The CopRice Dog Food Review: Tested & Evaluated 2024
Written By Eloisa Thomas | Canine Coach, Double M.A in Anthropology.
Edited & Fact Checked By Renae Soppe | B.A Journalism & Science.
Last Updated: 18th January 2024
Looking for an affordable all-Australian dog food? Today’s CopRice dog food review has you covered: we’ve tried it out and compared it to our top dog food choices so you can make an informed decision. Here are the basics:
· CopRice Working Dog food is made by SunRice, one of the top rice producers in the world.
· All CopRice dog kibble is made in Australia.
· This grained kibble has rice, wheat and chicken as the main ingredients.
Related: The Best Dog Food Australia
Related: How To Choose The Right Dog Food?
Related: How Is Australia’s Dog Food Industry Regulated?
Related: What is AAFCO? The Association of American Feed Control Officials
Related: What Is the Pet Food Industry Association of Australia (PFIAA)?
Related: AAFCO vs PFIAA: Dog Food Standards Comparison Australia
Related: Understanding Guaranteed Analysis Levels in Dog Food
Related: Real Meat vs Meat Meal
Australia's CopRice Dog Food Reviewed
CopRice - 3 Star Rating
- Ingredients: Adult working dog, chicken: Chicken meat with by-products (contains a natural source of glucosamine), rice, cereals (wheat and/or barley or sorghum), bran (rice and wheat), animal fat, cereal protein, vitamins, minerals and amino acids (including taurine and glucosamine), salt, choline chloride, yucca schidigera extract, vegetables (field peas and carrots), calcium propionate, natural antioxidants (mixed tocopherols, rosemary extract, spearmint and green tea)
- Named Protein First: Yes.
- Dog Food Type: Traditional kibble
- Recipe Range: Family dog & working dog. Chicken and beef.
- Suitable For: Adult dogs and seniors.
- Cost: $
- Australian Owned: Yes.
CopRice Dog Food Review | |
|---|---|
Taste | |
Ingredients | |
Protein content | |
Additives | |
Variety | |
Price | |
Taste 4/5
My pups liked the food ok, although my picky chihuahua needed some enticing in the form of a meaty topper (boiled innards). I wouldn’t say this food is particularly tasty, and the high cereal-to-meat ratio confirms it. Of course, considering it’s a traditional kibble, the underwhelming response from my dogs is understandable.
Because of these issues, I’m taking off 1 star.
Ingredients 3/5
CopRice working dog food starts all its recipes with animal protein. For the chicken recipe, this means “chicken meat with by-products”. Following this, we have rice, cereals (mix of wheat, barley and sorghum), then bran. These ingredients make up the bulk of the food, and are roughly in the same quantities. This means that 75% of this food is rice and/or wheat, and only 25% is actual animal protein.
The typical analysis mentions there’s 25% crude protein and 15% crude fat. I appreciate the fat content, since working dogs in particular need plenty of healthy fats to keep their muscles in top shape. I do have some issues with the protein, which I’ll cover in the next category. The remainder of the ingredient list looks alright: vitamins, minerals, salt, yucca, a minimum amount of veggies and natural antioxidants.
I would have personally liked to see a guaranteed analysis instead of the “typical” one. Typical analysis tends to be laxer, and doesn’t hold companies accountable if the actual product differs.
Beyond the carb to protein ratio, the ingredient list is OK. Nothing particularly great, but this is a good enough option if you’re looking for traditional grained kibble. I’m giving CopRice 3 out of 5 in this category.
Protein content 3/5
This working dog kibble boasts a respectable 25% protein, which is above and beyond the 18% minimum recommended by AAFCO standards [1]. But is this enough to redeem this food?
As I mentioned above, from the main ingredients three are cereals and only one is protein. What’s more, the chosen cereals are wheat (packing 10% to 12% protein), barley (12%) and rice (about 2.7%). On top of this, there’s “cereal protein” added among the top seven ingredients.
All of this means that attractive 25% protein is mostly composed of vegetable protein. Plus, “cereal protein” is just a fancy word for gluten (either from wheat or from corn). So, overall, I’d say this food would greatly benefit from adding a homemade protein topper. It’s been proven time and time again that dogs need animal protein and animal fat to thrive [2]. In a kibble marketed towards working dogs, this is even more critical.
The type of protein itself is OK: chicken meat with by-products. It would have been nice to see some innards or more diverse animal protein sources, but overall this is fine.
Considering a good chunk of the protein comes from vegetable sources that are harder to digest, I’m taking off 3 stars.
Additives 3/5
For a recipe that states “chicken, vegetables and brown rice” in the package, I’d say veggies are pretty far down the list. To put it in perspective, salt comes before the veggies, and salt in dog food should generally be around 1% to 2% of the total dry weight of the food.
The recipe does mention “vitamins and minerals”, which on a positive note include glucosamine and chondroitin. However, we have no clue about the actual vitamins and minerals added. This is likely a powdered premix. Not unusual, but not great either.
Overall, the additives are not terrible but they could definitely be miles better. CopRice gets 3 out of 5 in this category.
Variety 2/5
While there are two different recipes in CopRice’s working dog line (chicken and beef), the ingredient lists are virtually identical. Unlike our top-choice Petzyo, CopRice has cut costs by only changing the main protein, and keeping the rest of the ingredients the same.
If your dog is sensitive or can’t have either of these two proteins, none of the recipes will suit them. Plus, there are no grain-free options if you’d like to avoid wheat.
Considering the lack of variety, I’m taking off 3 stars.
Price 3/5
This is likely one of the main reasons of CopRice’s popularity: it’s quite affordable. Considering the main market of this food is farmers, having a low price is a no-brainer: most people will rather go for a cheaper option since they have to feed several working dogs.
However, I’d argue the savings aren’t worth it.
While the price is attractive, working dogs need more animal protein and healthy fats to perform at their best [2]. In my opinion, this brand doesn’t deliver on that front. If you work your dogs hard without providing appropriate nutrition, they’ll be at a higher risk of long-term health conditions and eventually perform badly.
Because of these issues, I’m taking off 2 stars from this category.
Do Not Buy If…
CopRice kibble is probably not the right choice if you:
Final Verdict
Among traditional grained kibbles, this one is pretty average. Of course, the quality of the ingredient list cannot be compared with top-of-the-line foods such as Petzyo, Ziwi Peak and Eureka, the best-rated foods in our rankings. These higher-end foods use a more diverse protein range, have a better protein-to-carb percentage and have veggies higher up the ingredient list.
While I wouldn’t personally feed CopRice exclusively, it’s an OK choice if you add meat or innards as a topper.
References
- “AAFCO methods for substantiating nutritional adequacy of dog and cat food”. Association of American Feed Control Officials. Retrieved October 26, 2023. https://www.aafco.org/Portals/0/SiteContent/Regulatory/Committees/Pet-Food/Reports/Pet_Food_Report_2013_Midyear-Proposed_Revisions_to_AAFCO_Nutrient_Profiles.pdf
- “Protein”. The Kennel Club. Retrieved October 26, 2023. https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/health-and-dog-care/health/health-and-care/a-z-of-health-and-care-issues/protein/
