Cat food without additives
On a UK pet food label, "additives" is a defined legal category covering things like colourants, preservatives, antioxidants and flavour enhancers, listed separately from the main ingredients. Many owners looking for cat food "without additives" specifically mean avoiding artificial colours and synthetic preservatives, which is a reasonable and checkable thing to look for once you know where to find it on the packaging.
What "additives" actually means on a label
UK and EU pet food labelling rules require additives to be declared, usually in a separate section from the main ingredients list, grouped by function — for example, colourants, antioxidants, preservatives and technological additives. Not everything in this section is artificial; vitamin and mineral premixes are also legally classed as additives, even though they are added deliberately for nutritional reasons rather than as preservatives or colourings.
This is worth knowing because a food genuinely can be free of artificial colours and synthetic preservatives while still listing some additives, simply because the vitamins and minerals it needs to be nutritionally complete fall into that same labelling category.
Natural versus synthetic preservation
Dry food, in particular, needs some form of preservation to stay fresh once opened, and this is generally done one of two ways: natural preservatives such as mixed tocopherols (a form of vitamin E) and rosemary extract, or synthetic ones such as BHA, BHT or ethoxyquin. If avoiding synthetic preservatives specifically is your goal, checking for "mixed tocopherols" or a similar natural preservative named on the label, rather than assuming a food is additive-free just because it does not say so on the front, is the reliable way to check.
Wet food in tins or pouches generally needs far less added preservative than dry food, since the sealed, sterilised packaging itself does most of the preserving work, which is one reason some owners find it easier to source a wet diet with a shorter additives list than an equivalent dry one.
What to actually check on the pack
Look past any front-of-pack claim like "no nasties" or "natural" and read the additives section itself, where the specific ingredients used are named. Artificial colourants are the easiest to rule out, since a food with no colourant additive listed genuinely contains none — colour in cat food serves no nutritional purpose and exists purely for visual appeal to the owner rather than the cat.
If a specific additive is a known trigger for your cat, for example following a diagnosed sensitivity, checking every food change against the full additives list, not just the front-of-pack description, is the safest habit to build.
Why this matters more for some cats than others
Most cats tolerate the additives permitted in UK pet food without any issue, and the majority of owners checking labels are doing so out of general preference rather than responding to a diagnosed problem, which is a perfectly reasonable reason to check even without a specific concern. For a cat with a known food sensitivity or a history of digestive or skin issues, however, a vet may specifically recommend ruling out artificial additives as part of a wider elimination approach.
In that situation, reading the additives section properly on every food change, rather than only when introducing something obviously new, becomes genuinely important, since even a small amount of a trigger ingredient reintroduced by mistake can undo weeks of otherwise careful management.
Without it, and in stock
Everything below is in stock with us, priced with delivery worked out, and packed and posted by hand in the UK.
Felix as Good as It Looks Meaty Selection in Jelly
Twelve 85G pouches of chunks in jelly, in a selection built for a cat who changes its mind
£5.79
Applaws Natural Wet Cat Food Tuna Fillet with Prawn in Broth
Tuna fillet and prawn in broth, with two can sizes to choose from
From£16.69
Bell & Duke Cat Complete Chicken
A complete raw chicken meal for kittens, adult and senior cats, 98% chicken. Frozen 250g tub.
£3.65
Sheba Fine Flakes Cat Pouches Poultry Collection in Jelly
Fine flake cat pouches in jelly, a poultry collection across duck, chicken and turkey
From£7.49
Felix Pouches Deliciously Sliced Fish Selection in Jelly 12pk
Sliced fish in jelly across four recipes, for cats fed a fish-based diet
£6.49
Bella & Duke Cat Complete Turkey, Chicken & Lamb
A complete raw meal for kittens, adult and senior cats, made with turkey, chicken and lamb. Frozen 250g tub.
£3.65
Bella & Duke Cat Complete Lamb & Duck
A complete raw meal for kittens, adult and senior cats, made with lamb and duck. Frozen 250g tub.
£3.65
Bella & Duke Cat Complete Turkey & Salmon
A complete raw meal for kittens, adult and senior cats, made with turkey and salmon. Frozen 250g tub.
£3.65
Bella & Duke Cat Complete Turkey, Rabbit & Lamb
A complete raw meal for kittens, adult and senior cats, made with turkey, rabbit and lamb. Frozen 250g tub.
£3.65
Gourmet Perle Ocean Flakes Cod Salmon Plaice Saithe
Cat food pouches in fish-based jelly, made without colourants, in 85g portions
From£7.94
Felix Pouches Deliciously Sliced Mixed Selection in Jelly 12pk
Sliced meat and fish in jelly, four recipes in one box for cats who like variety
£6.49
Purina One Mini Fillets Mixed Selection in Gravy 40pk
Wet cat food in gravy, four flavours in mini fillets, 40 pouches
£18.15
Common questions
- Do all cat foods contain additives?
- Most do, though not all additives are artificial — vitamin and mineral premixes needed for a nutritionally complete diet are also legally classed as additives. Checking the specific additives listed, rather than assuming any additive means something artificial, is the useful distinction.
- What preservatives are used in natural cat food?
- Mixed tocopherols, a form of vitamin E, and rosemary extract are common natural preservatives used instead of synthetic options like BHA, BHT or ethoxyquin. Checking the additives section on the label shows which type a specific food uses.
- Why does cat food have colourants added?
- Colourants in pet food are added purely for visual appeal to the owner, since cats do not select food by colour. A food with no colourant listed in its additives section is free of it.
Related
Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.