Wet pet food is far worse for climate than dry food, study finds

The report found that a 10kg dog eating about 500 calories a day of dry food would result in 828kg of CO2 emissions a year, but 6,541kg of CO2 a year when fed a wet diet. Photograph: Photoboyko/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Wet cat and dog food is far more environmentally damaging than dry pet food, according to a new study. It found that wet food results in eight times more climate-heating emissions than dry food.

The analysis found that a wet food diet for a typical dog resulted in an “ecological pawprint” for the animal that was the same as for its human owner. There are estimated to be 840 million cats and dogs in the world and, with numbers rising, the impact on the environment of feeding them is under increasing scrutiny.