Cat food without unnecessary fillers: how to read the ingredients and avoid marketing traps in online pet shops

Buying cat food has moved online. On the one hand, you have a huge choice, special offers and convenience; on the other, hundreds of products, dozens of promises and ingredient lists that often read like a foreign language. If you want to make an informed choice of cat food without unnecessary fillers, you need more than a nice photo on the packaging and the word "premium".

In this article, we'll go step by step through:

the specific nutritional needs of the cat as a carnivore,
what fillers in pet food actually are,
how to read labels and ingredient lists in online pet shops,
the most common marketing traps,
a practical checklist to use every time you shop,
and Bemo's approach to feeding cats.

This will make it easier to choose cat food without unnecessary fillers and not fall for empty slogans.

Cat food without unnecessary fillers in the world of online shopping

Online shopping is part of everyday life. You buy cat food:

on your phone, often in a hurry,
based on a few photos and a description,
mainly comparing price, pack size and reviews.

It's convenient, but it comes with a few challenges:

No physical contact with the product
You can't turn the tin over in your hand and take a close look at the label. Everything depends on how the online shop presents the ingredients – sometimes as a photo, sometimes as a shortened list of raw materials.
Information and stimulus overload
"Natural", "super premium", "grain-free", "veterinary", "holistic" – these terms come at you from every side, but they often say little about the real quality of the food.
Pressure from prices and promotions
Featured deals, big packs, "buy 3, get 1 free" – it's easy to focus on saving money and overlook the fact that you're buying a food with less meat than you expect and more fillers.

That's why, when shopping online, it's especially important to be able to:

quickly find the full ingredients and analysis,
spot warning signs,
separate real quality from marketing.

Cat food without unnecessary fillers isn't an advertising slogan, but a specific composition that can be described. To recognise it, you need to start by understanding how cats eat in the first place.

The cat is an obligate carnivore – what does this mean for the ingredients?

If you want to assess a food, keep one simple filter in mind: does this food match a cat's physiology?

Key features of the cat as a carnivore

The cat is an obligate carnivore. This means that it:

Needs a lot of animal protein

Protein is a cat's main "fuel" – the building block of muscles, organs, skin and coat.
Plant protein (e.g. from soya, peas or wheat) has a different amino acid profile and cannot fully replace animal protein.

Requires specific nutrients found mainly in meat

Taurine, arachidonic acid and certain B vitamins are substances a cat must get from its food, and they occur naturally in animal products.

Copes poorly with large amounts of carbohydrates

A cat's digestive tract is short and adapted mainly to digesting meat.
High amounts of grains or starch can put a strain on the body, although small amounts of plant ingredients (e.g. vegetables, fruit, herbs) can serve specific technological or nutritional purposes.

What should you actually look for in the ingredients of cat food?

A good cat food without unnecessary fillers should:

List meat and/or fish first

Ideally clearly named: "chicken", "beef", "turkey", "salmon", "trout".
It's a good sign if the manufacturer states the percentage of meat and offal.

Be based on highly nutritious animal ingredients

Muscle meat, hearts and livers are natural sources of many nutrients.

Contain a limited amount of grains and plant additives

Cats don't need much of them.
If they are included, they should be an addition, not a cheap "bulking agent".

With this in mind, it's easier to understand what so-called fillers are and why it's worth avoiding them.

What are "unnecessary fillers" in cat food?

"Fillers" is not a legal term but an everyday one. In practice, when we talk about cat food without unnecessary fillers, we mean food that:

isn't artificially "padded out" with cheap, low-value raw materials,
isn't based on ingredients added mainly to cut production costs,
has a composition focused on quality rather than on quantity of "anything at all".

Typical examples of fillers

Below are groups of ingredients that often act as fillers (although a lot depends on the amount and context):

Excessive amounts of grains

Wheat, maize, rice or barley making up a large share of the composition.
Especially when they are high up the list (e.g. before meat) or appear in several forms at once (wheat, wheat flour, wheat gluten).

Cheap plant by-products

"Vegetable by-products" with no further detail.
"Vegetable fibre" in large amounts, used mainly to bulk up the food.

Unspecified animal ingredients

"Animal by-products" without naming the species.
"Meat and animal derivatives" – a vague term that can hide anything from muscle meat to less valuable parts.

