Field Guide · Glossary
Human grade
Food and labelsA defined claim meaning every ingredient and the finished product were stored, handled, processed and transported under the federal rules that apply to human food.
How it works
The claim covers the product as a whole, so a food advertised as being made with human grade ingredients falls outside the standard unless the finished product qualifies as well. Every individual ingredient has to be fit for human consumption, and the finished product has to be ready to eat. The manufacturer must be able to produce in a human food facility and hold a license from the authority that inspects human food production, and a facility packing a ready-to-eat product has to be registered as both an animal food facility and a human food facility. Written procedures have to keep that status intact through storage, transport and the rest of the distribution chain. What the standard describes is handling, facilities and record keeping rather than the recipe.
What it looks like
Two bags sit on the same shelf. One reads 'human grade dog food.' The other reads 'made with human grade ingredients' and nothing more. Only the first is making the claim this standard governs. The second describes what went into a product that has not itself met it.
Commonly confused with
- Premium
- Premium is defined by no regulation and a food carrying it has to meet no standard. Human grade is a defined term with an annual audit behind it, and a firm claiming it can be checked against a public listing.
Related terms
Sources