Kibbles 'n Bits Dog Food Review 2024

Some dog food brand names are fairly self-explanatory — Kibbles ‘n Bits is one of them. Since 1981, this company has made recipes that combine crunchy kibble with chewy and tender bits; exactly as the name suggests.

This mixture has been a staple on the pet food aisle for nearly half a century, but is Kibbles n’ Bits good for dogs? 

In this Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food review, Wag! finds that the products don’t stand up to much scrutiny. Take a look at the filler-heavy ingredient list and we think most parents would agree that there are much better meals they could be putting into their dog’s bowl.

Unlike other dog food companies with a wide array of products, Kibbles ‘n Bits currently only produces a small range of dry dog food, of which there are only three flavors:

• Oven Roasted Beef, Spring Vegetable and Apple Flavor
• Beef and Chicken Flavor
• Savory Bacon and Steak Flavor

For all three of these flavors, there’s a version for adult dogs and another for small breeds, with the kibble in the latter more appropriately sized for tiny mouths.

The recipes are budget-friendly

We know that costs can spiral when you’re feeding just one dog, let alone multiple canines. Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food is a cheaper option than most, with the bigger bags working out at well under $1/lb. If it’s a choice between a dog going hungry or eating low-quality food, we’ll always recommend the latter.

The small breed versions are a nice touch

Many dog food companies make just one — if that — recipe designed for the specific nutritional needs of smaller breeds, but Kibbles ‘n Bits has three. This is helpful if you need to switch between recipes in the event of allergies or dogs with fussy palettes.

The products meet the AAFCO’s standards

All six of Kibbles ‘n Bits’ products meet the nutritional benchmarks set out in AAFCO’s Maintenance profile. This means that adult dogs will be getting all the essential vitamins and minerals that they require to function healthily.

The first listed ingredient is corn

Despite the recipes’ meaty titles, it’s corn that’s the first listed ingredient in all of the recipes. While this does provide a dog with energy, it’s low on protein and shouldn’t form the bulk of a carnivore’s diet. 

In an ideal world, parents should be looking for a product with real meat as the first-listed ingredient, but failing that, a source of animal protein at the very least.

The recipes don’t contain fresh or whole ingredients

Take the Oven Roasted Beef, Spring Vegetable and Apple Flavor, for example. The titular beef comes from ‘beef and bone meal’ (the third-listed ingredient), while the vegetables and apple are all in quantities smaller than the amount of salt (in other words, pretty minuscule). This raises the question, what makes up the rest?

The excessive use of artificial coloring is worrying

All of the recipes use caramel color as a coloring agent, which, while not totally desirable in dog food, is at least naturally derived. 

The same cannot be said for the artificial color ingredients that sit near the bottom of the list — things like yellow 5 and red 40. Although these are present in microscopic quantities, parents should generally try to steer clear of artificial colors, as well as chemical flavors and preservatives.

The company’s products were recalled in 2018

The US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) issued a recall of Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food products in 2018 due to the presence of pentobarbital in now-discontinued wet food. 

Although the levels were confirmed to be low enough to be very unlikely to cause animals any harm, the fact that a barbiturate drug used by vets as a sedative, anesthetic or for euthanasia was even present at all was extremely concerning.

“It's affordable and my three picky dogs have been eating this now for a while and I'm glad we could get it on Chewy because they don't always have it at the supermarket.”

“Worth buying. All my dogs love it and it's actually low in calories [which] is great.”

“I get emails from [Dog Food Advisor] and usually only give my dog food they recommend. [However] my dog really likes this so I mix it with dry food that is ‘better’ according to the experts. I think the only issue is the food is [carb-heavy], but I like carbs too and am not surprised it tastes good to my dog. Life is short, so we should all eat something tasty.”

Read more reviews at Chewy.

Kibbles ‘n Bits was launched back in 1981 by then-parent brand Ken-L Ration (itself owned by Quaker Oats). Parents of a certain vintage might recall commercials for this new venture involving goofy voices and jumping dogs.

In the years that have followed, Kibbles ‘n Bits has seen its fair share of new owners. In 1995, the brand was sold to the H.J. Heinz Company, before it was shortly offloaded to Del Monte Foods. The J.M. Stucker Co took on the company in 2015 and as of 2023, Kibbles n’ Bits has been part of Post Holdings, Inc’s portfolio.

Kibbles ‘n Bits has been involved in one FDA-issued recall.

In 2018, the company was among several others owned by The J.M. Stucker Co that had products recalled after canned dog food tested positive for pentobarbital. This was thought to have caused the death of a dog, which ate contaminated food manufactured by sister brand, Gravy Train.

Pentobarbital is a drug used by vets for sedation, anesthetic and euthanasia. It’s for this reason that the FDA states that pentobarbital should never be present in pet food. Products found to contain any amount of pentobarbital are considered to be adulterated and recalls are necessary.

Three varieties of Kibbles ‘n Bits wet dog food and three 12-can variety packs were recalled. As of 2023, these products have been discontinued and Kibbles ‘n Bits only produces dry dog food products that were unaffected by the recall.

More information about the recall can be found here.

While we cannot recommend Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food in good faith, there are other better-quality dry dog food products that lie on the cheaper end of the scale — here are just a few.

• American Journey
• Diamond Naturals
• Solid Gold
• Whole Earth