Corn gluten meal in dog food: what it is and is it a filler?

“Corn gluten meal” sounds like two things to worry about at once. Corn and gluten. Here is what it really is, and what the rules and studies say.

What is corn gluten meal in dog food?

Corn gluten meal is the protein part of the corn kernel. Mills split corn into its parts. The starch goes to make syrup and other things. The protein part is dried, and that is corn gluten meal. It is added to dog food as a source of protein.

Here is how it is made. Corn is soaked in water to soften it. Then the germ, the part with the oil, is taken out. The hull is taken out too. What is left is starch and protein. A spinning machine pulls the two apart. The starch is made into syrup. The protein part is dried into gluten meal.

Starch is most of the kernel. It makes up about 62 to 70 percent of it. Plain corn is only about 8% protein. Take the starch out, and the protein is packed in. Corn gluten meal is 60 to 70 percent protein, the University of Illinois says. It is used in many pet foods and farm feeds.

Does corn gluten meal have gluten?

No, not the gluten people mean. The gluten that bothers some people comes from wheat, rye and barley. Corn is not on that list. The name may come from an old habit of calling any protein part “gluten.”

US food rules say gluten is a protein from wheat, rye or barley, or a cross of them. Corn is not named.

A University of Illinois expert says there is no gluten in corn gluten meal. He calls the name a mix-up. The story is that an early corn mill hired a worker from a wheat gluten plant. That worker called anything with protein “gluten”. The article says no one has written proof of the story.

If your dog has a food problem with grains or gluten, ask your vet what to look for.

Is corn gluten meal a filler?

It has a real job. It is mostly protein, and protein is one of the main things a dog food must have. Filler makes you think of something that just takes up space. Corn gluten meal brings protein, and studies show dogs use it.

A group of grain experts looked at corn in pet food. They wrote that corn gluten meal keeps good protein. They also wrote that some bad feelings about corn may not be fair.

Is corn gluten meal bad for dogs?

Studies in dogs found they use its protein well. Plant protein and meat protein are not the same, though. Each has its own mix of protein parts. One study found a chicken food gave the best protein with nothing added. A food is judged as a whole, not by one line. Your vet can tell you what fits your dog.

In one study, 35 dogs helped test four protein sources. Three were plant proteins. One was made from poultry by-products, the parts of the bird left after the cuts people eat. It was high in ash, the mineral part. Corn gluten meal was the easiest of the four to digest, or break down and take in.

Another study fed 12 dogs four foods, each with a different main protein. One was corn gluten meal. Two were made from chicken. All four were complete foods, and all did well. Dogs on corn gluten meal had firmer poop than dogs on the two chicken foods. Dogs took in less of the protein from corn gluten meal or chicken than from wheat gluten. Protein is made of small parts. The authors said the chicken food had the best protein without adding any of those parts. Two authors worked for a pet food company, the paper says.

Some owners pick foods with no grain at all. To learn about heart questions with those foods, see is grain-free dog food bad for dogs’ hearts.

Was corn gluten meal part of the 2007 pet food recall?

The FDA found melamine in wheat gluten and rice protein concentrate. Its notice does not say any was found in corn gluten meal. In 2007, some plant proteins from China had melamine in them. Melamine is a chemical used mostly in industry, not food. Cats and dogs that ate pet food made with these got sick, and some died.

In 2007, the FDA tested about 750 samples of wheat gluten and foods made with it. Of those, 330 had melamine. It also tested about 85 samples of rice protein concentrate and foods made with it, and 27 had melamine. All of these came from China, the FDA says.

Since then, the US checks animal food for melamine. The FDA can hold plant proteins from China at the border. Its list of these includes corn gluten meal, as well as wheat, rice, soy and pea protein. Melamine has no approved use as an additive in US human or animal food.

How can you spot corn gluten meal on a label?

Look at the ingredient list for “corn gluten meal.” US rules say ingredients are listed from most to least by weight. So a spot near the top means more of it.

Do not mix it up with “corn gluten feed.” That is a different thing from the same mill. It is made from the hull and the soak water, and has less protein. Corn gluten feed is about 20 to 25 percent protein. The two names are often mixed up.

For a full walk through the label, see how to read a dog food label. Other words on the list are worth a look too, like chicken meal, beet pulp and by-products, the parts of an animal left after the cuts people eat.

If you want to spot corn gluten meal fast, you can scan the label with Altie.