Last updated Jul 13, 2026
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Marketed as an affordable gourmet cat food brand, Fancy Feast is one of the most recognizable names in the industry. But is it a good choice for your cat? Find out in this detailed review of Fancy Feast cat food.
The Cats.com Standard—Rating Fancy Feast on What Matters
We’ve analyzed Fancy Feast and graded it according to the Cats.com standard, evaluating the brand on species-appropriateness, ingredient quality, product variety, price, customer experience, and recall history. Here’s how it rates in each of these six key areas.
Ratings
- Species-Appropriateness – 6/10
- Ingredient Quality – 4/10
- Product Variety – 6/10
- Price – 9/10
- Customer Experience – 7/10
- Recall History – 8/10
Overall Score: 6.7/10
We give Fancy Feast a 40 out of 60 or a B- grade.
About Fancy Feast Cat Food
Fancy Feast was founded in 1982, created by the Carnation Company to serve a growing population of pet parents who wanted to pamper their cats. The brand launched with seven flavors of wet cat food sold only in 3-ounce cans with advertising that featured a pristinely groomed white Persian cat.
Though commercial pet food had been available for several decades at this point, Fancy Feast claims to be the first to capitalize on the “gourmet” cat food concept. Fancy Feast is still marketed as a premium option, despite being one of the cheaper brands on the market.
Just a few years after its inception, Fancy Feast was sold (along with other pet food brands like Friskies) to Nestlé in 1985. The merger resulted in the creation of the Friskies Petcare Company which then merged with Ralston Purina in 2001 to become the Nestlé Purina PetCare Company. Today, Nestlé Purina PetCare is the second-largest pet food company in the world and owns popular brands like Purina Pro Plan, Meow Mix, Purina Cat Chow, and Tidy Cats.
Sourcing and Manufacturing
Fancy Feast cat foods are made by Purina which owns and operates its own manufacturing facilities in the United States. According to Purina’s FAQs, 99% of its cat and dog food products are made in these facilities. A limited number of recipes are made in Thailand or Europe, including the Fancy Feast Broths line and select flaked fish products.
Though Purina doesn’t provide specific details about the sourcing of ingredients, some sources suggest Fancy Feast recipes are made primarily with ingredients sourced locally to the manufacturing facility. For products made in the US, that would mean mostly domestically-sourced ingredients. The products manufactured in Thailand appear to be made with chicken or fish sourced from Thailand.
Has Fancy Feast Cat Food Been Recalled?
No, Fancy Feast cat food has never been recalled. However, its parent company, Purina has been recalled multiple times across various brands.
There was also an FDA-regulated recall on certain Purina products (including Fancy Feast) stored at a Minneapolis, Minnesota warehouse in December 2025. An FDA investigation revealed insanitary conditions that could potentially contaminate stored products but no recall of Fancy Feast was ever issued.
What Kinds of Cat Food Does Fancy Feast Offer?
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Fancy Feast offers over 100 different recipes spread across multiple product lines. While the majority of Fancy Feast products are wet cat foods, treats, and toppers, there are also a handful of dry cat food recipes. Fish and poultry flavors dominate Fancy Feast’s product lineup, with a few dozen recipes featuring beef, pork, or liver.
Here’s a quick summary of Fancy Feast’s current wet cat food product lines:
- Classics – Smooth paté, morsels, and sliced loaf-style recipes featuring a variety of poultry, beef, and seafood flavors.
- Medleys – Chef-inspired recipes featuring meat, poultry, or seafood with garden greens and vegetable accents.
- Gems – Single-serve portions of savory mousse topped with gravy.
- Gravy Lovers – Tender bites of seafood or meat swimming in savory gravy.
- Savory Centers – Smooth paté recipes with a hidden gravy center.
- Kitten – Protein-rich paté recipes formulated to support healthy kitten growth.
As of mid-2026, Fancy Feast offers three classic dry cat food flavors (chicken & turkey, filet mignon with seafood & shrimp, and ocean fish & salmon) , one kitten-specific recipe, and a primavera-style chicken and vegetables recipe as part of the Medleys line.
Fancy Feast also offers a wide variety of moist treats, meal toppers, and complements. They come in an array of textures including mousse, purée, broth, chewy treats, and soft flaked fish treats. Fancy Feast treats typically come in pouches, cups, or single-serve tubes (specifically the lickable cat treats).
