Meow Mix

Original Choice

Grade B, 77 out of 100, ranked 10 of 15 dry cat foods we graded. 1 brand-line recall since 2016. Its maker meets 2 of four WSAVA nutrition checks in full. Owners give it 4.7 out of 5 across 49,800 ratings.

Some retailer links may earn us a commission. That never changes a grade.

77Grade B
out of 100

Grade analysis

Overall
77 / 100
Safety and recall record
25.5 / 30
Nutrition standards (WSAVA)
14 / 25
Owner consensus
24.5 / 30
Value
13 / 15
Confidence
High

Plenty of ratings behind this grade. Data checked October 2026.

Safety and recall record

We found 1 recall for this brand line since 2016, including 1 in dry cat foods. Older and less related recalls count for less.

  • 2021Serious. Meow Mix Original Choice dry cat food, 30 lb (two lots): possible Salmonella. Source−6

Nutrition standards (WSAVA)

The World Small Animal Veterinary Association guidelines tell owners to ask a pet food company who formulates its food and how qualified they are, who makes it, what quality checks it runs, and whether it publishes research. If a company can't or won't answer, WSAVA says to be cautious. We use the answers each maker gave the Pet Nutrition Alliance, which puts those questions to pet food companies.

Maker: J.M. Smucker pet foods (sold to Post Holdings in 2023).

  • ✓Qualified nutritionist. Employs a full-time nutritionist with a PhD in animal nutrition.6/8
  • ½Makes its own food. Owns 50% of the plants that make its food; uses a contract manufacturer for the rest.3/6
  • ✓Answers the questions. Answered the survey and shared nutrient data on request.5/5
  • ✗Published research. No in-house research program publishing in peer-reviewed journals that we could find.0/6

What owners say

Rated 4.7 out of 5 across 49,800 ratings on Amazon. Ratings from a small number of shoppers get pulled toward the average, so for scoring this counts as 4.70.

Value

At $24.99 for 22 lb, this costs $0.72 per 1,000 kcal, well below the middle of the dry cat foods we graded.

For a 10 lb neutered adult cat (about 261 kcal a day), that works out to about $0.19 a day, before treats.

Details

Size priced22 lb
Price checked$24.99 at Chewy, October 2026
Unit cost$0.72 per 1,000 kcal
Calories3,496 kcal/kg, 308 kcal per cup
First ingredientsGround corn, chicken by-product meal, soybean meal, corn protein meal, beef tallow

Grades compare products within the same category only. We don't test products ourselves or judge individual recipes, and every food here is sold as complete and balanced. Nutrition standards rate the maker against WSAVA's questions, using answers collected by the Pet Nutrition Alliance in 2022. How we grade.