Raw pet mince vs supermarket mince

Plenty of people start raw feeding with a pack of supermarket mince. It’s a reasonable way to test the water. It just gets expensive quickly, and there are a few things it doesn’t cover. Here’s how the two compare on what’s in them and what they cost a day.

What’s in supermarket mince

Supermarket mince is made for people, so it’s muscle meat and fat, sold by fat grade. There’s no bone and no organ in it.

It’s also not cheap. Beef mince passed $24 a kilo in 2026, according to 1News. For a 20 kg dog eating about 500 g a day, that’s over $12 a day on mince alone.

What pet mince is

Pet mince is raw minced meat sold for feeding pets, usually frozen and in bulk. Ours comes in 10 kg cartons, cut into blocks:

• Beef Mince, Veal Mince and Goat Mince: 100% NZ single proteins, the muscle-meat part of the diet
• Chicken Mince: 100% NZ chicken, minced with the bone, so some of the bone part is already in it

Our minces and mixes start at $6.90 a kilo, plus a delivery fee of $5 an order, whatever the weight. That’s about a quarter to a third of the supermarket price.

The blocks are about 500 g each, hand cut, in a liner inside the carton, so you thaw what the next couple of days need and leave the rest frozen. All our meat is from New Zealand, and the minces are made to order in the Waikato.

Pet mince, dog mince and dog roll

You’ll see a few names for the same idea. “Pet mince” and “dog mince” both mean raw minced meat sold for animals rather than people. Dog roll is different: most dog roll sold in New Zealand is cooked, usually with fillers such as cereal. Our rolls are raw mince in a tube, with nothing else added. Our guide to dog roll versus raw mince explains the difference.

Pet mince and supermarket mince side by side

What it costs a day

Using the 2.5% of body weight a day our feed calculator uses for a moderately active adult dog:

The supermarket figure is mince alone. Our figure is the calculator’s plan for that dog, about 90% mince or blend and 10% raw bones, priced across our range per kilo. Our guide to raw dog food costs works it through for more dog sizes.

Mince on its own isn’t the whole diet

Whichever mince you use, the 80/10/10 rule of thumb still applies: about 80% muscle meat, 10% raw bone and 10% organ. Mince covers the muscle meat. You still need:

• Bone: a raw meaty bone a few times a week, or a mince with bone in it. Our guide to raw bones for dogs explains how to choose.
• Organ: liver and other offal. The easy option is Balance Mix, mixed one part to two parts mince, or a blend with offal already in it.

The one-to-two routine is easy to keep with blocks: the night before, move two blocks of mince and one block of Balance Mix to the fridge, then mix them together next day, keep two to three days’ worth covered in the fridge, and pop any extra straight back in the freezer. Our guide to liver and organ meat for dogs explains the organ part in more detail.

Plain mince only

Stick to plain raw mince. Seasoned or marinated mince and sausage meat are out, and so is anything with onion or garlic, which are toxic to dogs, or with cooked bone in it. Once mince has thawed, use it within two or three days.

Which to choose

If you’re trying raw for a week to see how your dog takes to it, a pack of plain supermarket mince is fine. Once you’re feeding raw every day, buying pet mince in bulk makes much more sense, both for the cost and because you can pick a mince that suits your dog’s diet. The raw dog food calculator tells you how much to order.

A 10 kg box of mince lasts a 20 kg dog about three weeks with bones on top, and a 10 kg dog about six. You can order one box at a time, or set it to repeat every 1 to 8 weeks on a subscription. Our guide to portioning raw dog food shows how to split a box up when it arrives.

Moving from supermarket mince to a box

If your dog is already eating supermarket mince, moving to pet mince is an easy swap, because it’s still mince. A simple way to do it:

1. Pick the same meat to start with. If they’ve been on beef mince, start with our Beef Mince.
2. Make room in the freezer. A 10 kg carton is 36 × 27 × 18 cm, about 17.5 litres.
3. When the box arrives chilled, put it straight in the freezer and move one or two blocks to the fridge for the next day.
4. Over the next week or so, add bone and organ: raw bones a few times a week, and Balance Mix or a blend with offal through it.

If your dog is new to raw altogether, our switching guide has a day-by-day plan.

Mince questions

Is beef mince or chicken mince better for dogs?

Neither is better across the board. Our Chicken Mince costs less and has bone minced through it. Beef suits dogs that do better on red meat. Many owners rotate both, and some dogs need to stay away from one or the other. Our guide to can dogs eat raw beef covers beef mince, bones and organ.

How much mince does a dog need?

Most adult dogs eat about 2 to 3% of their body weight in raw food a day, with about 90% of that coming from mince or a blend. See how much raw food to feed a dog.

Common questions

Can I feed my dog raw meat from the supermarket?

Yes, if it’s plain and raw: no seasoning, marinade, onion or garlic. Remember it’s muscle meat only, so add bone and organ over the week.

What is pet mince?

Raw minced meat sold for feeding pets, usually in bulk and frozen. Ours is single-protein NZ meat in 10 kg cartons.

Is pet mince good for dogs?

It’s the base most raw feeders build on. Pair it with raw bones and some organ, and rotate proteins through the week.

Can I mix supermarket mince and pet mince?

Yes. Plenty of people use up a pack from the fridge alongside their usual mince. Count it as part of the day’s food.

Can I refreeze mince once it’s thawed?

Raw meat thawed in the fridge can be refrozen. That’s handy with a small dog: thaw a block, keep two to three days’ worth in the fridge, and pop the rest straight back in the freezer.