The bottom line first: you choose a food from three things on the back of the bag, not the grade on the front. ① the complete-food statement and life stage, ② the guaranteed analysis converted to a dry matter basis, ③ the first three lines of the ingredient list. Applying that order alone cuts the shortlist in half.
Stand in the pet food aisle and the first words you see are holistic, super premium, human grade, natural. The trouble is that many of these terms have no legal definition. They are closer to words a manufacturer decides to put on its own product. The food grade tables that circulate online are the same. They are not grades awarded after review by any public body, but classifications built by individuals or communities, usually from a few lines of the ingredient list. That is why the same product sits at the top of one table and in the middle of another.
Fortunately, Korea has recently gained a much clearer standard. In 2024 the National Institute of Animal Science produced the country's first pet food nutrient standards, and a labelling rule under which only products meeting them may be called a complete pet food is stated to take effect from 1 January 2026. Products that fall short are classed as other pet food. These standards were built with reference to AAFCO in the United States and FEDIAF in Europe while reflecting local conditions, and reporting describes 41 nutrients specified for adult cats. Some coverage describes the figure as "around 30 nutrients", so the number is written differently depending on the source.
In the aisle you may still be in a transition period. Even after a rule changes, stock produced and distributed under the old system remains for a while, so it is too early to assume that a product without the new wording is a poor product. That is why it is practical to look for the Korean label and, for imported products, a statement of compliance with AAFCO or FEDIAF nutrient profiles. Below is what that statement actually looks like.
Somewhere on the back is a sentence telling you whether the product is a main diet you can feed on its own or something to serve alongside. In English-language products this is the nutritional adequacy statement, and it usually takes one of two forms.
Read it alongside the life stage: growth, adult maintenance, or all life stages. A common misunderstanding lives here — "all life stages" is not always better. Such diets are formulated to the highest requirements, those of growth and reproduction, so for a less active middle-aged indoor cat the calories and some nutrients may be more than needed. In the other direction, feeding a kitten an adult-only diet creates a shortfall.
| What the label says | What it means | Suitable as a main diet? |
|---|---|---|
| Complete pet food (Korea) | Meets the national nutrient standards | Yes |
| Other pet food (Korea) | Does not meet complete-food standards (includes treats) | Not on its own |
| Formulated to meet AAFCO profiles | Meets the standard on formulation | Yes |
| Substantiated by AAFCO feeding tests | Confirmed by an actual feeding trial | Yes (stronger evidence) |
| Growth / all life stages | Formulated for kittens and queens | May be excessive for an adult |
| Treat · complementary · topper | Not balanced for complete nutrition | Up to 10% of daily intake |
Which has more protein: crude protein 30% or crude protein 10%? The moment you compare a dry food with a wet one, the answer flips. The printed figure is a percentage of the food including its water. Wet food is more than three quarters water, so once you take the water away, the protein share of what remains is far higher.
To compare products properly you therefore need the dry matter basis. The arithmetic is simple: printed value ÷ (100 − moisture%) × 100. A dry food at 10% moisture with 32% crude protein gives 32 ÷ 90 × 100 = about 35.6%. A wet food at 78% moisture with 10% crude protein gives 10 ÷ 22 × 100 = about 45.5%. The printed numbers differ threefold, yet the wet food is actually higher.
| Product | Stated moisture | Stated crude protein | Dry matter basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dry food A | 10% | 32% | about 35.6% |
| Dry food B | 12% | 28% | about 31.8% |
| Wet food C (pouch) | 78% | 10% | about 45.5% |
| Wet food D (can) | 82% | 8% | about 44.4% |
It also helps to know what to measure the converted figure against. On a dry matter basis the AAFCO cat nutrient profiles set a minimum of 26% crude protein for adult maintenance and 30% for growth and reproduction, with crude fat at a minimum of 9%. The Merck Veterinary Manual cites the same figures and notes that on an energy basis this corresponds to 65 g of protein per 1,000 kcal for adults and 75 g per 1,000 kcal for growth.
