Nat Self is our Executive Canine Chef. He worked in the River Café in London and before that he ran a dog walking service.
By Nat Self
It is my job to help source the ingredients that are used to make Honey’s Real Dog Food and to oversee the kitchens.
I set the same standards that you would expect in a first class restaurant. All the ingredients must be of the highest quality and the kitchens themselves must be kept spotlessly clean at all times.
Below are the criteria I use when selecting ingredients. Please note that we only use free-range or wild meat.
100% certified organic
We do offer an organic range but as our normal range (see below) is of such high quality we do not actively promote it. The meat, bones and vegetables purchased for Honey’s organic range are certified 100% organic. This means they contain no preservatives, colouring, additives or chemicals of any kind. Meat must come from animals that have been reared without the routine use of antibiotics or growth hormones. Vegetables can’t have been exposed to harmful pesticides, insecticides and herbicides. We don’t touch anything that has been genetically modified.
Farm assured
Honey’s also offers a farm assured range. The UK’s independent farm assurance scheme (you may know the little red tractor logo) guarantees that food has come from British farms that meet high standards of food safety and hygiene, animal welfare and environmental protection. Not quite as good as organic – but a decent alternative.
No factory farmed animals!
We won’t touch factory-farmed animals. All the meat we use is either free-range or (in the case of the rabbit) wild. We are concerned about the welfare of the animals we use to make our food. We know and trust all the farmers we buy from, most of which are our immediate neighbours.
We buy locally
Our objective is to keep ‘dog food miles’ to a minimum. We try to source everything from local, ethical farmers. By ‘local’ we mean as close to our kitchens in Pewsey as possible. During most of the year, this will be within 60 miles and usually a great deal closer. When ingredients are hard to source locally we may have to go further afield (up to Wales, for instance). We never, ever source ingredients that are not from mainland Britain. Please remember we only buy free-range chicken and pork and grass-fed beef and lamb (which is also free range, of course). Our rabbit is always wild.
Only the best will do
It isn’t just that our ingredients must pass the ‘suitable for human consumption’ test…they must be the highest quality ingredients we can find. We don’t buy anything that we wouldn’t be happy to cook for our own families.
Summary of food ingredients
Free-range chicken
Whole raw minced chicken and finely ground bones (66%). Grated carrot, turnip, broccoli and other seasonal vegetables (33%). Mineral and vitamin supplements (less than 1%).
Free-range pork
Whole, raw minced free-range pork and pork bone (66%). Seasonal vegetables (33%). Mineral and vitamin supplements (less than 1%).
Prime beef
Prime minced beef (22%). Minced ox heart (11%). Finely ground calf bone (33%). Grated carrot, turnip, broccoli and other seasonal vegetables (33%). Mineral and vitamin supplements (less than 1%).
Tender lamb
Tender minced lamb breast (22%). Minced lamb heart (11%). Finely ground lamb bone (33%). Grated carrot, turnip and other seasonal vegetables (33%). Mineral and vitamin supplements (less than 1%).
Wild rabbit
Whole wild rabbit (49%). Lamb breast (10%). Lamb liver (5%). Seasonal vegetables (35%). Mineral and vitamin supplements (less than 1%).
Please note that as all our ingredients are sourced locally and seasonally there are times when we are forced, for a short period, to replace an ingredient because it is unavailable. For instance, in the middle of winter there are very few lambs available and the same is true of young beef bones. When this happens we will always advise you in with your order.
For our Out of Season Working Dog Food the formula is designed for working dogs that are resting or in low-level training and includes: a slightly higher fat content for extra energy; Vitamin C, which helps promote the healing of wounds, scar tissue and fractures, strengthens blood vessels, assists the dog’s body to utilise iron and folic acid and supports the thymus gland; Magnesium to avoid muscle cramps. If you do not require supplements please let us know. Many of our customers feed this to non-working dogs with beneficial results.
Our Active Working Dog Food has all the above ingredients plus a higher fat content. Please telephone for details.
About our mineral and vitamin supplements
‘Let food,’ instructed Hippocrates, ‘be thy medicine, and let thy medicine be food.’ Thanks to the fact that Honey’s contains meat, ground bone and fresh vegetables all the nutrients your dog needs is in our food itself. Nevertheless, we do add a small amount of Aloe Vera to the food as this contains vitamin C, vitamin B12, amino acids, natural enzymes, germanium and innumerable other health giving minerals and vitamins.
Ingredients for Honey’s Biscuits
Peanut butter biscuits
Wholewheat flour, plain flour, crunchy peanut butter, full fat milk, baking powder and water
Cheese biscuits
Wholewheat flour, cheddar cheese, full-fat milk, vegetable oil, egg, garlic powder
Natural biscuits
Oatmeal, rye flour, honey, butter and full fat milk
Typical analysis
This is our statutory statement.
Out of Season Working Dog Food:
Free-range chicken. Moisture: 71.2%; Protein: 14%; Total Fat: 10.9%; Ash: 1.9%; Crude Fibre: 0.5%
Prime beef. Moisture: 72.2%; Protein: 16.2%; Total Fat: 7.8%; Ash: 2.6%; Crude Fibre: 0.6%
Tender Lamb. Moisture: 70.4%; Protein: 14.6%; Total Fat: 11.7%; Ash: 1.3%; Crude Fibre: 0.6%
Active Working Dog Food:
Free-range chicken. Moisture: TBA%; Protein: TBA%; Total Fat: TBA%; Ash: TBA%; Crude Fibre: TBA%
Prime beef. Moisture: TBA%; Protein: TBA%; Total Fat: TBA%; Ash: TBA%; Crude Fibre: TBA%
Tender Lamb. Moisture: TBA%; Protein: TBA%; Total Fat: TBA%; Ash: TBA%; Crude Fibre: TBA%
Vegetable-free Working Dog Food:
Free range chicken. 85% free range whole chicken, 8% ox heart and 7% calf kidney, herbal powder which contains iron, anti-oxidants, vitamin C, calcium and magnesium.
Typical analysis: 67.6% moisture; 18.9% protein; 11.3% fat; 2.8% ash; 0.8% crude fibre.
Prime Beef. 80% beef mince, 5% ox heart, 5% calf kidney and 10% calf bone, herbal powder which contains iron, anti-oxidants, vitamin C, calcium and magnesium.
Typical analysis: 62% moisture; 19% protein; 18.3% fat; 1.5% ash; 2.9% crude fibre.
Tender lamb. 80% lamb mince, 5% lamb heart, 5% calf kidney and 10% chicken carcass, herbal powder which contains iron, anti-oxidants, vitamin C, calcium and magnesium. Typical analysis: 66% moisture; 17.6% protein; 15.8% fat; 1.1% ash; 2.7% crude fibre.
Biscuits and treats:
Peanut butter biscuits. Moisture: 20.8%; Protein: 16.1%; Total Fat: 17.6%; Ash: 1.9%; Crude Fibre: 1.5%
Cheese biscuits. Moisture: 14.4%; Protein: 12.2%; Total Fat: 21.1%; Ash: 1.5%; Crude Fibre: 2%
Natural (no gluten) biscuits. Moisture: 6.8%; Protein: 8.39%; Total Fat: 16.1%; Ash: 1.8%; Crude Fibre: 0%
Dried liver treats. Moisture: 10%; Protein: 58.2%; Total Fat: 7.6%; Ash: 4.5%; Crude Fibre: 0%
Any questions?
If you have any questions then try the Questions (FAQ) area of our site. Also the Why Real Food? section has lots of relevant information. If you want to email us a question please click here. If you want to call the number is: 0844 656 1566.
We make your dog’s food to order. This means we can adjust the ingredients and quantities to suit his or her needs.
We make your dog’s food to order. This means we can adjust the ingredients and quantities to suit his or her needs.
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