→ See the live ingredient breakdown for Northwest Naturals
What’s actually in Northwest Naturals Chicken Nuggets?
We pulled the current ingredient panel for Northwest Naturals Freeze-Dried Raw Chicken Nuggets from nw-naturals.net (verified 2026-05-17). The complete list, in order: chicken, ground chicken bone, chicken liver, chicken gizzard, cantaloupe, carrots, broccoli, romaine lettuce, egg, ground flaxseed, fish oil, apple cider vinegar, blueberry, cranberry, inulin, dried kelp, potassium chloride, sodium chloride, ginger, parsley, garlic, zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, vitamin E supplement, copper proteinate, manganese proteinate, mixed tocopherols (as preservative), vitamin D supplement. Twenty-seven ingredients total. No generic synthetic vitamin / mineral premix — the supplement tail is limited to chelated trace minerals (zinc, iron, copper, manganese proteinate) plus targeted vitamin E and vitamin D supplementation per AAFCO minimums.
The structural model is the classic BARF (Biologically Appropriate Raw Food) ratio: roughly 90% muscle meat + ground bone + organs (positions #1-4 plus egg at #9) and roughly 10% produce, fruit, fish oil, and supplements. The bone is ground rather than left in chunk form, which delivers the calcium / phosphorus ratio in a finely-particulated form that's safe and digestible (whole bone chunks present choking and GI-perforation risk; ground bone does not). Chicken liver at #3 supplies preformed vitamin A (retinol), B12, folate, heme iron, and copper at densities synthetic premix can't match.
Northwest Naturals is made by NW Naturals in Portland, Oregon. The brand operates a small-batch raw production facility and sources US-grown poultry, beef, lamb, and venison from regional suppliers. Northwest Naturals is privately held and not part of any of the major pet-food conglomerates. The Chicken Recipe is AAFCO-substantiated as complete and balanced for all life stages, including large-breed puppy growth (large-breed-puppy 70+ lb adult weight). Shop on Amazon →
The good stuff (USDA-inspected meats, whole-prey ratios, organ-meat depth)
The structural standout is the four-ingredient raw-prey opener: chicken (#1) + ground chicken bone (#2) + chicken liver (#3) + chicken gizzard (#4). Few freeze-dried raw recipes stack organ meat that high — many move organ meat into the supplement section or use a single “chicken organ” aggregate listing rather than naming the specific organs. Chicken liver is one of the densest natural sources of preformed vitamin A (retinol, the bioavailable form, not just plant-source beta-carotene that dogs convert inefficiently), vitamin B12, folate, heme iron, copper, and choline. Chicken gizzard contributes natural taurine and natural taurine precursors (methionine and cysteine), connective tissue, and additional B-vitamins.
Northwest Naturals uses USDA-inspected meat as a sourcing standard. The USDA inspection mark on the raw-meat input is a verification step that the source slaughter facility met federal hygiene and safety standards at slaughter and primary processing. This is a higher sourcing-transparency standard than many raw-pet-food brands that source non-inspected “pet-grade” meat. The downside of pet-grade raw meat sourcing is that it's not subject to the same antemortem-and-postmortem inspection regime as human-grade meat; USDA-inspected sourcing closes that gap.
The produce section is short and intentional. Cantaloupe, carrots, broccoli, romaine lettuce, blueberry, cranberry, parsley at positions #5-#8 and #13-#14 supply whole-food vitamin C, fiber, polyphenols, and anthocyanins. Ground flaxseed at #10 supplies plant omega-3 (ALA); fish oil at #11 supplies direct marine omega-3 (EPA + DHA) — the two stacked sources cover the ALA-to-EPA conversion inefficiency in dogs (only 5-10% of dietary ALA converts to EPA + DHA, so direct marine EPA / DHA is structurally meaningful). Inulin (#15) provides a prebiotic fiber for hindgut bacterial fermentation. Dried kelp (#16) supplies trace iodine plus a broader whole-food trace-mineral profile.
The concerns (2024 H5N1 recall context, garlic inclusion, AAFCO minimums)
Three points of honest discussion. First and most public: the 2024 H5N1 recall context. In December 2024, Northwest Naturals issued a voluntary recall of one production lot of Feline Turkey Recipe after H5N1-positive raw turkey was traced into the lot. An Oregon house cat fed product from that lot was confirmed H5N1-positive and died — one of the most publicized companion-animal H5N1 incidents of the 2022-2024 avian influenza outbreak cycle. The Chicken Recipe nuggets reviewed here were not in the recalled lot, but the recall is a fair signal about how avian-flu-positive raw poultry can enter the raw pet food supply chain. Northwest Naturals revised its raw-poultry sourcing protocols in response. For full context, see our detailed coverage at Northwest Naturals 2024 H5N1 recall. For owners specifically concerned about avian-flu transmission via raw poultry during ongoing H5N1 activity, the cleanest mitigation is to feed a non-poultry freeze-dried raw protein (beef, lamb, venison) during outbreak windows — the H5N1 ecology is poultry-centric, so non-poultry raw proteins carry effectively zero H5N1 transmission risk. Per RISK_REGISTER R9, the v15 rubric does not formally deduct points for recall history; the chicken nuggets here score on ingredient quality alone. We surface the recall context for honest reader awareness, not to inflate or deflate the score.