| Nutrient (dry matter minimum) | Adult maintenance | Growth & reproduction |
|---|---|---|
| Crude protein | 26% | 30% |
| Crude fat | 9% | 9% |
| Taurine (dry food) | 0.10% | |
| Taurine (wet food) | 0.20% | |
Note that these are minimums. Clearing the minimum does not make a food premium, and more protein is not automatically better either. For a cat with kidney or liver disease it is a figure that may need to be managed downward instead. So treat the table as a floor — the level below which a food is not suitable. How many grams to feed each day is a calorie question rather than a percentage one; enter weight, age and neuter status in the cat food portion calculator for a starting figure.
Ingredients are listed in descending order of weight, which is why so many people check whether an animal protein comes first. The instinct is right, but the ordering hides a few things worth knowing.
Korean labelling rules are moving to close the same gaps. The revisions require premixes to list their three most abundant components, and require a percentage content figure when a product name features a specific ingredient or makes a health claim. "Organic" requires certification under the environment-friendly agriculture law, and human-grade style claims require compliance with food safety regulations. When reading a label, check whether the percentage of the ingredient named in the product name is stated.
Unlike dogs, cats are obligate carnivores. Several things other animals make for themselves must arrive in a cat's food. The Merck Veterinary Manual notes that cats require dietary sources of vitamin A, arachidonic acid and taurine. Cats cannot convert plant beta-carotene into vitamin A, and they cannot synthesise enough arachidonic acid on their own. This is exactly why dog food must not be fed to a cat: it is not formulated with these at feline levels.
Taurine matters most among them. A deficiency can cause dilated cardiomyopathy, in which the heart enlarges and weakens, and feline central retinal degeneration, where the damage becomes irreversible once it progresses. The AAFCO minimums are 0.10% for dry food and 0.20% for wet food on a dry matter basis — twice as high for wet. Sources disagree about why. The common explanation is that taurine is lost during heat processing; others point to research on increased faecal bile acid excretion and gut bacterial losses in cats fed canned diets. Either way what an owner should do is the same: use a food that meets complete nutrition standards as the main diet. Do not add taurine supplements on your own initiative — ask your vet first.
The second is water. Cats have a weak thirst drive, and many will not cover a day's requirement from the bowl alone. Wet food is generally 75% or more water against roughly 10% for dry, so changing the form of the food alone shifts daily intake substantially. That difference matters especially for a cat with a history of cystitis or urinary stones. You can check how much your cat should drink by weight with the pet water intake calculator, and ways to raise intake from the bowl are collected in how to get your cat to drink more water.
Condensed into something you can use standing in the aisle, it comes to eight items.
The last two matter more than they look. A large bag is cheaper per kilo, but fat begins oxidising the moment it is opened. In summer rancidity develops faster and humidity raises the risk of mould. Buying a size you finish within a month generally works out better. Rough storage and feeding guidance follows; how long a food keeps after opening varies by product and source, so follow the instructions printed on the packaging first.
| Situation | Guideline | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Dry food after opening | Generally finish within one month | Fat rancidity, loss of palatability |
| Storing dry food | Sealed in its original bag, cool and dry | The bag has a barrier layer inside |
| Wet food after opening | Cover, refrigerate, use within a day or two | Bacterial growth starts on opening |
| Wet food left in the bowl | Keep it short in summer; discard leftovers | Spoils quickly at room temperature |
| Changing foods | Adjust the ratio over 7–10 days | Prevents vomiting, loose stool and refusal |
During the change, watch intake and stool together. Cats are wary of new food, and rushing often ends with the bowl untouched. Several days of eating almost nothing can lead to hepatic lipidosis in cats, which makes this far more dangerous than it is in dogs. If your cat refuses food for more than 24 hours, stop pushing the transition, return to the old food and call your vet. If your cat is on a prescription diet for kidney disease, urinary problems or allergies, any change must go through your veterinarian. If you plan to add human food alongside, you can check what is off limits by name in the cat toxic food checker.
