Best American-Made Dog Food and Treats: The Honest Kitchen, Earthborn, and More

In 2007, wheat gluten and rice protein imported from China and contaminated with melamine set off one of the largest pet food recalls in US history. Many owners have checked the origin of their dog's food ever since.

"Made in USA" on a bag of dog food tells you where it was cooked or baked. It does not always tell you where the ingredients came from. This guide names brands that make their food in the US, says what each one discloses about ingredients, and flags the lines that are made elsewhere.

What "Made in USA" means on pet food

The FTC's standard for an unqualified "Made in USA" claim is that "all or virtually all" of the product is made in the US: final processing here, all significant processing here, and all or virtually all ingredients made and sourced here. A brand that uses some imported ingredients should qualify its claim, for example "Made in USA with ingredients sourced from the US and around the world." That qualified wording is a sign the brand is being careful, not a red flag.

US pet food makers are regulated by the FDA, and most formulas follow nutrient profiles set by AAFCO (the Association of American Feed Control Officials). An AAFCO statement saying a food is "complete and balanced" is about nutrition. It says nothing about origin.

The Honest Kitchen

The Honest Kitchen was started by Lucy Postins in her San Diego kitchen in 2002. It makes dehydrated dog food (the Wholemade recipes and base mixes, which you rehydrate with warm water) and Whole Food Clusters, a cold-pressed dry food.

The company says its food is "Made in the USA with ingredients sourced from the US and around the world," and that it is made in a human food facility. It reports that 75% of its dehydrated recipes' ingredients and 88% of its Whole Food Clusters ingredients are grown in North America. It does not name the city or state where the food is made.

The dehydrated recipes cost more per meal than ordinary kibble and take a few minutes of prep. The base mixes let you add your own cooked protein, which some owners use for dogs with protein sensitivities.

Earthborn Holistic

Earthborn Holistic is made by Midwestern Pet Foods, a fourth-generation family company that began in 1926 as a small milling business in Indiana. Earthborn's FAQ says its "dry food for dogs and cats along with treats are made in the USA! We have four family-owned kitchens in Indiana, Illinois, New York, and Oklahoma." The company makes its own dry food and does not co-pack for others.

The exception is wet food. Earthborn's K95 canned dog food is made by a partner, Food 4 Pets, in Canada.

The dry Grain-Free Classics include Meadow Feast (lamb meal), Great Plains Feast (bison and lamb), Primitive (turkey meal and whitefish) and Western Feast (beef meal). Earthborn is ordinary dry kibble, priced well below dehydrated or freeze-dried food.

Fromm Family Foods

Fromm has been run by the Fromm family since 1904 and is based in Mequon, Wisconsin. Its About page says "we own and run our own facilities right here in Wisconsin," and that every bag and can comes from a place where the company controls the process. That covers its Four-Star, Gold and Classic dry foods and its canned food. Fromm does not list which ingredients come from outside the US.

Comparison

Treats

Treats are where imported product is most common, especially jerky and chews. These brands make theirs in the US.

Farm Hounds makes single-ingredient dehydrated treats, jerky strips and gizzards. Its FAQ says all its products are made in the USA and "transparently sourced from family farms located in the USA," and each bag names the source farm, such as White Oak Pastures in Bluffton, Georgia or Joyce Farms in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The company is based near Atlanta and started in 2004.

Portland Pet Food Company began in 2014 when Katie McCarron cooked meals for her senior poodle. It describes its grain-free biscuits and pouch meals as "100% USA Sourced & Made," with its whole supply chain in the US.

Full Moon Pet, founded in 2011 by Ryan Perdue, says its jerky and training treats are made in USDA-inspected human-food kitchens in the US, with poultry from Perdue Family Farms and other ingredients sourced domestically.

Milk-Bone biscuits have been baked in Buffalo, New York since 1957, when the brand outgrew its original New York City plant. The brand's listings say "USA facilities." We found no origin line for its soft treats and dental chews, so check those packages.

Bocce's Bakery labels its soft treats, training bites and biscuits "Baked in the USA." It started in a New York City kitchen in 2010 and does not name its current bakery. Its freeze-dried treats carry no origin line on the brand's pages.

How to check any pet food claim

Read the exact wording. "Made in USA" and "Made in USA with globally sourced ingredients" are different claims, and the second one is more informative.

Look for a named plant or state. Earthborn names four states and Fromm names Wisconsin. "USA facilities" is true but tells you less.

Check every line separately. Earthborn's dry food is US-made and its canned food is Canadian. Milk-Bone's biscuits are covered and its chews are not stated. A brand's claim for one format does not carry to the others.

Check recalls. The FDA posts pet food recalls on its website, and a US plant is not immune.

"Human grade" is a narrower claim than "made in USA." AAFCO's guidance allows it only when every ingredient and the finished food are handled and processed under human food rules. It is about how the food is made, not where.

Collars, leashes and toys

Up Country sews ribbon dog collars and leashes in its own factory in East Providence, Rhode Island, with cast brass hardware.

Coastal Pet Products makes its basic nylon collars and single-ply leashes in Alliance, Ohio. Some of its harnesses and reflective leashes are imported, so check the tag.

Ruff Dawg molds solid rubber balls, the Dawg-Nut and the K9 Flyer disc in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is a division of Jefferson Rubber Works, a custom rubber molder in business since 1975.

For more, see our pet supplies guide, how to choose American-made pet products, and the pet supplies category.