™ and our own fermentation blend