Fancy Feast Cat Food—Top 3 Recipes Reviewed
| Product Name | Food Type | Primary Protein | Calories Per Ounce | Price | Our Grade |
| Fancy Feast Classic Chicken Feast Canned Cat Food | Wet | Chicken | 31 | $0.32 per ounce | B- |
| Fancy Feast Kitten Tender Turkey Feast Canned Cat Food | Wet | Turkey | 31 | $0.32 per ounce | B- |
| Fancy Feast Gourmet with Savory Chicken & Turkey Dry Cat Food | Dry | Poultry By-Product Meal | 113 | $0.17 per ounce | D |
#1 Fancy Feast Classic Chicken Feast Canned Cat Food
This cat food is one of Fancy Feast’s essential recipes from the Classic line. It’s a straightforward paté featuring chicken as its primary protein source with supplemental protein from meat by-products, liver, and fish. Vaguely-named ingredients like meat by-products and liver aren’t necessarily bad for your cat, but they’re indicative of cheaper pet food and are often associated with feed-grade ingredients.
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
The next ingredient is “artificial and natural flavors”. Both are vaguely named, but we know that “natural flavor” is usually derived from animal tissues. Artificial color, however, refers to something synthetic that flavors the food. Though artificial flavors aren’t considered harmful, the vagueness and artificiality might repel some customers. This recipe used to also contain artificial colors but has been reformulated to omit them.
Overall, this food is high in protein with moderate fat and low carbohydrate content. Though this food loses a few points for artificial ingredients and possibly low-quality meats, it has a few good qualities. It has a species-appropriate macronutrient distribution that respects your cat’s carnivorous needs. The food has 91 calories per 3-ounce can or about 31 calories per ounce.
Ingredients
Chicken, Chicken Broth, Meat By-Products, Liver, Fish, Artificial and Natural Flavors, Tricalcium Phosphate, Guar Gum, Minerals [Potassium Chloride, Magnesium Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide], Choline Chloride, Taurine, Vitamins [Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin (Vitamin B-3), Calcium Pantothenate (Vitamin B-5), Vitamin A Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Vitamin K), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Biotin (Vitamin B-7), Folic Acid (Vitamin B-9), Vitamin D-3 Supplement], Salt.
Ingredients We Liked: Chicken, Liver, Fish
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Meat By-Products, Artificial Flavors, Guar Gum
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Rich in animal-sourced protein (45% dry matter)
- Good source of hydrating moisture for cats
- Low in carbohydrates
- Modestly priced around $0.30 per ounce
What We Didn’t Like:
- Guar gum may trigger loose stools in sensitive cats
- Contains vaguely named ingredients and animal by-products
#2 Fancy Feast Kitten Tender Turkey Feast Canned Cat Food
Formulated with elevated protein and fat content, this paté recipe from Fancy Feast features turkey as the primary ingredient. It contains supplemental protein from meat by-products, liver, fish, milk, and egg product as well. Measured as dry matter, the protein content is 50% and the fat content is about 23%.
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Like the previous formula, this recipe includes several vaguely named ingredients that aren’t necessarily bad for cats but their composition may vary from one batch to another. This recipe also includes milk, which some adult cats may have more trouble tolerating than kittens tend to. Most cats stop producing lactase (the enzymes needed to digest milk) between 6 and 12 months of age.
This recipe receives overwhelmingly positive feedback, with many cat parents saying their kittens like the flavor and texture, and that the food is easy to digest. The food is also popular among caretakers of picky senior cats who have trouble keeping their weight up.
Ingredients
Turkey, Meat By-Products, Liver, Poultry Broth, Fish, Milk, Egg Product, Artificial And Natural Flavors, Tricalcium Phosphate, MINERALS [Potassium Chloride, Magnesium Proteinate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Potassium Iodide], Guar Gum, VITAMINS [Vitamin E Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Niacin (Vitamin B-3), Calcium Pantothenate (Vitamin B-5), Vitamin A Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Vitamin K), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Biotin (Vitamin B-7), Folic Acid (Vitamin B-9), Vitamin D-3 Supplement], Taurine, Salt.
Ingredients We Liked: Turkey, Liver, Fish, Egg Product
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Meat By-Products, Artificial Flavors, Guar Gum
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Contains 50% protein, measured as dry matter
- Good source of hydrating moisture for cats
- Formulated to support kitten growth and development
- Popular with picky senior cats who need help maintaining weight
What We Didn’t Like:
- Guar gum may trigger loose stools in sensitive cats
- Contains vaguely named ingredients and animal by-products
#3 Fancy Feast Gourmet with Savory Chicken & Turkey Dry Cat Food
Though Fancy Feast is best known for its wet recipes, the brand offers a few dry food recipes as well. This food’s name indicates that it’s made “with” savory chicken and turkey. According to FDA labeling regulations, this means that savory chicken and turkey must constitute at least 3% of the total recipe.
