Highly Recommended
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Our Verdict
Acana Highest Protein Dog Food (Canada) product range is made up of four recipes which each receive the Dog Food Advisor’s rating, 5 stars.
Pros
- Includes prebiotics
- No artificial colours, flavours or preservatives
- Quality animal ingredients
Cons
- Expensive
The table below shows each recipe in this range including our rating and the AAFCO nutrient profile: Growth (Puppy), Maintenance (adult), All Life Stages, Supplemental or Unspecified.
| Product line | Rating | AAFCO |
|---|---|---|
| Acana Highest Protein Wild Prairie | 5 | A |
| Acana Highest Protein Pacifica | 5 | A |
| Acana Highest Protein Grasslands | 5 | A |
| Acana Highest Protein Ranchlands | 5 | A |
Recipe and Label Analysis
Acana Highest Protein Grasslands was selected to represent the other products in the line for detailed recipe and nutrient analysis.
Acana Highest Protein Grasslands Recipe
Estimated Dry Matter Nutrient Content
Protein
Fat
CarbsCarbohydrates
Lamb, duck, eggs, lamb meal, goat meal, catfish meal, whole red lentils, whole pinto beans, chicken fat, whole green lentils, whole chickpeas, lentil fiber, pea starch, quail, rainbow trout, duck meal, fish oil, natural lamb flavor, whole green peas, whole yellow peas, lamb liver, duck liver, lamb tripe, lamb kidney, collard greens, salt, dried kelp, zinc proteinate, whole pumpkin, whole butternut squash, whole apples, whole pears, mixed tocopherols (preservative), riboflavin, folic acid, vitamin A acetate, vitamin E supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, freeze-dried lamb, freeze-dried duck, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, copper proteinate, dried chicory root, turmeric, sarsaparilla root, althea root, rosehips, juniper berries, citric acid (preservative), rosemary extract, dried lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried bifidobacterium animalis fermentation product, dried lactobacillus casei fermentation product
Fiber (estimated dry matter content) = 6%
Red denotes any controversial items
| Estimated Nutrient Content | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Method | Protein | Fat | Carbs |
| Guaranteed Analysis | 35% | 17% | NA |
| Dry Matter Basis | 40% | 19% | 33% |
| Calorie Weighted Basis | 33% | 39% | 28% |
Ingredients Analysis
The first ingredient in this dog food is lamb. Although it is a quality item, raw lamb contains up to 73% water. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.
After processing, this item would probably account for a smaller part of the total content of the finished product.
The second ingredient is duck, another quality, raw item inclusive of moisture. After cooking, most of that moisture is lost, reducing the meat content to just a fraction of its original weight.
After processing, this item would probably account for a smaller part of the total content of the finished product.
The third ingredient includes whole eggs. Eggs are easy to digest and have an exceptionally high biological value.
The next ingredient is lamb meal. Lamb meal is considered a meat concentrate and contains nearly 300% more protein than fresh lamb.
The next two ingredients are turkey meal and herring meal, both protein-rich meat concentrate.
The next ingredients are whole green peas and whole red lentils. Both are a quality source of carbohydrates. And like all legumes, they’re rich in natural fiber.
The ninth ingredient is whole chickpeas. Chickpeas (also known as garbanzo beans) are a good source of carbohydrates. Plus they’re naturally rich in dietary fiber.
However, both peas and lentils contain about 25% protein (and chickpeas 27%), a factor that must be considered when judging the actual meat content of this dog food.
From here, the list goes on to include a number of other items.
But to be realistic, ingredients located this far down the list (other than nutritional supplements) are not likely to affect the overall rating of this Acana product.
With four notable exceptions…
First, it’s important to note that a number of ingredients included in this recipe are each a type of legume:
- Green peas
- Red lentils
- Chickpeas
- Green lentils
- Pinto beans
- Yellow peas
Although they’re a mixture of quality plant ingredients, there’s an important issue to consider here. And that’s the recipe design practice known as ingredient splitting.
If we were to combine all these individual items together and report them as one, that newer combination may occupy a significantly higher position on the list.
In addition, legumes contain about 25% protein, a factor that must also be considered when judging the meat content of this dog food.
In addition, we find lentil fiber, a mixture of both soluble and insoluble dietary fiber derived from lentils. Aside from the usual benefits of fiber, this agricultural by-product provides no other nutritional value to a dog.
Next, chicory root is rich in inulin, a starch-like compound made up of repeating units of carbohydrates and found in certain roots and tubers.
Not only is inulin a natural source of soluble dietary fiber, it’s also a prebiotic used to promote the growth of healthy bacteria in a dog’s digestive tract.
And lastly, this food contains chelated minerals, minerals that have been chemically attached to protein. This makes them easier to absorb. Chelated minerals are usually found in better dog foods.
Nutrient Analysis
Based on its ingredients alone, Acana Highest Protein Grasslands Dog Food (Canada) looks like an above-average dry product.
The dashboard displays a dry matter protein reading of 39.7%, a fat level of 19.6% and estimated carbohydrates of about 26.8%.
As a group, the brand features an average protein content of 39.7% and a mean fat level of 19.6%. Together, these figures suggest a carbohydrate content of 27.3% for the overall product line.
And a fat-to-protein ratio of about 49%.
Which means this Acana product line contains…
Above-average protein. Above-average fat. And below-average carbs when compared to a typical dry dog food.
Even when you consider the protein-boosting effect of the various legumes and dried alfalfa, this looks like the profile of a kibble containing a significant amount of meat.
Acana Dog Food Recall History
The following automated list (if present) includes all dog food recalls related to Acana through March 2025.
No recalls noted.
You can view a complete list of all dog food recalls since 2009 here.
Our Rating of Acana Highest Protein Dog Food
Acana Highest Protein Dog Food (Canada) is a grain-free dry dog food using a significant amount of named species as its dominant source of animal protein, thus earning the brand 5 stars.
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