Excessive flavourings and aromas

"Flavour and aroma enhancers" – especially if there is little meat and the product has to be "made tasty".

This doesn't mean every such ingredient is automatically bad or toxic. The problem arises when they:

displace high-quality meat,
make up too large a share,
serve mainly to cut costs while keeping the price and marketing attractive.

How to tell necessary additives from "bulking agents"

Not every plant or technological ingredient is a filler. In some foods, the following can be justified:

small amounts of vegetables, fruit or herbs, e.g. as a source of fibre or bioactive substances,
technological substances, e.g. binders in wet food that hold its structure together.

The key differences are:

proportion (how much meat vs these additives),
transparency of the description (do you know exactly what you're giving your cat?).

How to read cat food ingredients step by step

Reading a label online may seem tiresome, but once you develop a simple routine, it will only take you a minute or so. Below are step-by-step instructions.

Step 1: Always find the full composition and analysis

Before you put a food in your basket, check whether the product page shows:

the full composition (list of raw materials)
the analytical constituents – protein, fat, crude ash, fibre, moisture, etc.
nutritional and technological additives – vitamins, minerals, other substances.

If the shop or manufacturer can't be bothered to show the complete composition, that should be your first warning sign.

Step 2: Assess the first 3–5 ingredients

The composition is usually listed in descending order by proportion in the product. What's at the top of the list matters most.

Check:

Is the first ingredient a clearly named meat or fish?
Examples that usually bode well:

"chicken (meat, liver, hearts) 60%"
"salmon 50%"
"turkey 40%, duck 20%"

Is the percentage of this ingredient stated?
E.g. "chicken meat 40%" is better information than just "chicken".
Do grains or other plant additives dominate the first positions?
If you see:

"wheat, maize, wheat flour, poultry fat, meat and animal derivatives" – meat may be only a small addition.

A good cat food without unnecessary fillers will have a clear predominance of animal ingredients in the top 3–5.

Step 3: Identify the protein sources

Check where the protein in the food comes from:

Animal sources are preferred:

muscle meat,
offal (liver, heart, gizzards),
fish and seafood.

Be careful if the ingredients include:

a lot of plant protein sources (peas, soya, maize gluten),
vague terms such as "vegetable by-products".

In the analysis, a high protein level doesn't automatically mean quality if it is mainly plant protein.

Step 4: Check the analytical constituents (protein, fat, carbohydrates)

In the analytical constituents, the most important figures for a cat are:

Crude protein – usually:

in wet food: approx. 8–15% (with high moisture),
in dry food: often 30–40% or more in high-meat foods.

Crude fat – a source of energy and a carrier of vitamins:

too low a level can be a problem for active cats,
too high a level can encourage weight gain at large portions, but it's the balance of the whole diet that counts.

Crude fibre – supports digestion in small amounts, but shouldn't be very high.
Carbohydrates (not always stated) – you often have to estimate them by subtracting protein, fat, ash, fibre and moisture from 100%. If you get a very high figure, think about where it comes from (grains, starch).

When it comes to cat food without unnecessary fillers, you're usually looking for:

a higher share of animal protein,
a moderate share of carbohydrates.

Step 5: Pay attention to additives and preservatives

Read the "additives" section:

Nutritional additives (vitamins A, D3, E, trace elements) are necessary – complete foods must cover a cat's micronutrient requirements.
Sensory additives, flavourings – if the list is very long and hard to understand, it's worth asking why the product needs so many "taste improvements".
Preservatives and antioxidants – many more natural foods use, for example, vitamin E as an antioxidant for fats.

A transparent description of additives is another mark of quality.

Step 6: Read the marketing description… last

Only once you've gone through the composition should you go back to:

the graphics on the packaging,
the slogans ("natural", "premium", "grain-free"),
catchy claims about a "natural recipe".

Treat them as an extra, not the basis for your decision. The composition has to suit your cat, not the advert.

Marketing traps in online pet shops – what to watch out for

You now know how to approach the ingredients. Let's look at practices that often make it harder to choose a good cat food without unnecessary fillers.

1. "Premium", "super premium", "ultra premium" – with nothing to back them up

The terms "premium" and "super premium" sound good, but:

they are not strictly defined in law,
every brand can use them in its own way,
they don't guarantee a high meat content or the absence of fillers.

