HPP'd Raw Food: The Safest Choice for Your Pup

At We Feed Raw, we use HPP to neutralize potential food pathogens and make our raw dog food safe for your fur child. What is HPP? How does it help make raw food for dogs safe? Read on for more information about why our use of HPP makes We Feed Raw the safest raw food choice for your fur child.

What Is HPP?

HPP, or High-Pressure Processing, is a 100% natural non-thermal cold-pressure technology that employs high water pressure to neutralize food-borne pathogens such as Listeria, E. coli, and Salmonella in raw meat. This methodology does not use heat, chemicals, non-natural additives, or preservatives, but rather pressure to reduce the presence of dangerous pathogens.

Why Is HPP the Smart Choice for Raw Companies?

The FDA, which regulates pet food products in the U.S., has a zero-tolerance policy for pathogens in raw pet food. While HPP is not mandated by the FDA, raw pet food manufacturers must have a kill-step in place to be compliant with this policy. HPP is the preferred option by companies like We Feed Raw because it is 100% natural and does not affect the nutritional value of the food.

Why Is HPP'd Raw the Safest Choice for Pet Parents?

While we know a dog's microbiome can handle bacteria in ways that a human's can't, HPP offers peace of mind while feeding raw in the home, particularly in homes with small children or immunocompromised people.

Again, HPP is used by so many reputable raw pet food companies in the U.S. today because it is a natural way to reduce harmful bacteria while preserving nutrients. (As a side note, HPP is fully embraced without question in the human food industry and is used on many of our trusted everyday foods: baby food, juices, hummus, guacamole, seafood, soups, sauces, jellies, and much more.)

HPP Effects on Raw Food

Vinicio Serment-Moreno, Ph.D., HPP applications and food processing specialist at Hiperbaric, recently said in an article for Pet Food Industry Magazine that "research analyzing the health benefits to dogs fed HPP diets found that HPP does not create changes in appearance, color, consistency or smell; HPP raw diets notably increased protein and decreased cholesterol levels in blood."

In fact, studies show there is no effect on the food's naturally occurring enzymes of interest. Many critics of HPP cite studies that show foods with a hold time of 60 minutes or more. We Feed Raw uses a much shorter hold time of 180 seconds.

What About the Good Bacteria?

Other critics have claimed that if HPP is eliminating bad bacteria, it must also be doing the same to good bacteria. This is not the case. Various species of lactic acid bacteria considered to be probiotics are resistant to high pressure.

In fact, species of lactic acid bacteria surviving HPP might serve as a natural approach to inhibit the growth of pathogenic spore formers in HPP meat products. Meats that have gone through HPP are still considered 100% raw because the meat is not exposed to high temperatures, which denatures the proteins.

The Importance of Packaging

Another concern expressed by HPP skeptics has to do with toxins from the food packaging. Because the food is placed into the pressure vessel after it's been hermetically sealed, some have expressed concern that BPA chemical compounds from the packaging could leach into the food; however, this is not an issue with We Feed Raw. We use only BPA-free packaging on all of our products. Furthermore, research has shown that there is no transfer of chemicals into raw dog food from the pressure used.

Can HPP Improve Digestibility?

Some preliminary studies have actually shown that HPP improves the digestibility of food. (The more digestible a food, the more nutrient absorption for your pet.) Many of our own We Feed Raw customers also commented on what they perceived to be increased palatability when they switched their dogs from our non-HPP'd raw to our HPP'd raw.

Quality and Safety Are Our Top Priorities

We Feed Raw is proud to use HPP, a USDA-recognized anti-pathogen step, to help ensure safe raw feeding for our customers. Our food is all made from USDA human-grade meats with no fillers, preservatives, artificial flavors, colors, added antibiotics, or hormones.

Our lamb and venison are sourced from New Zealand, pasture-raised, grass-fed, and grass-finished. Everything else is sourced from farms we trust in the USA. All of our recipes are blended and packaged in the USA. All We Feed Raw products are produced in a USDA-certified facility with strict compliance requirements of BRC-safe quality food manufacturing.

Take our quiz now to see how much We Feed Raw to give your dog daily.