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Drama King/Queen - We all know cats like this! Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com
Considering this, it’s not a surprise that chicken or turkey are the first ingredients in the food. Instead, that spot goes to rice, a minimally-nutritious ingredient that increases the food’s carbohydrate content without adding much else. The food contains poultry by-product meal as the first protein-rich ingredient, followed by a mix of corn gluten meal and other grain-sourced ingredients.
Beef tallow is the food’s primary fat source, providing the fatty acids cats need to thrive. Fish oil appears later on the ingredient list, a species-appropriate source of omega-3 fatty acids. The food is flavored with a combination of “liver flavor” and “natural and artificial flavors”. Again, these ingredients aren’t necessarily harmful, but the vagueness is indicative of a lower caliber of food.
Overall, this food has moderate protein and fat content with high carbohydrate content. The food is shaped in flat, triangular kibbles and contains about 113 calories per ounce. It contains both natural and artificial flavors but has been reformulated to omit artificial colors.
Ingredients
Rice, Poultry By-Product Meal, Corn Protein Meal, Beef Fat Preserved With Mixed-Tocopherols, Whole Grain Corn, Soybean Meal, Natural Flavor, Chicken, Turkey, Dried Yeast, Phosphoric Acid, Calcium Carbonate, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Glycine, MINERALS [Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite], Fish Oil, DL-Methionine, VITAMINS [Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B-1), Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin (Vitamin B-3), Calcium Pantothenate (Vitamin B-5), Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B-2), Vitamin A Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B-6), Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Folic Acid (Vitamin B-9), Biotin (Vitamin B-7), Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Menadione Sodium Bisulfite Complex (Vitamin K)], Taurine.
Ingredients We Liked: Beef Fat, Chicken, Turkey, Fish Oil
Ingredients We Didn’t Like: Rice, Poultry By-Product Meal, Corn Protein Meal, Whole Grain Corn, Soybean Meal
Guaranteed Analysis
Dry Matter Basis
Caloric Weight Basis
What We Liked:
- Economically priced under $0.20 per ounce
- Cats seem to like the flavor, including picky cats
- Relies primarily on animal-sourced fat
What We Didn’t Like:
- No dry food provides the hydrating moisture your cat needs
- Contains plant protein concentrates and by-product meals
- High in carbohydrates (over 30% as dry matter)
What Do Customers Think of Fancy Feast Cat Food?
As one of the world’s leading cat food brands, thousands of people feed their cats this brand every day. Just as it’s earned multiple generations of loyal customers, the brand has garnered plenty of complaints.
Some customers observe that Fancy Feast can be inconsistent, saying that Fancy Feast’s quality and calorie content vary depending on the product’s manufacturing origin. Others blame Fancy Feast for making their cats sick, but these stories don’t seem to show a clear connection between the food and the illness.
Here’s what a few customers have to say about Fancy Feast:
Positive Reviews
Reviews of Fancy Feast cat food (especially the wet food) are largely positive, with some customers saying it’s their cats’ preference over other brands. The recipes are frequently praised for their palatability and digestibility, and for being lower in carbohydrates and more calorie-dense than other brands at a similar price.
“I have rescued and fostered 17 kittens in the last year. I went with this kitten, wet food based on a recommendation from the shelter. This is a great starter food for small young kittens. It has the nutrition that they need and it is easy for them to digest. All of my kittens have liked it. I have fed it to my two youngest cats for up to a year. They especially like turkey flavor.” – Amy reviewing Fancy Feast Kitten Tender Turkey Feast on March 13, 2026
“This classic pate is definitely one of the favorites among the current furry crew members and all of the newly rescued little paws that I have a revolving door of.” – Kimberly reviewing Fancy Feast Classic Chicken Pate on May 26, 2026
Negative Reviews
Many negative reviews of Fancy Feast come from pet parents whose cats simply refused to eat the food. In some cases, customers noticed a difference in their cats’ interest between batches, prompting questions about changing quality or formulations. Some dissatisfied customers also comment on the inclusion of artificial flavors and vaguely named animal ingredients.
“The past couple of months, my cats aren’t eating fancy feast. Yesterday I opened a can of this chicken pate and none of my three cats touched it. Do you know if they’ve changed the formula??” – M. reviewing Fancy Feast Classic Chicken Pate on June 7, 2026
“Fancy Feast dry food has changed. Lots of crumble, not kibble. This is the second bag I ordered and I was hoping it was just due to shipping. NOT! When you scoop the kibble to put in a dish, there is more crumbs than whole pieces. Disappointed since I have been buying Fancy Feast dry food for years.” – Margo reviewing Fancy Feast with Savory Chicken & Turkey Dry Cat Food on June 6, 2026
How Much Does Fancy Feast Cat Food Cost?