Finally, this article does not tell you which product is good. Among the foods that clear the same standards, the right one is the food your cat eats well on, with good stool and a stable weight. Accurate diagnosis and dietary prescription must come from a veterinarian. If your cat already has a diagnosed condition, do not switch on the strength of a label alone.
Those words have no legally fixed definition. The food grade tables that circulate online are not issued by any public body either; they are classifications built by individuals or communities, mostly from the ingredient list. That is why the same product often sits at the top of one table and in the middle of another. There is, however, a statement you can actually rely on. In Korea, only products meeting the pet food nutrient standards set by the National Institute of Animal Science may be labelled a complete pet food, and products that fall short are classed as other pet food. For imported products, a statement that the food meets AAFCO or FEDIAF nutrient profiles does the same job. That one line on the back is far more informative than any adjective on the front.
The absence of grain is not itself a mark of quality. Removing grain means something else fills the space, usually potato or peas, so the carbohydrate share does not necessarily fall. Grain allergy is not common, and many sources note that dietary allergy more often traces back to the protein source. The study most often cited here is the US FDA investigation into dilated cardiomyopathy. Between January 2014 and April 2019 the FDA received 515 canine reports and 9 feline reports, and more than 91% of the diets involved were grain-free. However, testing did not reveal abnormalities in protein, taurine or amino acid levels, the FDA has maintained that report counts alone cannot establish causation, and since December 2022 it has said it does not intend to publish further updates until there is meaningful new scientific information. In other words the question is not settled, and the investigation centred on dogs. Cats are more prone to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy than to the dilated form. If you are already feeding a grain-free food there is no reason for alarm, but there is also little reason to pay more for a food purely because it lacks grain.
Neither one is the single right answer. The biggest difference is water. Wet food is typically around 75% moisture and dry food around 10%, so for a cat that drinks little, wet food reliably raises daily water intake. Dry food, on the other hand, stores easily, allows free feeding, and costs less per calorie. Feeding both is perfectly fine. When you do, though, do not simply add the two feeding amounts together; divide one daily calorie budget between them. Adding a pouch of wet food means taking away that much dry. And in summer, do not leave wet food sitting in the bowl. Once opened or portioned out, it spoils quickly at room temperature.
Seven to ten days is the usual recommendation, reducing the old food gradually. Roughly 25% new food for the first two or three days, 50% for the next two or three, then 75%, then 100%. Switching abruptly often causes vomiting or loose stool, and more importantly cats are wary of unfamiliar food and may simply refuse to eat. For a cat with a sensitive stomach you can stretch it to two weeks. What matters is watching intake and stool together during the change. If your cat eats almost nothing for more than 24 hours, stop pushing the transition and go back to the old food. Several days of not eating can lead to hepatic lipidosis in cats, which makes this far more dangerous than it is in dogs. In that situation, call your vet rather than waiting it out.
Use the checklist above (complete-food statement, life stage, dry matter crude protein, first three ingredients, stated ingredient percentage, manufacturer information, bag size, manufacture date) as your filter. Tap the banner below to go to Coupang and search for "고양이 사료" (cat food) to compare what is available. (The banner also shows popular pet products.)
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Written and reviewed by the Mongnyang Lab editor · Last updated 2 August 2026
This article was compiled by cross-checking publicly available veterinary and pet nutrition sources. Where sources disagree, that disagreement is stated as it is. The Mongnyang Lab editor is not a veterinarian, and this article does not replace diagnosis or prescription. If your pet is behaving differently from usual, going to a veterinary clinic is always better than reading further.
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This content is general information and does not replace veterinary diagnosis. If your pet shows unusual symptoms after feeding, contact a veterinary clinic.