Dried Plain Beet Pulp in dog and cat food

Is it OK for dogs and cats?

Dogs

There is no known concern at the amounts used in complete foods. A veterinary reference says that at up to 7.5% of the diet's dry matter, beet pulp gives dogs good stool quality without affecting the digestibility of other nutrients. In one study, more beet pulp meant more stool and somewhat lower digestibility.

Cats

There is no known concern at the amounts used in complete foods. Cat researchers describe it as a moderately fermentable fibre. At 8% and 16% of the diet it increased stool output and shortened gut transit time, but it did not reduce the hairballs cats passed in their stools.

How settled this is: No known concern at the amounts used in complete foods

What dried plain beet pulp is

Beet pulp is a by-product of making sugar from sugar beet (Beta vulgaris). Sugar is extracted from sliced beets with water, and the spent slices are the pulp. The EU Catalogue of feed materials describes dried (sugar) beet pulp as these slices after mechanical pressing and drying. It lists wet, pressed and dried pulp separately from the molassed versions, which have molasses added.

Why it is in pet food

Beet pulp is added as a source of dietary fibre. Fibre adds bulk to stools and supports normal gut movement. Because beet pulp is moderately fermentable, gut bacteria turn part of it into short-chain fatty acids, which may support gut health. At the same time it produces fewer of the gases and other by-products linked to highly fermentable fibres. One dog study concluded that moderately fermentable fibres such as beet pulp give excellent stools without lowering nutrient digestibility. Dogs and cats have no set requirement for fibre, but certain fibre sources have health benefits.

What it does in the food

Beet pulp is classed as a fibre of low solubility that is moderately fermentable. In dogs, diets with beet pulp in place of cornstarch had about 6% lower dry-matter digestibility on average. Fresh stool weight rose as the amount of beet pulp went up. When cats were fed different fibre sources, the beet pulp diet was one of three with the highest digestibility of total dietary fibre. The 'crude fibre' figure on a label measures only part of the insoluble fibre and none of the soluble fibre, so it does not show total fibre.

Safety and limits

The cited studies describe effects on digestion and stools; none reports toxicity. In dogs fed 0 to 12.5% beet pulp (dry-matter basis), fresh stool weight rose from 117 to 374 g a day, and dogs on 12.5% defecated more often. The authors judged up to 7.5% acceptable. More generally, a diet too high in fibre can interfere with nutrient absorption. In cats, a blend of the most fermentable fibres lowered digestibility and caused loose stools. Moderately fermentable fibre was described as possibly important for gut health in cats. Beet pulp at 8% or 16% of a cat diet did not change hairball excretion.

What depends on the amount and the recipe

Effects depend mainly on the amount. More beet pulp means more stool, faster gut transit and somewhat lower digestibility. They also depend on whether molasses has been added. In the EU, dried molassed pulp must always declare its sugar content, while plain dried pulp must do so only above 10.5% total sugars. The other fibres in the recipe also matter.

Not the same as

• Molassed beet pulp — Beet pulp with molasses added. The EU catalogue lists pressed and dried molassed pulp as separate feed materials, and the dried form must always declare its sugar content.
• Beet molasses — The syrupy, sugar-rich by-product of sugar making, not the fibrous pulp.

Sources

1. Commission Regulation (EU) No 68/2013 on the Catalogue of feed materials, consolidated text of 24 July 2022 (entries 4.1.1, 4.1.4, 4.1.7 to 4.1.11) — European Union (EUR-Lex), 2022. Sugar beet is Beta vulgaris; dried (sugar) beet pulp is beet slices with sugar extracted with water, mechanically pressed and dried, with total sugars declared if above 10.5%; molassed versions have molasses added, and dried molassed pulp must always declare total sugars; beet molasses is a separate syrupy product.
2. Nutritional Requirements of Small Animals (Fiber section), full review Nov 2023, updated Sept 2024 — Merck Veterinary Manual, 2023. No dietary fibre requirement in dogs and cats but health benefits from some sources; too much fibre can interfere with nutrient absorption; insoluble fibre adds bulk and stimulates peristalsis; beet pulp has low solubility and is moderately fermentable; highly fermentable fibres cause gas and diarrhoea; beet pulp at 7.5% DM or less gives good stool quality in dogs without affecting other nutrient digestibility; crude fibre misses soluble fibre.
3. Fahey GC Jr et al. Dietary fiber for dogs: I. Effects of graded levels of dietary beet pulp on nutrient intake, digestibility, metabolizable energy and digesta mean retention time. J Anim Sci 68(12):4221-4228 — PubMed (Journal of Animal Science), 1990. Beet pulp at 0 to 12.5% replacing cornstarch; DM and OM digestibility about 6% lower; DE and ME as % of GE fell linearly; wet faeces rose from 117 to 374 g/d; mean retention time fell; more frequent defecation at 12.5%; up to 7.5% of diet DM judged acceptable.
4. Sunvold GD et al. Dietary fiber for dogs: IV. In vitro fermentation of selected fiber sources by dog fecal inoculum and in vivo digestion and metabolism of fiber-supplemented diets. J Anim Sci 73(4):1099-1109 — PubMed (Journal of Animal Science), 1995. Moderately fermentable fibre sources such as beet pulp promote excellent stool characteristics without compromising nutrient digestibility and may support gut health through short-chain fatty acid production.
5. Sunvold GD et al. Dietary fiber for cats: in vitro fermentation of selected fiber sources by cat fecal inoculum and in vivo utilization of diets containing selected fiber sources and their blends. J Anim Sci 73(8):2329-2339 — PubMed (Journal of Animal Science), 1995. Total dietary fibre digestibility was greatest for cats fed the beet pulp diet and two blends; the most fermentable blend lowered digestibility and caused liquid stools; moderately fermentable fibre may be important for feline gut health.
6. Loureiro BA et al. Beet pulp intake and hairball faecal excretion in mixed-breed shorthaired cats. J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr 101(S1):31-36 — PubMed (Wiley journal), 2017. Beet pulp described as a moderately soluble and fermentable fibre; at 8% and 16% it increased faecal production and reduced gastrointestinal transit time in cats but did not change hairball excretion in faeces.

Checked against these sources on 2026-10-15. Definitions are in our own words. This is a reading aid, not veterinary advice: a vet who knows your animal comes first.