Most of the Fancy Feast product lineup is inexpensive, but their product variety spans the price spectrum. Let’s take a look at the typical daily feeding costs of several Fancy Feast lines.
Fancy Feast wet cat foods generally range from $0.30 to $0.40 per ounce, with some of the specialty options like Gems and wet food toppers hitting closer to $0.50 per ounce. Fancy Feast’s dry food is significantly less expensive at under $0.20 per ounce (and with a much higher caloric density).
Using the average calorie requirements of a healthy 10-pound cat, the estimated feeding cost of Fancy Feast wet cat food ranges from about $1.90 to $2.60 per day. For dry cat food, the estimated daily feeding cost is about $0.30 per day. This makes Fancy Feast more expensive than Friskies and Meow Mix but cheaper than other Purina brands like Purina Pro Plan and Purina One.
Where is Fancy Feast Cat Food Sold?
Because Fancy Feast is such a popular brand, it’s relatively easy to find both online and in stores. Though Purina doesn’t sell its products directly on the brand website, you can find most of the products on Chewy and many on Amazon.
Fancy Feast is also sold in major pet retail stores like Petco, PetSmart, and Pet Supplies Plus as well as grocery stores and discount stores like Walmart and Target.
Overall, Is Fancy Feast Cat Food a Good Choice?
It really depends on which recipe you choose. There’s a lot of Fancy Feast cat food to try and a lot of variety between the product lines. Fancy Feast Classic patés and flaked recipes are some of the lowest-carbohydrate products at this price point. They’re affordable options for cats with diabetes or those otherwise seeking low-carbohydrate food that won’t break the bank.
Unlike the wet foods, Fancy Feast’s dry food doesn’t give you much meat for your money. The brand’s dry recipes are some of the more carbohydrate-heavy and additive-laden kibble foods on the market. There are other options at a similar price point that list animal protein as the first ingredient.
Overall, Fancy Feast cat food appears to be a reliable, trustworthy economy choice. It’s a good option if you want to avoid excessive plant ingredients in wet food but don’t mind feeding your cat by-products or vaguely-named ingredients and are comfortable with some artificial additives.
Similar Brands
Looking for other cat food brands similar to Fancy Feast? Check out some of our other brand reviews.
My cat refuses to eat ANY food from a can. All he will eat are the Fancy Feast Appitizers and those usually only the two Tuna flavors. Every once in a while we can get him to eat a chicken or salmon. And I thought I was finicky being a meat and potatoes guy.
My 15-year-old cat has kidney disease and while she is a good eater, she prefers Fancy Feast flaked trout. It seems to sit well on her stomach, and she is always ready to finish it. She is a nibbler, but finishes each can to the last bite.
Has fancy food changed their recipe formula ?
My cats use to like chicken liver pate. Now they won’t eat that and most other flavors
I’m trying other brands but they have become very fussy. I’m afraid they are starving cause they just l won’t eat
Hi Mary, I’ve reached out to Fancy Feast with your question and will get back to you once I receive an answer. Thanks for your patience!
It’s a shame that Purina never responded to the inquiry. I just wanted to say that I noticed the same thing after 2020. It seems that once Covid hit, Purina (and other manufacturers) switched formulas. Not only did several flavors look different, like yours, my cats suddenly stopped eating several different varieties.
I think it would be a good idea for sites like this one to revisit their reviews done pre-covid because there have been a lot of changes since then to many different brands.
Our two cats both seem to like the Fancy Feast Savory Centers . Before the Covid pandemic you could buy individual varieties (chicken, beef, salmon, or tuna). But now it’s only available as a ‘variety pack’ — 3 of each.
Recently I’ve discovered (what I am guessing are) specks of bone fragments in the food. I don’t remember them being there before and I am leaning toward not buying it for them anymore.
Hi Dori, I can buy it in Walmart and on Chewy in a variety 12-pack with Chicken, Tuna, Beef, and Salmon flavors. I too am annoyed that I can’t buy individual flavors, because my cats won’t eat the tuna or the chicken ones. I’ve been buying it for maybe 2 years, and I have never seen it packaged any other way than a variety pack. I agree with you about the specks, I have recently noticed these little white things in the food that I haven’t seen before. I’m ready to start shopping around for another brand, it’s too expensive to throw out half a box every time!
