Best Freeze Dried Raw Dog Food UK 2023

Have you been thinking about making the switch to raw dog food but you don’t want the hassle that goes with it?

There’s been a massive shift towards raw dog food diets over the past four or five years as an increasing number of pet parents ditch kibble in favour of feeding their canine companions raw.

However, it isn’t always the most convenient form of pet nutrition considering it usually involves the handling of raw meat.

The good news is your dog can enjoy all the benefits of raw dog food in a hassle-free way thanks to freeze-dried raw dog food.

In this article, we’re going to take a close look at the best freeze-dried raw dog food companies available in the UK at the moment.

Best Freeze Dried Raw Dog Food UK – Four Of Our Top Picks

		Rating	Summary	Website
ZENOO			• Human-grade • 4 recipes • NASA technology	Buy Now
Nature's Variety			• 3 Formats • Made in UK • Customer reviews	Buy Now
Stella&Chewy			• 98% meat • No fillers or hormones • 2,600 reviews	Buy Now
Ella&Co			• 2 recipes • Human-grade • Made in UK	Buy Now

How Is Freeze-Dried Raw Dog Food Made?

Freeze-dried raw dog food is becoming an increasingly common and popular form of pet nutrition.

It’s something humans have been doing for quite a while but we’ve seen a number of pet food brands adopt this format over the past few years.

Freeze-dried raw dog food has virtually all the water removed from the food by using a three-step process.

This three-step process allows for more nutrients to be retained within the food but it’s quite a complicated preparation method.

Unlike dehydrated raw dog food and air-dried dog food, there is very little moisture left in freeze-dried raw dog food.

In theory, freeze drying prevents the loss of nutrients, flavour and damage to the protein.

Potential Benefits Of Freeze-Dried Raw Dog Food

ZENOO freeze-dried raw dog food range (Photo: hellobark.com)

We’ve touched upon a couple of benefits of freeze-dried raw dog food in the section above.

It’s usually much more convenient than feeding your dog raw meat because you don’t have to worry about preparing raw dog food meals for your pup.

You also usually won’t have to worry about bones in your dog’s raw food because they’ve already been ground down.

Freeze drying is claimed to remove all the moisture but retain the nutritional integrity of your pup’s food. Good freeze-dried raw dog food brands also don’t use additives or processing in their food.

If you’re a pet parent who likes to travel with your canine companion, it’s also usually much more portable than raw meat because these nuggets are small, lightweight and stored in a bag that just needs to be kept in a dry place.

Things To Consider When Looking For Freeze-Dried Raw Dog Food

• High quality ingredients – If you’re eager to ditch kibble or wet food in favour of a healthier pet food format, you want to ensure your dog is eating high quality ingredients.

• Recipes – For dog owners who have a picky eater like me, it’s really helpful when a dog food brand offers a range of recipes so we can keep our pups excited about mealtime.

• Price – While freeze-dried raw dog food will cost more than traditional dry or wet food, it shouldn’t be too expensive and represent value for money.

• Delivery – If you’re going to sign up to a subscription service, you want reliable deliveries so you’re not left without food to feed your four-legged friends.

• Reviews – We like to check out online reviews to see how a dog food company is performing and whether they’re delivering.

Best Freeze Dried Raw Dog Food UK – Four Of The Best

So, now we’ve explained what freeze-dried raw dog food is and covered some of the things to look out for when looking for a brand to feed your dog, it’s time to check out some of our top picks available in the UK at the moment.

1) ZENOO

Where To Buy: myzenoo.com

ZENOO freeze-dried raw dog food range (Photo: hellobark.com)

Started by Agota with help from her Chihuahua Elly, ZENOO are a new freeze-dried raw dog food company offering pet parents the chance to adopt this convenient raw dog food option. ZENOO’s meals are comprised of human-grade ingredients such as raw meat alongside quality fruit and veggies to promote a healthy lifestyle for dogs. Interestingly, ZENOO use advanced freeze-drying technology that is also used by Nasa (read our dedicated ZENOO review for more on this). They offer chicken, turkey, beef and pork recipes so pet parents have a good selection of protein sources to pick from. Meal preparation is simple – you just use ZENOO’s scooper to fill your dog’s bowls and you store the rest of the food in a dry place. At the time of writing, ZENOO had an average rating of 4.2 stars on Trustpilot based upon 50 reviews. A 400g bag (which their website states is the equivalent of 1.6kg fresh raw food) is price at £15.92 with a regular delivery every four weeks. For those living in Europe, ZENOO’s freeze-dried raw dog food costs €18.85 for a 400g bag.