How to protect yourself:

always check what's behind them in the ingredients,
don't assume that a high price automatically means high quality.

2. "Grain-free" = always better?

The "grain-free" label is a real attention-grabber. The problem is that:

grains are often replaced by other sources of starch (e.g. potatoes, peas, tapioca),
the carbohydrate content can still be very high,
"grain-free" says nothing about protein quality or meat content.

How to protect yourself:

look at the meat content and the real amount of carbohydrates,
don't treat "grain-free" as the only criterion.

3. Beautiful photos of meat… with no connection to the real ingredients

In online shops you often see:

juicy pieces of chicken,
whole fish, fresh vegetables, herbs,
phrases such as "high meat content".

After reading the ingredients, it may turn out that:

meat makes up, say, 4% of the food, and the rest is grains and fillers,
the photo refers to the "flavour", not the actual proportion of raw materials.

That's why you should always compare the graphics with the label.

4. "With beef" vs "contains 70% beef"

Food law sets different percentage thresholds that allow certain names to be used. In practice:

"with beef" can mean a very low percentage of beef in the product – usually around 4%,
if a manufacturer boasts of a high meat content, it usually states a specific percentage.

For you as an owner:

look for specific numbers, not just flavour claims.

5. Long, complicated names of "by-products"

The more general and vague the description, the harder it is to assess quality:

"animal by-products",
"vegetable by-products",
"meat and animal derivatives".

This doesn't mean they are always bad, but if they:

make up a large part of the composition,
come from unknown species,
appear at the top of the list,

it's worth thinking seriously before you buy.

6. Reviews and star ratings unrelated to the ingredients

Ratings in online shops are helpful, but:

they often concern palatability ("my cat eats it happily"),
they rarely refer to the composition or long-term health effects.

So:

treat reviews as an extra,
don't let them replace your own analysis of the ingredients.

A practical checklist: how to choose cat food without unnecessary fillers in online shops

Below is a checklist you can use every time you shop online. You can even copy it and keep it to hand while browsing.

Checklist for buying food online with confidence

Can you see the full composition and analysis?

A complete list of ingredients is provided.
The analytical constituents are given (protein, fat, fibre, ash, moisture).
The additives are described (vitamins, technological additives).

What do the TOP 3–5 ingredients look like?

Meat/fish come first.
The type of meat is clearly named (e.g. "chicken", "turkey", "beef").
Cheap grains or "vegetable by-products" don't dominate the top of the list.

Does the manufacturer state the percentage of meat?

The description includes information such as "duck meat 40%", "turkey 30%, veal 20%".
There's more than just vague phrases such as "with chicken" or "beef flavour".

Where does the protein come from?

The main protein sources are meat, offal and fish.
Plant protein is not dominant.

How do you rate the content of potential fillers?

There's no long list of grains at the top of the ingredients.
"By-products" (animal/vegetable) don't form the basis of the food.
There's no obviously "inflated" fibre content without a clear reason.

What does the analysis look like?

The protein level is appropriate for the type of food (higher in cat food than, for example, in dog food).
The carbohydrate content isn't suspiciously high (especially in dry food).
The fat level is reasonable for your cat's needs.

Is the marketing description consistent with the ingredients?

If the product is advertised as "meaty", the ingredients confirm it.
Claims such as "grain-free" and "premium" are backed up by the real composition.

Does the product suit your particular cat's needs?

You take age into account (kitten, adult, senior).
You consider health (e.g. a sensitive digestive system, allergies – in consultation with your vet).
You match the calorie content to your cat's lifestyle (couch potato vs very active).

If you can honestly tick most of the boxes, there's a good chance you're choosing cat food without unnecessary fillers.

How does Bemo's approach fit into mindful cat feeding?

Analysing the ingredients carefully is one thing, but the brand's philosophy matters too. It's worth knowing how a manufacturer approaches animal nutrition and the choice of raw materials.

A Polish manufacturer with a focus on natural, local raw materials

Bemo is a Polish brand that:

uses natural, local raw materials,
including fish from Polish lakes in its fish-based foods,
focuses on super premium quality products,
which means that:

the composition is carefully designed for nutritional value,
the emphasis is on high-quality raw materials, not on keeping their cost to a minimum.

