The scores
Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural: B (77/100) — Good. Turkey meal and chicken meal as primary proteins, grain-free legume base, fruit and vegetable premix, and MSC-certified fish inclusions on select recipes.
Taste of the Wild High Prairie: B (78/100) — Good. Buffalo as primary protein, lamb meal and chicken meal as concentrated protein sources, legume-based carbs, and a proprietary K9 Strain Probiotic.
How the ingredients compare
The top five ingredients:
Earthborn Holistic Primitive: Turkey Meal, Chicken Meal, Peas, Pea Protein, Dried Egg Product
Taste of the Wild High Prairie: Water Buffalo, Lamb Meal, Chicken Meal, Sweet Potatoes, Peas
Both brands use the dual-meat-meal strategy — Earthborn leads with turkey meal + chicken meal, TOTW uses lamb meal + chicken meal but starts with fresh buffalo. Fresh buffalo adds moisture-heavy muscle meat as ingredient #1 (a marketing advantage; less meaningful nutritionally after kibble processing), but TOTW’s three named meat sources in the top three beats Earthborn’s two.
They diverge on the carb and protein-extender layer. Earthborn uses peas + pea protein (an isolate concentrate) as the carb-and-protein stack, while TOTW uses sweet potatoes + peas — a more whole-food approach to carbohydrates with less reliance on plant-protein concentrates. Further down, both brands add chicken fat, tomato pomace, natural flavor, and a fruit/vegetable premix (Earthborn: blueberries, cranberries, carrots, apples, broccoli, spinach; TOTW: tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, kale, potatoes). TOTW adds its trademarked K9 Strain Probiotic at a guaranteed live-organism count; Earthborn uses a generic probiotic panel.
Where Taste of the Wild pulls ahead
Three named meat sources in the top five: Buffalo + lamb meal + chicken meal collectively deliver protein diversity that Earthborn’s turkey meal + chicken meal pair doesn’t match. Multiple protein sources also reduce the risk of a dog developing sensitivity to any single protein.
K9 Strain Probiotic: TOTW’s proprietary live-probiotic blend is added after extrusion in sufficient quantity to survive shelf life and deliver a documented live-organism count. Few kibble brands do this; most probiotics listed on pet food labels die during extrusion heat. Earthborn lists probiotics on its ingredient panel but doesn’t publish guaranteed live counts.
Whole-food sweet potato over pea protein isolate: TOTW’s sweet potato at position four delivers complex carbohydrate and whole-food nutrient profile. Earthborn’s pea protein at position four is a concentrated plant-protein isolate that boosts crude protein percentage without delivering the amino acid profile of animal protein — something the FDA’s ongoing DCM investigation has flagged as an area of concern in legume-heavy formulas. Shop on Amazon →
Where Earthborn Holistic holds its own
MSC-certified fish sourcing: Earthborn’s fish-inclusion recipes use Marine Stewardship Council certified sustainable fisheries. TOTW also uses ocean fish but without the explicit sustainability certification. For buyers who care about supply-chain sustainability, Earthborn’s explicit certifications matter.
Transparent family ownership: Earthborn is made by Midwestern Pet Foods, a family-owned manufacturer in Indiana. TOTW is made by Diamond Pet Foods, a large private company that also makes Kirkland Signature, Premium Edge, Professional, and many other brands. Some buyers prefer smaller manufacturers; others prefer the scale QA advantages of large ones. Genuine trade-off.
No recall history comparable to Diamond: Diamond Pet Foods had a widely publicized 2012 salmonella recall spanning many of its brands, including TOTW. Midwestern Pet Foods had a serious aflatoxin recall in 2020-2021 affecting some Sportmix lines; the Earthborn line itself was not directly involved but the manufacturer’s QA history came under scrutiny. Both brands have had to upgrade QA in recent years — neither is recall-free. Shop on Amazon →
The bottom line
For a dog where K9-Strain-level probiotic support and maximum protein-source diversity matter, Taste of the Wild is the marginal winner. For a dog where sustainable fish sourcing and family-owned manufacturing are the tiebreakers, Earthborn Holistic is the pick. At one point separating them, this is essentially a coin flip between two well-formulated mid-premium grain-free options — most dogs will do equally well on either, and price and local availability are legitimate tiebreakers.