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Cat food investigation finds toxic contaminants across nearly all brands
14 News • • business
Key Points:
- A new investigation by the nonprofit Clean Label Project tested 100 top-selling cat foods for over 120 contaminants, finding toxic chemicals in nearly all types and brands.
- Toxic plastic contaminants, the herbicide glyphosate, and heavy metals such as lead, mercury, and arsenic were detected across wet, dry, air-, and freeze-dried cat foods.
- Lead was found in 99% of samples from 62 brands, cadmium in 96%, and arsenic in 94%, with fish and seafood proteins generally containing the highest mercury and cadmium levels.
- Poultry-based cat foods had higher lead and herbicide contamination but were cleaner overall, with nearly 85% meeting purity standards compared to 25% of fish and seafood products.
- The report recommends varying cats' diets, preferring wet or air-dried foods to reduce lead exposure, and avoiding foods with plants in the top ten ingredients to lower pesticide intake.