Second: garlic appears at #21. Garlic is on the ASPCA Animal Poison Control list of foods that can cause Heinz-body hemolytic anemia in dogs at chronic high doses (typically reported as 15-30 g garlic per kg body weight, or about a clove or two per day for a small dog). The garlic content in Northwest Naturals is structurally trivial — positioned at ingredient #21 of 27, the per-nugget garlic load is in the milligrams. Mainstream veterinary-toxicology consensus is that this level of garlic is safe in commercial raw foods. Some pet owners and some integrative veterinarians prefer to avoid any garlic regardless of dose; if you're in that camp, this is a relevant differentiator.
Third: the supplement section is shorter than AAFCO-typical complete-and-balanced kibble. This is by design — Northwest Naturals derives most vitamins and minerals from the whole-food ingredients (organ meat, eggs, kelp, produce) rather than from a synthetic premix. AAFCO substantiation is met, but owners whose dogs have specific micronutrient sensitivities or who are managing chronic conditions (hepatic copper accumulation in Bedlington Terriers / Doberman Pinschers / Labrador Retrievers, for example) should discuss the formula with their veterinarian before switching long-term.
Who Northwest Naturals is for (whole-food raw feeders, USDA-inspected sourcing priority)
Northwest Naturals Freeze-Dried Raw Chicken Nuggets is structurally targeted at owners who want a shelf-stable raw alternative — full BARF-model nutrition without the freezer-space and thaw-time logistics of frozen raw. The freeze-drying process (sublimation drying at low temperature under vacuum) preserves the nutritional profile of raw food substantially better than high-heat extrusion or canning, and the nuggets rehydrate in 1-2 minutes with warm water. For travel, multi-dog households, owners with limited freezer space, and owners feeding raw for the first time, freeze-dried is the easier on-ramp.
Owners specifically prioritizing USDA-inspected meat sourcing, regional small-batch production, or independent (non-conglomerate) brand ownership will weigh Northwest Naturals favorably against competitor freeze-dried brands. The Portland, Oregon production base means the brand operates regionally rather than at multinational scale, with tighter supplier relationships.
Northwest Naturals is not the structurally right pick for owners specifically avoiding raw poultry during active H5N1 outbreak windows (consider beef, lamb, or venison variants instead), owners avoiding garlic at any dose, owners who need a strict budget option (freeze-dried raw is the most expensive feeding format per calorie), or owners who prefer a longer supplement section with conventional vitamin / mineral premix transparency.
How it compares
At A/90, Northwest Naturals sits squarely in the freeze-dried raw A-tier alongside Stella & Chewy's Patties (A/90), Primal Pronto (A/90), Open Farm Harvest Freeze-Dried Raw (A/90), and Instinct Original Grain-Free (A/90). The differentiators against those peers: NW Naturals carries the shortest ingredient panel (27 vs 40+ for Stella's and Open Farm), the lowest synthetic-supplement load (no generic vitamin / mineral premix), and the regional small-batch production model.
Against The Honest Kitchen Wholemade (A/90) (dehydrated, not freeze-dried), the format differs — Honest Kitchen rehydrates from a loose powder; Northwest Naturals from intact freeze-dried nuggets that retain raw texture once rehydrated. Owners feeding dogs that prefer kibble-like texture often prefer the nugget format; owners feeding dogs that prefer a stew-like texture often prefer Honest Kitchen.
For head-to-head comparisons, see Northwest Naturals vs Stella & Chewy’s, Northwest Naturals vs Primal, Northwest Naturals vs Open Farm, and Northwest Naturals vs OC Raw.
The bottom line
Northwest Naturals Freeze-Dried Raw Chicken Nuggets earns an A grade (90/100) from KibbleIQ. USDA-inspected chicken at #1, ground chicken bone at #2 (whole-prey calcium / phosphorus), chicken liver and gizzard at #3-4 (organ meats stacked high), a tight 27-ingredient panel, and no synthetic vitamin / mineral premix. The 2024 H5N1 Feline Turkey recall is a real context worth knowing — the chicken nuggets reviewed here were not affected, but H5N1 surveillance in raw pet food is an ongoing industry concern. For shelf-stable raw feeding with regional small-batch production and USDA-inspected sourcing, this is one of the structurally tightest options on the market. Shop on Amazon →