Halo Cat Food Review 2024

Halo makes “the world’s best food for the world’s best kids.” Its recipes contain high-quality ingredients that are thoughtfully sourced, including meat, poultry, and seafood raised without antibiotics as well as non-GMO fruits and veggies. The company also partners with vet and nutrition experts to develop its recipes. Halo is a popular choice among pet parents who want to feed their furbabies healthy cat food. 

Halo has been cooking up cat food made with whole ingredients for over 30 years. It has won several awards, including the 2016 Eco-Excellence Award for Best Pet Food and 2022 Consumer’s Favorite Imported Cat Brand in China.

Is Halo the right food for your kitty? Let’s take a look at its recipes, pros and cons, recall history, and more so you can decide!

Halo offers several wet and dry recipes for cats. Let’s check them out!

Halo Holistic dry cat food

All of Halo’s dry cat foods belong under its Holistic line, which features responsibly sourced and certified recipes. The first ingredient in each recipe is chicken, whitefish, or salmon certified by the Global Animal Partnership or Marine Stewardship Council; a manufacturer must follow certain practices to earn certification, so this means higher quality food for your cat. Other ingredients include sweet potatoes, peas, pork, chickpeas, lentils, cranberries, brewers rice, flaxseed, oats, and barley, with all fruits and vegetables being non-GMO. 

The only cat food with prebiotics, probiotics, and postbiotics, Halo Holistic has recipes for kittens, sensitive stomachs, and indoor cats. The kitten recipes are packed with protein, fat, calories, and DHA for healthy brain and muscle development, while the sensitive stomach recipe has higher levels of probiotics. The recipes for indoor cats are lower in fat to help with weight maintenance since they tend to be less active. 

Halo Holistic dry cat food is available in the following flavors:

• Grain Free Kitten Cage-Free Chicken Recipe
• Grain Free Kitten Wild-Caught Salmon and Whitefish Recipe
• Grain Free Indoor Cage-Free Chicken Recipe - Healthy Weight Support
• Grain Free Indoor Wild-Caught Salmon and Whitefish Recipe - Healthy Weight Support
• Healthy Grains Adult Wild-Caught Whitefish Recipe - Sensitive Stomach Support
• Healthy Grains Adult Wild-Caught Salmon and Whitefish Recipe
• Healthy Grains Adult Cage-Free Chicken Recipe

Halo wet cat food

Halo’s wet cat foods have a smooth texture and meaty taste that will appeal to even picky eaters. They’re also a great choice for felines who need extra hydration. Made with whole animal proteins, these grain-free recipes feature chicken, turkey, or salmon as the first ingredient, followed by broth, organ meats, and non-GMO fruits and veggies such as carrots, spinach, sweet potatoes, green beans, peas, celery, and cranberries. Also added are vitamins and minerals including iron, zinc, copper, vitamin E, thiamine, niacin, riboflavin, vitamin A, and taurine to ensure your cat’s nutritional needs are met. 

Some Halo wet cat food flavors include:

• Grain Free Chicken Recipe Pâté (also known as Indoor Cat Chicken Recipe Pâté)
• Grain Free Turkey Recipe Pâté (also known as Indoor Cat Turkey & Giblets Recipe Pâté)
• Grain Free Salmon Recipe Pâté (also known as Indoor Cat Salmon Recipe Pâté)
• Grain Free Chicken Recipe in Broth Soft Pâté (also known as Adult Cat Chicken Stew)
• Grain Free Salmon Recipe in Broth Soft Pâté
  

Here are some reasons why Halo is a highly rated cat food!

Vet recommended

Dr. Georgia Jeremiah, pet nutrition expert and one of Wag!’s veterinary consultants, personally recommends Halo cat food to her clients. Here’s what she has to say about the brand:

“Halo offers a range of benefits, including added taurine, omega-3 fatty acids, prebiotics, and probiotics to boost your cat's overall health. It features whole animal proteins and avoids meat meals as well as GMO and filler ingredients. However, some formulations contain several plant-based proteins, and the food is comparably more expensive than similar brands.”

High-quality ingredients

Halo uses whole animal proteins, which have higher levels of naturally occurring nutrients and are easier to digest. All fruits and vegetables are non-GMO, and the meats and seafood in Holistic recipes are responsibly sourced and do not contain growth hormones or antibiotics. Additionally, Halo does not use meat meals, corn, soy, wheat, artificial colors, artificial flavors, or artificial preservatives. 

Complete digestive health

Halo Holistic is the only cat food that has prebiotics, probiotics, and postbiotics. Prebiotics feed and nourish the good bacteria in the gut, probiotics help digest food and absorb nutrients, and postbiotics promote overall well-being.

Eco-friendly packaging

Halo’s dry cat foods come in bags with stay-fresh zippers that help keep contents fresh and reduce food waste. The packaging can also be recycled for free through Halo’s nationwide recycling program with TerraCycle.

Money-back guarantee

Should your cat turn their nose up at the food, you can return the unused portion to wherever you purchased it and Halo will send a refund or replacement. Note that this only applies to one refund per family, per product. 

Here are a few things to consider before buying Halo cat food. 

Some cats won’t eat it

Some pet parents reported that their cats will no longer eat Halo after the recipes were changed. 

Small kibble size

While this isn’t necessarily a negative as it’s easier to eat for cats with missing teeth, some felines are particular about the size of their food and aren’t fans of small kibbles. 

Concerns about fish recipes

Despite popular belief, fish isn’t a natural part of the feline diet and is actually an allergen for cats. Fish may also contribute to urinary tract problems and hyperthyroidism in cats.

“Love this product! [Our] super picky cat doesn't eat certain dry food or wet food. But he eats this up very well. Overall, both our cats love this. The kibble looks and smells pretty good as well. I mainly found this product based on ingredients, and how good this is for the cats. Most of the ingredients are good in my opinion, like the prebiotic and probiotics.”

“Not only do my cats love this food, I’m in love with the litter box! Less smells, fewer cleanings, and overall healthier pets!”

“My finicky guy really likes this food, and I’ve noticed a change in his energy level as well. He plays and runs like a kitten plus his fur is so shiny and soft again. I appreciate the good ingredients that Halo puts into its food and hope the formula never changes. Basically, [because] Binxie will know and then we’ll be off hunting for another dry food! Thank you Halo!”

Read more reviews on Chewy.

The story of Halo began in 1986 after Andi Brown’s pet cat, Spot, got sick. When vet-prescribed food didn’t work, Andi asked a chef and nutritionist friend to come up with a natural recipe using real ingredients for her feline companion. Spot’s health improved and people began asking for “Spot’s Stew,” and Halo was born. 

In 2012, Halo set out to change the way companion animals are fed and farm animals are raised, resulting in a pet food that not only used whole food ingredients but was also ethically and sustainably sourced. 

In 2019, Halo was purchased by pet health and wellness company Better Choice Company, and in 2022, Halo Holistic was relaunched with new and improved recipes and branding. 

Halo cat food has been recalled once. In October 2015, the company voluntarily recalled its Spot’s Stew Wholesome Turkey Recipe Sensitive Formula for Cats due to reports of mold. The affected products were 3- and 6-pound bags with a best by date of September 4, 2016. Pet parents were asked to return the remaining portion to any retailer for a full refund or replacement. No other Halo products were affected by the recall.