Try Target for single Fancy Feast variety, My cat is a finicky eater. Variety packs don’t work for us.
Fancy feast is toxic for your cat my baby kitten at some then hours later he had seizures after seizures only thing he had ate was that many reviews have complained and no has done nothings
WHAT?!? My cat absolutely loves this brand and she won’t eat any other brands. Any suggestions on how to get her to eat something else?
I am trying to find a low ash content dry food to feed ti my foster cats because a few hav me been getting uti’s. Any recommendations besides urinary tract food which they won’t eat.
Hi Katie, we have recommendations for non-prescription food that can support urinary tract health here.
In addition to high quality wet food-You might want to try Methigel- I have several cats with constant reoccurring UTIs- it has worked keeping them vet free for several years.
Katie,
I have had two cats with Urinary tract issues and stones. They started out on prescription food but with multiple cats got too expensive. I did sone research and put them in Iams dry. Any of the flavors worked. The indoor cat, regular, healthy weight. They ate without any issues.
I’m nervous about feeding my new cat fancy feast dry food. Financially it is cheaper but quality is important. I get the cat tomorrow. I might go with pro plan
Good call. You can learn about the best dry cat food here.
Honestly there’s not too much difference between standard and the Pro Plan quality-wise. There other other cat foods in the price range of Pro that are better quality.
I have 3 cats ,1 Burmese, 1 Russian Blue, and 1 Rescue. All of my cats were bought up on Fancy Feast, but something has dramatically changed with the product. Not one of them will go near it anymore, sniff and walk away. Obviously the formula has changed for cheaper ingredients since covid. I live in Australia, and for months nothing was on the shelves as it is made in USA,and the price here is not cheap, but thanks to stocking up , my cats got there food. But now, I refuse to waste my money on a product that I know will end up in the bin.
Thank you for sharing this.
I also noticed a change in the fancy feast food cat . I have 3 cats 1 Burmese 1
Singapore 1 Russian Blue. They have eat always fancy feast since 10 years and now they smell their food and won’t eat it. I am from Quebec City in Canada.
It’s the same in the US. We also couldn’t get the food for quite a while during Covid. They obviously switched to cheaper ingredients. Perhaps at first because it’s all they could get. But now, almost 4 years later, they don’t seem to have any intention of going back to more quality ingredients. There are several flavors my cats used to love that they will now absolutely not touch.
Thanks for your feedback it has been so helpful. I have 3 cats that only eat wet food 2x a day in the am I give them Fancy Fest Turkey and at night they got Pro Plan Chicken . For the last few weeks they have upchucked all they ate I stopped the Pro Plan Chicken and they stopped throwing up .But then in the last case of Fancy Feast Turkey I have noticed that it has changed too to a much darker darker food and they didnt want to eat that too .So I now have had to change to Core wellness and hope all this is in the past . Not sure why all this has been happening
I would really appreciate a review of the FF naturals pate. Thanks so much for all of this important information. We are so very grateful!
Please review the Naturals Pate regular (not gravy) & kitten Pate! Thanks!
Hi Angela, we’ll consider it! Thank you.
Hello. Maybe I don’t understand the info on carbs & dry matter. How are these two canned FF foods considered low carb when their carb is around 9% but Iams Perfect Portions Indoor Chicken Recipe Grain-Free is considered high carb at around 3% or so compared to other wet cat foods. I really want to feed low carb wet foods & Im a bit confused. Also will you please look at the canned FF Gourmet Naturals Pate? I think the label looks good other than unnamed Fish & liver. I have been feeding the FF Gormet Naturals Turkey & chicken too, canned. What do you think about those two? Please review when & if you have time! I’m not interested in the FF Gormet Natural gravy because the gravy has wheat. I’m thinking the Pate’ will score well & get a fairly high letter grade. Thank you so very much! 🙂 You are doing important & impressive work! 😀 😀
Yes I would like to know this as well.
Me too. I’d like to know if FF Naturals is a healthier option than the regular FF line which is full of additives, by-products and dyes, thank you for your unbiased reviews, finding an option that my cat actually likes the taste and that is on the healthy side is most times overwhelming.
I rescued a cat and been feeding blue buffalo. he’s been throwing up everything until i switched to fancy feast chicken gravy. after a week of feeding him that, he is much better
Blue Buffalo caused diarrhea for my cat. Fancy Feast is the only cat food that doesn’t give my cat diarrhea so I’m sticking with that.
Mallory is the best.
I have seen all of her youtube videos.