2) Nature’s Variety

Where To Buy: www.amazon.co.uk

Nature’s Variety (Photo: Amazon.co.uk)

Nature’s Variety are a well-established dog food company in the UK – and they’ve got a few freeze-dried raw dog food offerings for British pet parents. Nature’s Variety want to provide British dogs with the flavour and goodness of raw ingredients with the ease and convenience of dry dog food. They offer Complete Freeze Dried Feed, Freeze Dried Meat Bites and Freeze Dried Meat Chunks to give dog owners a lot of flexibility whether you want to adopt a 100% freeze-dried raw diet or you just want some bites to use as a tasty topper on their current food. Nature’s Variety use quality, natural ingredients in their food to promote good health, wellbeing and happiness. You can select beef, chicken, lamb and turkey as the single animal protein. Nature’s Variety don’t use artificial colours or preservatives and their freeze-dried raw feed and bites don’t contain grain. If you want to jump right in, you can use Nature’s Variety Complete Freeze Dried Feed. If you prefer to use freeze-dried raw dog food as a meal topper, they’ve got their Freeze Dried Meat Chunks. Alternatively, you can bring the Freeze Dried Meat Bites as a treat for training or walks. They’ve got an average rating of 4.6 on Amazon with hundreds of reviews across all three of their freeze-dried raw products. At the time of writing, Natures Variety Dog Adult Freeze Dried (840grams) is priced at £21.99 on Amazon, a 12-pack of Nature’s Variety Freeze Dried Meat Bites costs £11.49 and a pack of five Nature’s Variety Meat Chunks costs £29.95.

3) Stella & Chewy’s

Where To Buy: www.amazon.co.uk

Stella & Chewy’s Carnivore Crunch (Photo: Amazon.co.uk)

Stella & Chewy’s are a popular and respected brand in the USA but you can also get some of their recipes on Amazon in the UK. This includes their Freeze-Dried Raw Carnivore Crunch recipe. Using grass-fed beef, Stella & Chewy’s want to satisfy a dog’s meat cravings with their Carnivore Crunch freeze-dried raw dog food. It’s comprised of 98% beef, organs and bone. The ingredients are sustainably sourced and crafted in small batches in Stella & Chewy’s kitchen in the USA. Stella & Chewy’s emphasise there are no added hormones, antibiotics, grains or fillers in Carnivore Crunch. With an average rating of 4.6 stars out of 5 based upon over 2,600 global reviews at the time of writing, it’s clear a lot of a dogs are happily eating Carnivore Crunch everyday. For British pet parents interested in giving Carnivore Crunch a try, you can get 92 gram bag for £32.90 on Amazon UK.

4) Ella&Co

Where To Buy: ella.co

Ella&Co (Photo: ella.co)

Ella&Co are another relatively new name in the dog food industry in the UK. They offer a human-grade mix of meat, fruit, vegetables and superfoods. Ella&Co come in a bite-sized nugget comprised of 80% meat, 15% fruit and 5% superfoods. Unlike other fresh dog food formats, Ella&Co doesn’t require refrigeration or freezing – you simply keep it in your cupboard. They have two recipes – free-range chicken and grass-fed beef. Ella&Co had an average rating of 4.8 stars based upon nearly 300 reviews on Trustpilot at the time of writing.

Freeze-Dried Dog Food Vs Cold Pressed Dog Food

You might have come across another dog food format called cold-pressed dog food.

Although they sound similar, there is a subtle difference between freeze-dried raw dog food and cold-pressed dog food.

As we’ve mentioned above, freeze-dried raw dog food is a method that removes moisture from the raw ingredients, resulting in nutritionally dense, light dog food.

On the other hand, cold-pressed dog food uses a process that gently presses natural ingredients at low temperatures, protecting the nutrients in the food.

The ingredients are mixed together in ground form before they’re brought to a press to create the shape of your dog’s food.

Freeze-drying is a three-step process that is more complex than cold-pressing so freeze-dried raw dog food has a higher manufacturing cost and as a result an increased price when compared to cold-pressed dog food.

Anything Else To Consider?

If you’re thinking about making the switch to freeze-dried raw dog food, it’s a good idea to speak to your vet to get their advice on how to make a smooth transition.

Your vet will be able to provide you with expert guidance on whether they believe a freeze-dried raw diet will suit your dog and how to successfully make the switch without upsetting your pup’s digestive system.

Most freeze-dried raw dog food companies will provide guidance on how to complete the transition over a period of a couple of weeks to their food.

Our Final Verdict – Wrapping Up

ZENOO freeze-dried raw dog food range (Photo: hellobark.com)

We’ve reached the end of our article on the best freeze-dried raw dog food in the UK.

ZENOO is the freeze-dried raw brand that stands out to us. They’ve got four different recipes to ensure there’s plenty of choice when you make your decision on what protein source to feed your dog.

However, you won’t go wrong if you decide to go for Nature’s Variety, Stella & Chewy’s or Ella&Co.