Ground Yellow Corn

Corn is grown and dried as grain, then milled for feed. Ground yellow corn comes from the whole kernel. It is a direct grain ingredient, rather than a leftover of starch or oil extraction.^7,9

1. 01 // Source Yellow corn kernels Mature kernels contain the starchy center, germ and outer layer retained in ground corn.
2. 02 // Process Dried for storage Moisture is removed before storage so the grain keeps until it reaches a mill.
3. 03 // Process Ground whole The dried kernels are ground without separating out their starch or germ.
4. 04 // Output Ground yellow corn Dry ground corn reaches the dog food plant as a grain ingredient ready for mixing.

1. 01

   Supplies cooked starch

   Extrusion cooks corn starch. Dog trials found nearly complete apparent starch digestibility in the finished food, so ground corn supplies usable energy.^1,2

2. 02

   Helps kibble hold together

   AAFCO says plant ingredients such as corn supply calories and help kibble pieces hold together. That is a practical reason to include ground corn.⁸

3. 03

   Keeps grain costs down

   Researchers described corn as considerably less expensive than rice in their Australian market. That cost difference matters when grain makes up a large share of a recipe.¹

How much An 18-dog trial used corn at 51% of an extruded diet and reported ideal stool scores across all diets.¹

1. Brands say

   Cooked corn gives dogs digestible energy

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   An 18-dog trial measured 100% apparent fecal starch digestibility in extruded corn kibble. A separate 36-dog comparison found starch digestibility above 98% across its diets, including corn. Both tested cooked food.^1,2

2. Critics say

   Corn raises blood sugar faster than peas

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   In a 36-dog comparison, the corn diet produced a larger early glucose and insulin response than pea and lentil diets. The study measured responses after meals, not diabetes diagnoses, so it cannot show a disease risk.²

3. Owners say

   Corn is a common dog food allergen

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Corn was identified in 13 of 297 dogs selected for documented food reactions. Beef, dairy, chicken and wheat appeared more often. Selected allergy cases cannot tell us how often corn allergy occurs in all dogs.³

4. Critics say

   Corn is just cheap filler

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Yellow corn grain averaged 72.5% starch on a dry basis, and extruded corn diets showed nearly complete apparent starch digestion in 2 controlled dog trials. Its lower cost does not erase its energy and kibble-making jobs.^1,2,4,8