Very knowledgeable and truly helpful she is.
So. Keep UP the great work young lady 🙂
TY kindly
Thank you for the kind words! 😊
I would like to add to the chorus encouraging one of your future reviews to be the FF former naturals pates please!! That’s actually what I came to this site to compare others to. Thank you!
Thank you; will take note of that for the next round of updates.
My cat loves Fancy Feast Beef Chunks in gravy. In my last two purchases, the cat food does not resemble beef, it could be chicken or tuna , I don’t know the difference. Originally the beef chunks looked like beef with dark beef gravy, now it could be anything. Somewhat deceiving!
We recently bought 5 boxes of Fancy Feast Cheddar Delights.
The cat would eat these and have nothing left in the morning.
These new ones, she will not touch or even eat the gravy.
We even noticed a change in the smell and the color of the cheese it is not cheddar.
Did Purina change their recipe or how they are processing this product?
She will not touch her plate.
I have 5 cats who all loved the two fancy feast with cheese flavours and now have all gone off it. Mostly now they will lick the cheese gravy and leave the meat chunks, but none of them are enjoying it as they did in the past where they devoured it all and left the bowls licked clean.
I can say the same for all the the flavours across the range actually. I always alternate food flavours and brand varieties so it’s definitely a product related change not 5 cats taste changing all at the same time.
Don’t forget fish caught by slaves in cambodia and Thailand. Nobody mentions it anymore, but when purina admitted it, they basically stated that they would try to cut back on that. Now check it out, there is recently added fish in every flavor, turkey, etc. They are using more fish. Slave labor should not exist by now. Avoid Nestle and purina
I would love to know how Fancy Feasts is now. I know they have a few new lines. Especially the Gravy ones for gravy lovers. It’s the grilled collection. The ingredients from what I can see look good. My Cat is quite picky but I also want what’s best for her. She’s currently on Cats in the Kitchen and I’m starting to see she’s going towards gravy instead.
I have two cats, brother and sister, both 14 years old, who have eaten Fancy Feast canned foods for their entire lives. As below posters have noted the last two years have brought about several quality variances in many, if not all of their flavors. I buy entire 24-pack cases at a time from the local Petsmart, and I can tell that when my cats don’t eat one can, they won’t eat much of any from the entire case. Yet, when I move onto another case of the same flavor, they may like it again.
In the last year or so the male has developed frequent diarrhea. Cycling through flavors over weeks and months did little to change his problem. On the pair’s last vet visit the sister, who over the day or two prior was not eating after losing a worrisome amount of weight, was diagnosed with an off-the-chart over-active thyroid, or feline hyperthyroidism. I changed their diet from Fancy Feast (I really should have done this when I noticed the quality varying) to a mix of Purina One and Pro Plan. Along with the Methimazole treatments the sister began a fast recovery with a nearly immediate turn-around in her appetite. The new diet also seemed to alleviate her brother’s long issue of diarrhea.
What is curious, however, is that when I tried to reintroduce Fancy Feast for a single meal, there were noticeable immediate effects such as the sister refusing the following two meals and the brother having diarrhea again – it seemed that just a single Fancy Feast Beef Pate was enough to backtrack almost a week’s worth of hyperthyroidism treatments for her and to immediately re-start his diarrhea issues. This completely convinced me that the life-long diet of Fancy Feast canned foods was to blame for my cat’s health issues.
So I went on a hunt as to why. Not being an expert on anything related to nutrition I had AI dissect the differences between the specific Fancy Feast flavors I was feeding my two cats and the Pro Plan options I have selected which my cats seem to be doing much better with. AI came back with an answer – the POTASSIUM IODIDE in Fancy Feast is not present in the other brands, and it has been linked to feline hyperthyroidism.
I feel guilty that I let my cat’s health issued get so bad before I changed their diet. I only hope that sharing this knowledge can help other cat owners realize the risks of iodine additives in cat foods.
Wow. Sorry to hear about your cats. I’m glad they are doing better. Thanks for the news, it really helps imo. I think you may want to switch them to another brand completely. I’m glad it’s working fort then now, but there are more health issues coming with that food. Kidney and liver typically. Unfortunately I have fed that to many cats and I didn’t realize it wasn’t quality in any way. It’s not all your fault, it’s marketed like your don’t the good thing for your cats, but almost all cat food had so many artificial lab made vitamins and minerals, nothing is used correctly by the animals and they end up with too much of one and too little of something else. I’m feeding raw food right now. So far so good. Not 1 single lab made ingredients. Good luck to you!
Please don’t feel bad about what you fed your cats. Frankly, I am around the top breeders in the country and CFA judges, and everyone has their own ideas about what to feed. No one is going to make their cats live any longer than anyone else on here. Have you looked at the their top ten list of canned/dry foods and what are A-rated? First of all, they’re beyond expensive/bougie to anyone who owns more than one cat. Two, what they consider at the top doesn’t even make “sense” nutritionally just because one food is “responsibly sourced” in New Zealand or wherever, but yet it has way more carbs than another food on a dry matter basis, and there really isn’t that much wrong with carbs as long you’re giving your cats high enough protein, with good quality ingrediients. For example, Wysong Epigen 90 makes an excellent dry food that’s very affordable at $22/ 5lb bag. The protein is 62%, and the carbs are like Dr. Elsey’s. It’s basically organic chicken, chicken fat, gelatin, and a trace amount of coconut oil. The reviewer on that day gave it a “B-.” However, go look at #1 dry food, Open Prairie Raw Mix. It has all kinds of added ingredients your cats don’t really need: apples, peas, chickpeas, dandelions, spinach. The carbs on that food is 40%! One reader on here questioned this and asked, “This makes no sense whatsoever. Is this due to something else at play?” (yep, and I quote from them, “Made with humanely raised and sustainably sourced ingredients.”) That is NOT nutrionally integral to my cat, nor should that make a cat food an A rated food or #1 on the list. If you have an indoor/outdoor cat, and my cats are only allowed on my balcony, do you think if they eat a mouse it has to be humanely killed? How stupid. ) Three, I’ve tried giving my cats their suggestions, and they hated those foods; they won’t touch them except for Dr. Elsey’s. Four, their cats are not going to live miraculouly to age 30. Sorry. As your cats become seniors, they will come down with illnesses and diseases like human beings. American breeds live on average between age 13-15 years, Asian breeds up to age 20. Of course there will be exceptions. You sound like an amazing owner, who’s doing whatever you can. If one food seems to now aggravate your cat, you try something else. Don’t believe the prescription foods unless your vet tells you to look for a food (for example, with a low ash count) which you can do all on your own, which I see you did with a different nutrient. Prescription foods are not the same as human meds or pet prescription meds-their ingredients are nothing special. I would recommend to you also (although I have not checked out the potassium levels) to try Farmina Wild Boar dry if your senior eventually needs to gain weight. People have reported that when they just want their cats to eat, it’s a great food to stimulate appetite again. A lot of kitties with kidney issues eat it, too. I feed it mine in their mix, and yes, it’s very expensive, but whatever. I mix it with other foods. You’re doing great!
Potassium iodide actually is found in most cat canned food, from mid tier to high tier brands when you look at the ingredient analysis.
Fancy feast Wild Salmon Primavera definitely has some quality issues. Seems to be the ones with exp date of Feb 2025! I’m on 3rd case of my kitty not touching her usually favorite cat food. She eats it fine with different exp dates. 😡🙀
Correction: Feb 2026 exp. date. Not Feb 2025. Also an issue with many cans of FF creamy delights w tuna.
My cat is also very particular. I spent a lot of money trying all kinds of food, including healthy foods, but she only wanted Fancy Feast Appetizers and Broths! The good news, all the cat foods I tried but she did not like, I donated to our local animal shelter!
There’s 1 reason for that, all the MSG in fancy feast. The health foods your trying can’t compare. They get addicted just like littl people and outs very unhealthy stuff. Natural flavor is almost always MSG but decide derived naturally. This is in it for that reason and its hidden in so many foods for pets and people
I also think this brand needs updating and replaced on the list as not only has the quality gone down but a lot of their food seems to have terrible things in it that you DONT want your cat eating– Like carrageen, numerous gums and questionable phosphates?
Like many others are pointing out here, there seems to be something going on in Fancy Feasts food. My cat usually loves Fancy Feast and did well on it. However, as of this year, i’ve gotten same 24 pack she loves; only for her to not only refuse to eat it, but to get sick when she does. I started to sniff and take a look at the food in the gravy line when i noticed she was acting strange and dropping weight. The beef gravy in the grilled collection looks off, smells off and just.. nope. i wont let her touch it now. After changing the food out she’s doing much better… what did Fancy Feast do to their food?
All my cats were brought up on Fancy Feast wet food. They each had their favorite, but they were sniffing and walking away from it recently. They were losing weight and I was looking for a healthy brand they would eat. The one brand they are all eating heartily is Royal Canin Adult Instinctive in the pouch. so for now, that is my go to cat food. My vet, who only works with cats) said do not ever feed them dry cat food. It is like having your cat live on junk snack food and candy and is carbohydrate rich, regardless of the brand.
