This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: In a new study, cats and dogs showed a short-term preference for kibble containing some protein derived from microorganisms over kibble containing only standard animal-derived protein. Ally Motta de Matos and A.L.B.
Cruz of MicroHarvest—an European company that produces protein ingredients through fermentation, with pet food as its first market—present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS One. Like humans, pets need a balanced intake of amino acids to stay healthy. Traditionally, animals such as fish and poultry have been the primary protein source in pet food, but concerns about the long-term availability and environmental impact of animal proteins are driving interest in alternatives, such as proteins produced by fungi, yeast and bacteria in manufacturing processes.
Prior studies have suggested that pet foods containing microbial proteins can be nutritious and produced in environmentally sustainable ways. However, the viability of such products also depends on pets wanting to eat them. To investigate the palatability of kibble containing microbial proteins, Motta de Matos and Cruz pitted it against standard animal protein-only kibble.
The researchers asked pet owners to give their cats or dogs two bowls of food simultaneously for four consecutive meals over two days. One bowl contained standard animal-protein kibble, and the other contained kibble that was nearly identical except that some of the animal protein had been replaced with microbial protein. The study involved 30 dogs and 30 cats, with all meals served in their homes.
Statistical analysis showed that both cats and dogs consumed a higher proportion of the kibble with microbial protein than standard kibble. Overall, dogs ate about 72% of the microbial-protein kibble compared with 50% of the standard kibble, and cats ate 51% of the microbial-protein kibble versus 34% of the standard kibble. Both cats and dogs were more likely to approach and eat the microbial-protein kibble first.
These findings suggest that, in the short term, the cats and dogs in this study preferred the kibble with microbial protein. More research will be needed to explore the long-term palatability and health outcomes of microbial proteins in pet foods. The authors add, "What we found particularly interesting was that both dogs and cats preferred the diet containing microbial protein in this short-term study, even though microbial protein replaced fish meal and part of the poultry meal in the formulation.
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