NRC (National Research Council) is a leading scientific standard that establishes nutrient requirements for companion animals. The nutritional standards set by AAFCO (United States) and FEDIAF (Europe) are also based on NRC and other research, but they have been adjusted for certain nutrients to account for nutrient losses and manufacturing variability that can occur during the production of processed foods such as kibble.
Why does BOM BOM use NRC as its standard?
Since BOM BOM's fresh food formulations use ingredients that don't go through high-temperature extrusion or heavy processing, we believe NRC—which reflects animals' actual nutritional requirements rather than a standard built around processing losses—is the more appropriate guideline. NRC is also designed to more directly account for moisture content and the bioavailability of nutrients, making it well-suited for evaluating the nutritional balance of fresh food. This prevents nutritional excesses or imbalances that can be caused by the addition of artificial supplementation.
AAFCO and FEDIAF, on the other hand, present most of their nutrient values on a Dry Matter Basis, so applying them to fresh food with high moisture content requires converting them to an As-Fed basis. Since this conversion can vary depending on the calculation method and criteria used, BOM BOM designs its diets based on NRC guidelines, which better reflect the characteristics of fresh food.