Exactly! Questionable phosphates is a nice way to put it. The synthetic phosphates aren’t used like real phosphorus from actual food. The cats body usually has some decisions about how much to use and where to distribute phosphorus. Not with the lab made kind. It all 100% goes straight through the kidneys putting unnecessary strain on them.
And here I thought it was just a rare occurrence when it happened to my cat after two consecutive purchases of the same boxes. I’ve found over the past five or so years that this lowering of quality by using cheaper ingredients, components, and such has been pretty much across the board with most everything, not just cat food. That and companies lowering the quantity and weights of food contents without changing the size of its packaging to give the consumer the impression that nothing has changed. Yet the prices have gone up, so you are buying less and paying more. I know I am not the only one who has noticed this horrid trend in the States, but what I find odd is there has been little to no mention of it anywhere or even in conversation with others. Are people just sitting back and accepting this trend? Back in my day when I was physically able, I and other got very involved in causes both social and political. Today it seems we’re… what? Stupidly lazy or just don’t really care. I don’t know. But it doesn’t bode well for our future.
I’m Perry sure a score of 39 out of 60 is a D, not a B-. You sell purina so you have some bias. FYI all those vitamins and minerals added or fortified are lab made preservatives disguised as essential complete ingredients. This is why so many cats end up with kidney and liver problems. What do you think the ash content is on a dry matter basis, probably 12%. Wow,
I agree with many others regarding the decline in quality of Fancy Feast. My cat Charlie loves it, but the last two cartons I purchased were horrible. One was ordered through Amazon and the next carton was a few weeks later at a local Walmart. Charlie will eat anything and is in no way fussy by any means. I feed him twice a day and he goes nuts while I prepare it for him trying to get at it before I set it down on the floor. This being his usual routine, suddenly however, he would go to eat, take one quick sniff and then suddenly back away and leave the room.
Even after leaving the food there for as long as healthy to do so, it would remain untouched.
This is something he has never done before with no food I’ve ever given him. This response seems randomly limited to all the cans of one particular flavor within a box which changed from one box to the second that I purchased.
The first occurrence was a box ordered from Amazon and was limited entirely to each can of the chicken and beef pate.
The next box this occurred with was purchased from my local Walmart three weeks later and was with only every can of Tender Chicken and Liver Feast pate. Both boxes were purchased consecutively within the same month of October/Novermber 2024.
Upon noticing this, I checked reviews on Amazon and discovered that when changing the default sort for reviews from “Top Reviews” to “Recent” that there was a slew of complaints of similar occurrences. One person stated that they had to bring their cat to the emergency vet after eating a can from his most recent purchase of Fancy Feast.
The reason I’ve been buying Fancy Feast at all is due to the fact that it doesn’t include carrageenan. Now because of this most recent situation I am going to have to risk finding something affordable to replace Fancy Feast with.
The fortunate thing is that Charlie is by far not a fussy eater and will eat just about anything you put before him. However, finding a cat food that does not include carrageenan that is affordable is impossible. You would think, we were feeding our pets human grade food when you break down the pricing per ounce/pound.
In many cases, it is cheaper to simply buy regular chicken and make your cat food like our grandparents did. That is unless you want to stoop to having to buy questionable quality food that is priced so low, that it must have been made from the dregs left over after having been swept off the butcher room floor at the end of the day.
Fancy Feast was a favorite of my cats for years. But for quite a while they will no longer eat the dry food. They smell it, then walk away. My cats never go outside. What they do not eat or finish, I give to the outside animals (birds, opossums, racoons, squirrels. But they will not eat it either. Obviously, the FF dry food is no longer quality food. One of my cat started to vomit after eating FF canned food. So I threw all FF products in the trash.
It is shameful what FF is knowingly doing with their products. Thank you for all the posts !
I am having the same problems. I have always used Purina products. I will make my own cat food from now on. My vet told me he is flooded with complaints from his customers.
As a pet sitter, I see many clients feeding Fancy Feast Grilled varieties – with the “gravies”. I can see that these tend to contain wheat and my vet, who is a nutrition specialist has warned strongly against feeding them to cats. I would love to see a review of this recipe on Cat’s.com, because I appreciate the detailed information on this site and having more information would be very helpful when making specific recommendations to my clients who tend to use this recipe. Thanks so much!
i just adopted two orange tabby kittens (bros abt 12wks) what would be a good amt of wet food daily right now they are both abt 2.6lbs