Air-Dried Pet Food: The Process Behind the On-Pack Promises

Air-dried products have emerged as an increasingly visible market among pet owners seeking alternatives to traditional kibble. Often marketed as “gently air-dried,” "minimally processed," or "closer to raw," air-dried pet foods occupy a unique position in the pet food marketplace. However, marketing descriptors such as these do not accurately represent the level of processing required to produce these diets.

While air-dried products are often perceived as being less processed than more traditional formats, air-drying itself is a carefully controlled manufacturing process designed to achieve specific objectives related to food safety and product quality. Like all pet food formats, air-dried products rely on processing to transform raw ingredients into a finished product that can be safely distributed, stored, and fed.

Regardless of the format, pet food processing serves several important functions:

• Food safety: Applying validated controls, like temperature or pressure, to help reduce microbial risks for pets and the people handling their food
• Nutritional consistency: Supporting reliable nutrient delivery and product uniformity through processes like grinding and heating
• Palatability: Developing textures, aromas, and flavors that encourage feeding
• Consumer convenience: Creating products that are easy to store, transport, and feed

Understanding the manufacturing process behind air-dried pet food provides valuable context for evaluating the benefits and limitations of this product format.

Why Moisture Matters

One of the primary factors affecting the safety and stability of pet food is water activity, which refers to the amount of “free” or available water that microorganisms can utilize for growth. Alternatively, the moisture content of a food refers to the total amount of water present in the food regardless of whether it is available to microorganisms. Water activity is a more reliable predictor of microbial growth risk than moisture content alone because only free water can be utilized by microorganisms.

While moisture content and water activity are related, they are not the same measurement. Two products may contain identical amounts of total water, but have vastly different water activities, and therefore different levels of microbial risk associated with them.

Air-drying works by gradually removing moisture from the product until target moisture (~10-15%) and water activity levels (0.40-0.45) are achieved. This allows the product to remain shelf-stable without requiring refrigeration or freezing.How Is Air-Drying Different Than Baking?

Although both air-drying and baking use heat to produce shelf-stable pet food, they are fundamentally different processes.

Air-drying gradually removes moisture using controlled airflow and relatively low temperatures over an extended period. The primary objective is dehydration - reducing moisture content and water activity to create a shelf-stable product.

Alternatively, baking uses higher temperatures to cook the product over a shorter period of time, while also contributing to moisture loss. In some cases, additional drying may still be needed after baking to reach target moisture levels.

Neither process is inherently better than the other - both can produce safe, complete, and balanced pet foods when properly formulated and manufactured.

Air-Dried Pet Food Manufacturing: Step-by-Step Example

1. Dry ingredients are ground, sieved as needed, and blended together, then combined with wet ingredients to form a dough.
2. The dough is formed into pieces using molds, sheeting/cutting, extrusion-style forming, or other forming equipment, depending on the product design.
3. Pieces are loaded onto trays and enter the dryer, where they are dried with controlled warm air at low temperatures for an extended period, typically over several hours.
4. The freshly dried pieces are then cooled.
5. If heat-sensitive ingredients are to be added, the cooled pieces enter a rotating drum to be coated.
6. The finished pieces are weighed into packages, sealed for protection against moisture uptake, oxygen exposure, contamination, and loss of product quality, and boxed or palletized for distribution.

Understanding Air-Dried Pet Food Beyond Marketing Claims

Air-dried pet food is often marketed as a “less-processed” alternative to traditional pet food formats; however, there is no standardized definition for this term. While the manufacturing process differs from that of extrusion or retort canning, air-drying remains a significant step that fundamentally changes the characteristics of the raw ingredients. Processing is better evaluated based on its outcomes, including food safety, product stability, digestibility, nutrient delivery, and overall quality.

Moisture removal influences product texture, shelf life, nutrient concentration, and microbial stability. Achieving these outcomes requires careful control of processing conditions throughout manufacturing.

Importantly, product quality is not determined by processing level alone. Factors such as ingredient sourcing, formulation expertise, and manufacturing controls all contribute to the safety and nutritional adequacy of the finished product.

Air-dried pet food is one of many product formats that can provide complete and balanced nutrition when properly formulated and manufactured. Like raw, fresh, canned, freeze-dried, and extruded diets, its success depends on the science and systems behind the product rather than the format itself.

By understanding how pet food is made, pet parents can make more informed decisions about which product format best aligns with their preferences, lifestyle, and their pet's individual needs. For brands, the opportunity is not simply to choose a format, but to design the right formulation, process, validation strategy, and consumer communication plan around that format

BSM Partners supports the development of pet foods across all major product formats, including air-dried, freeze-dried, raw, fresh, frozen, canned, and extruded diets. By combining expertise in nutrition, food science, processing, food safety, and regulatory compliance, we help brands navigate every stage of product development from ingredient sourcing and supplier verification to process validation, and technical education.

Whether you are evaluating drying technologies, validating shelf-life programs, or refining how processing and product quality are communicated to consumers, our team can help ensure your approach is scientifically sound, compliant, and aligned with your brand goals.

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About the Author

Ada-Miette Thomas Holyfield is a senior analyst at BSM Partners. She received both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in food science with an emphasis on nutrition. Ada-Miette conducted research with a focus on human nutrition and studied the effects of carbohydrate sources on markers of Metabolic Syndrome in adults.