For you as a cat owner, this means that:

you're closer to the supply chain (raw materials of Polish origin),
it's easier to check what goes into your pet's bowl.

High nutritional value and safety

Bemo products place the emphasis on:

safety – recipes are carefully composed with animal health in mind,
high nutritional value – the food is meant to genuinely nourish, not just fill the stomach.

In practice, this means relying on:

high-quality animal raw materials,
recipes tailored to animals' different needs.

A specialist approach to the different needs of cats and dogs

Although this article focuses on cats, it's worth knowing that Bemo:

offers different feeding lines for dogs and cats,
has hypoallergenic foods in its range, as well as foods for animals with a sensitive digestive system,
creates feeding systems tailored to:

age (e.g. puppies, adult dogs),
activity level (including active dogs),
particular physiological states (e.g. pregnant bitches).

This approach – taking different needs into account – is consistent with the philosophy of food "without unnecessary fillers": every ingredient has a purpose and a place in the recipe.

One example is Bemo Puppy & Junior with beef and lamb – a dry food for young dogs with a carefully designed composition. Although it's a dog product, it illustrates the brand's general philosophy well: high-quality raw materials, real nutritional value and no random additives.

Transparency and shopping online with Bemo

For a cat owner who buys food mainly online, what matters is:

clearly presented ingredients – so you can easily analyse the food using the checklist above,
transparent information on the origin of raw materials – e.g. fish from Polish lakes,
convenient shopping with home delivery.

Bemo sells through its online shop bemopets.com, where you can:

take your time reading the product descriptions,
compare different foods in terms of their ingredients,
match the product to your cat's needs.

As for costs:

delivery costs depend on the destination country,
the exact amount is shown in your basket before you pay (depending on the carrier chosen).

This is worth knowing if, for example, you plan to stock up and want to optimise not only the quality of the food but also your budget.

Summary: how to choose cat food without unnecessary fillers wisely

Choosing cat food online wisely is a combination of:

knowing the needs of the cat as an obligate carnivore,
being able to read the ingredients (not just the marketing label),
a healthy scepticism towards catchy slogans,
and consistency – repeating this process every time you shop.

Key takeaways:

Cats need high-quality animal protein, not grains and cheap bulking agents.
Cat food without unnecessary fillers is food in which:

the base is clearly named meat/fish,
the share of grains and by-products is limited or well justified,
the composition is transparent and easy to understand.

Shopping online requires extra attention:

always look for the full composition and analysis,
compare images and slogans with hard data,
use the checklist so you don't skip any important steps.

If natural, safe nutrition and transparent information about raw materials matter to you, it's worth choosing brands that genuinely focus on quality rather than just marketing.

One example of this approach is Bemo – a Polish brand that uses natural, local raw materials (including fish from Polish lakes in its fish-based foods) and offers super premium foods as well as specialist solutions for animals with different needs.

If you'd like to see in practice what the ingredients of foods tailored to the needs of carnivores and free from unnecessary fillers look like, take a look at the range in the bemopets.com online shop and analyse the recipes using the checklist in this article. That way, your next purchases for your cat will be not only convenient but, above all, well informed.

Sources

FEDIAF Nutritional Guidelines for Complete and Complementary Pet Food for Cats and Dogs, 2024: https://europeanpetfood.org
FEDIAF, "Carbohydrates in the nutrition of dogs and cats – position of the Scientific Advisory Board" (in Polish): https://polkarma.pl
MSD Veterinary Manual, "Nutritional Requirements and Related Diseases of Small Animals": https://www.msdvetmanual.com
FEDIAF, "Code of Good Labelling Practice for Pet Food": https://europeanpetfood.org
Veterinary Partner (VIN), "Reading Pet Food Labels": https://veterinarypartner.vin.com
PSLWMZ / Chief Veterinary Officer of Poland – translations and discussions of the FEDIAF guidelines (in Polish): https://pslwmz.pl, https://www.wetgiw.gov.pl
Krakvet, "How to read the ingredients of cat food" (in Polish): https://www.krakvet.pl
Polkarma, "How to read pet food labels" (in Polish): https://polkarma.pl
Unizoo, "How to read pet food labels without the marketing" (in Polish): https://unizoo.pl
"Co w karmie chrupie" blog, "Maize meal – what's crunching in the food?" (in Polish): https://cowkarmiechrupie.pl

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