Dog food types
What is fresh dog food and how is it different from kibble?
Last updated 23 September 2026 · How we write and check this
Short answer
Fresh dog food is gently cooked at lower temperatures than the high heat extrusion used for kibble, typically using whole ingredients like real meat, vegetables, and grains, then refrigerated or frozen rather than dried and bagged for shelf storage. It usually contains more moisture, around 60 to 70 percent, than dry kibble's 10 percent.
How the cooking process differs
Fresh food is often cooked using methods closer to home cooking, such as gentle steaming or sous vide style techniques, at temperatures around 70 to 90 degrees Celsius, compared with kibble's brief but much higher heat extrusion process near 130 to 150 degrees Celsius.
What this means for the finished product
Because fresh food is not dried down to a shelf-stable state, it needs refrigeration or freezing and generally has a shorter shelf life, often measured in weeks rather than the many months a sealed bag of kibble can sit in a cupboard.
Nutritionally, is it actually different
A properly formulated fresh food and a properly formulated kibble can both meet the same nutrient standards; the real differences are moisture content, ingredient recognizability, and cost rather than one being inherently more nutritious than the other.
Key takeaways
- Fresh dog food uses gentler cooking and higher moisture than extruded kibble.
- It needs refrigeration or freezing and has a shorter shelf life than dry food.
- Both formats can be equally nutritious when properly formulated to a recognized standard.