Meat and Bone Meal in dog and cat food

Is it OK for dogs and cats?

Dogs

Meat and bone meal is a permitted protein and mineral source in US dog food, and its nutritional value can vary with processing. US rules keep certain cattle tissues out of all animal food and treat any pentobarbital as adulteration; in 2002, FDA judged that the low levels found in its 1998 and 2000 dry dog food surveys were highly unlikely to harm dogs.

Cats

In one study that fed meat and bone meal diets to cats, rendering at higher temperature and pressure raised protein digestibility, and so did extrusion. FDA's pentobarbital risk assessment covered dogs only.

How settled this is: Limited by regulators

What meat and bone meal is

AAFCO's consumer guide describes meat and bone meal as rendered mammal tissue that includes bone. Added blood, hair, hoof, horn, hide trimmings, manure and stomach contents are excluded, apart from unavoidable traces. It must contain at least 4% phosphorus, and calcium may not exceed 2.2 times the phosphorus. There are also limits on how much of the meal and its protein is pepsin-indigestible. The definition covers mammal tissue in general rather than one named species. EU law (Commission Regulation (EU) No 142/2011) uses the name differently. There, 'meat-and-bone meal' means protein processed from Category 1 or 2 animal by-products. Protein made entirely from Category 3 material is called 'processed animal protein'.

Why it is in pet food

It supplies concentrated animal protein along with minerals. Rendering turns animal tissues into feed ingredients and removes most of the water and fat, leaving mainly protein and minerals.

What it does in the food

Mainly protein and minerals; the definition requires at least 4% phosphorus. The meat and bone meal used in a 2012 dog and cat study was high in ash (minerals). In that study, rendering at higher temperature and pressure (135 °C, 3 bar, 20 minutes) raised protein digestibility in cats and the digestibility of several amino acids in roosters. In dogs, the same processing raised urea after meals, which the authors read as less efficient use of the absorbed amino acids. Extrusion raised protein digestibility in cats but did not change total-tract digestibility in dogs.

Safety and limits

In the US, 21 CFR 589.2001 bars certain cattle materials from the food or feed of all animals to reduce the risk of BSE. These include whole carcasses of BSE-positive cattle and the brains and spinal cords of cattle aged 30 months or older. FDA surveyed dry dog food bought in 1998 and 2000. Some samples contained low levels of pentobarbital, a drug used to euthanize animals. FDA said the most likely route was rendered animal ingredients, probably from euthanized cattle or horses. FDA's DNA tests found no material from dogs or cats. FDA's 2002 risk assessment concluded that harm to dogs from those levels was highly unlikely. In 2019, FDA stated that any presence of pentobarbital makes a food adulterated. It also said many animal food facilities must have a food safety plan that identifies and controls known hazards. For ingredients from animals that died other than by slaughter, FDA's examples include Salmonella, decomposed tissue and residues of drugs such as pentobarbital. In the EU, meat-and-bone meal is the name for Category 1 or 2 material. EU pet food is defined around Category 3 material, with only a narrow allowance for certain imported Category 1 material.

What depends on the amount and the recipe

The mix of tissue and bone. Rendering temperature and pressure. The supplier's controls on raw materials. How the full recipe balances protein and minerals.

Not the same as

• Meat meal — Also rendered mammal tissue, but the meat and bone meal definition includes bone and adds a 4% minimum for phosphorus.
• Beef and bone meal — Names cattle as the source. The meat and bone meal definition covers mammal tissue in general.
• Meat by-products — Non-rendered parts such as organs, not a dried meal.
• Animal by-product meal — Rendered from animal tissues in general and meant for tissues that fit no other definition. It has no phosphorus minimum.
• Processed animal protein (EU) — The EU term for protein meals made only from Category 3 material, which is the kind EU pet food is based on.

Sources

1. What's in the Ingredients List? (ingredient definitions explained for consumers) — Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). Definition of meat and bone meal (rendered mammal tissue including bone, exclusions, at least 4% phosphorus, calcium no more than 2.2 times phosphorus, pepsin-indigestible limits), plus meat meal and animal by-product meal. Rendering removes most water and fat.
2. 21 CFR 589.2001 Cattle materials prohibited in animal food or feed to prevent the transmission of bovine spongiform encephalopathy — U.S. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR), 2019. Bars certain cattle materials from the food or feed of all animals, including whole carcasses of BSE-positive cattle and brains and spinal cords of cattle 30 months of age and older.
3. Food and Drug Administration/Center for Veterinary Medicine Report on the Risk from Pentobarbital in Dog Food — U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Veterinary Medicine, 2002. 1998 and 2000 surveys found pentobarbital in some dry dog foods, most likely from rendered animal products from euthanized cattle or horses. DNA tests found no dog or cat material. The risk assessment concluded that adverse effects in dogs at the levels found were highly unlikely. Rendering converts animal tissues to feed ingredients.
4. FDA Withdraws Outdated Compliance Policy Guides on Use of Certain Animal-Derived Materials in Animal Food — U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Center for Veterinary Medicine, 2019. Any presence of pentobarbital makes a food adulterated. Under FSMA, many facilities must identify and control known hazards; examples for ingredients from animals that died other than by slaughter include Salmonella, decomposed tissue and pentobarbital residues.
5. Commission Regulation (EU) No 142/2011, Annex I definitions (consolidated text, 1 January 2021) — Publications Office of the European Union (EUR-Lex), 2011. 'Meat-and-bone meal' means protein from Category 1 or 2 material. 'Processed animal protein' means protein derived entirely from Category 3 material. 'Petfood' contains Category 3 material and may contain only certain imported Category 1 material.
6. de-Oliveira LD et al. Digestibility for dogs and cats of meat and bone meal processed at two different temperature and pressure levels. J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr 96(6):1136-1146 — Journal of Animal Physiology and Animal Nutrition, 2012. The MBM tested was high in ash. High-temperature-and-pressure processing raised protein digestibility in cats and the digestibility of several amino acids in roosters, and raised the urea response after meals in dogs. Extrusion raised protein digestibility in cats but not total-tract digestibility in dogs.

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.