The price of raw feeding in 2024
The question “how much does it cost to feed raw” is one of the most common. I have written twice on this subject in 2019 and 2023, as prices keep changing due to inflation. Like last year, I traveled to Italy for the Christmas holidays with my two cats and prepared their raw diets there for 19 days.
I recorded the price of all the ingredients I bought to give you an example of the cost of a raw diet in 2024 and to compare it with the cost in 2023.
The diet
I bought all the ingredients (except the nutritional yeast) at an Italian supermarket called Famila.
The diet of Néline and Praline for the 19 days consisted of these ingredients:
Turkey thigh deboned and skinless: I like to feed turkey thigh as it’s generally an inexpensive meat and rich in taurine. It is also richer in zinc and iron than other cuts such as chicken breast or thigh.
Beef chuck for stew: Beef for stew is generally one of the cheapest cuts of beef as it is quite chewy, however, it’s lean and rich in zinc, making it particularly interesting for our cats’ diet.
Chicken gizzard: Chicken gizzard is considered an organ in the human diet; however, they are hardworking muscles that are generally rich in taurine. They are lean and richer in iron than most meat. Finally, as they are considered a co-product in the human diet, they are much cheaper than traditional muscle meat.
Quail: Quails are raw meaty bones. They are the source of calcium and phosphorus in the diet.
Lamb organs: When I bought this assortment of lamb organs, I thought it contained only lamb liver, lamb hearts, and lamb lung. It was a nice surprise to see that the lamb spleen was also present. Lamb liver is a source of vitamin A, copper, and B-vitamins. The spleen is the richest organ in iron. Lamb heart is like gizzard, cuts that are rich in taurine and generally richer in iron and zinc than traditional muscle meat.
Blue mussels: Blue mussels are a source of manganese as well as omega-3.
Canned mackerel in water: Mackerel provides omega-3 and vitamin D. I used canned fish as I didn’t have the time to buy fresh fish and freeze it for 7 days.
Canned salmon in water: Similarly to mackerel, it provides omega-3 and vitamin D. I bought a second type of fish to add diversity to the diet.
Wheat bran: Wheat bran is a source of fiber in the diet.
Nutritional yeast: Nutritional yeast is a source of B-vitamins, in particular thiamine and folates. It also provides fibers. I bought nutritional yeast from a bio supermarket.
Like last year, I also brought some supplements from home:
Kelp, from NOW supplement bought on iHerb. It’s an algae that is a source of iodine.
Vitamin E, from NOW supplements, bought on iHerb.
Calcium carbonate, from NOW supplements, bought on iHerb.
The price breakdown
I calculated how much of each ingredient I actually used in the recipe in order to have pricing as accurate as possible for these 19 days.
| Ingredient | Price | Quantity in the recipe | Price for the recipe |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey thigh | 5.69 € / kg | 1.323 kg | 7.53 € |
| Beef chuck for stew | 10.49 € / kg | 1.014 kg | 10.64 € |
| Chicken gizzard | 4.26 € / kg | 1.05 kg | 4.47 € |
| Quail | 6.63 € / kg | 1.175 kg | 7.79 € |
| Lambs organ | 4.8 € / kg | 496 g | 2.38 € |
| Blue mussel | 11.85 € / kg | 190 g | 2.25 € |
| Canned mackerel in water | 19.88 € / kg | 180 g | 3.58 € |
| Canned salmon in water | 38.15€ / kg | 162 g | 6.18 € |
| Wheat bran | 1.08€ / 250g | 19 g | 0.08 € |
| Kelp | 11.45€ / 227g | 6 scoops (0.54g) | 0.03 € |
| Vitamin E | 10.75€ / 30mL | 38 drops (1.52 mL) | 0.54 € |
| Calcium Carbonate | 5.26€ / 340g | 19 g | 0.29 € |
| Nutritional yeast | 7.98€/ 200g | 38 g | 1.52 € |
| Total | 47.29 € | ||
| Equivalent for one cat for a day | 1.24 € | ||
| Equivalent for one cat for a month | 37.33 € |
The total cost for the 19 days for my two cats was 47.29€, which is equivalent to 1.24€ a day for one cat and 37.33€ a month for one cat.
My cats weigh between 3 and 4 kg and eat around 220 kcal, so they are close to an “average” cat.
Despite the current inflation, this year’s recipe ended up less expensive than the one from last year that cost 45.55€ for a month for one cat.
This is mainly due to the usage of chicken gizzard as a significant part of the meat. However, the goal in this recipe wasn’t to try to get the lowest possible price, as in that case, I could have used only turkey thigh instead of beef, and only mackerel instead of salmon.
This really shows that depending on your budget, there are ways to lower the price of a raw diet. Overall, you should consider a cost of around 25 to 50€ a month for a cat.
Comparison with wet food
To put this price in perspective, last year, I compared how much it would cost to feed a cat eating 220 kcal with wet food. We can make this comparison again, as the price of industrial pet food has also been impacted by inflation, just like the price of meat..
For the brand Ziggy, a high-end French brand, the price of their canned food in the biggest format and with a subscription remains 79.78€ for a month, or 2.66€ a day.
For the brand Ultra Premium Direct, which is a mid-range brand, the price of their cheapest canned food increased to 63.36€ a month, or 2.11€ a day (a 26% increase). While the price of their pouches remained at 64.13€, or 2.14€ a day.
So the cost of a homemade diet remains on par, if not cheaper, than a wet food-only diet.
In summary, before switching to a raw diet, it’s important to consider the price, but a homemade raw diet might be more affordable than you think.
If it is too expensive for you, don’t forget that there are still ways to add fresh food to your cat's kibble or wet food. For example, you can replace 10% of the calories with raw meat.
In this video, you can see me preparing this specific diet: