Ingredient file // Fat or oil
Hoki Oil
A real omega-3 source, in unknown amounts
Hoki oil is fish oil rendered from the parts of New Zealand hoki left over after filleting. It supplies EPA and DHA, the omega-3s that dog trials tie to easier joints and calmer skin, though the bag never says how much.
- What it is
- Fish oil rendered from the leftover parts of New Zealand hoki, a whitefish filleted for the seafood trade.
- Made from
- Filleting leftovers of New Zealand hoki
- Main job
- Omega-3 EPA and DHA source
- Typical amount
- Not published
- Watch for
- Stacking it with a fish oil supplement
- Not the same as
- Cod liver oil
Our read // In our catalog
In 1 of every 1534 foods we track
Share of foods that list it
0%
2 of the 3,068 foods with an ingredient list on file, from 1 brand. All freeze-dried dog food.
Each square is 1% of the catalog
Where it sits on the label
Median position 10. In the top five of 1 food, so it is usually a main ingredient.
Above the salt
Almost always listed before the salt, so there is more of it than a pinch.
Price per lb
Median of the cheapest bag price across 2 priced foods, 1169% above the catalog. The price is the food's, not the ingredient's.
Who leans on it
100%
of the foods that list it are from K9 Natural. 1 brand use it in total.
What it is
How it is made
Hoki is filleted for the seafood trade, and the discarded parts go to a by-product plant that makes fishmeal and oil. Hoki store a lot of oil in their livers, which makes the species a good omega-3 source.1,2,3
- 01 // Source Hoki catch New Zealand's largest commercial fishery, with a quota of 150,000 tons for the 2013 to 2014 season.
- 02 // Process Filleted Fillets go to the seafood trade. Discarded parts go to a by-product plant that makes fishmeal and fish oil.
- 03 // Process Rendered Rendering the discarded parts gives a crude oil, most of which is sold into animal and fish feed.
- 04 // Process Refined Refining strips free fatty acids and oxidation products. In one test, distillation cut peroxide value from about 10 to 2.3.
- 05 // Output Hoki oil A liquid oil sold with at least 17.5% omega-3, about twice as much DHA as EPA.
What is in it
Composition, dry matter
20
% omega-3
About a fifth of a tested crude hoki liver oil was omega-3, mostly DHA. The rest is ordinary fat that adds calories, not health effects.
Why it is in the bag
What the manufacturer gets
-
01
Delivers EPA and DHA
About 18% of the oil is EPA plus DHA, the long-chain omega-3s fed in the dog joint and skin trials. Flaxseed supplies a different omega-3, ALA.1,5,6
-
02
A cheap fishery leftover
Hoki fillets sell as seafood, and the discarded parts are rendered into fishmeal and oil. Most crude New Zealand fish oil already goes into animal and fish feed.1,3
-
03
A certified origin story
Hoki was the first large whitefish fishery certified by the MSC, in 2001, and suppliers sell the oil on that certification and its New Zealand origin.2,4
-
04
Adds fat calories
Like any oil it adds about 9 kcal per gram, and it counts toward the crude fat figure on the guaranteed analysis, not only toward omega-3.
How much No source publishes how much hoki oil a recipe holds; the NRC safe upper limit for EPA plus DHA is 2,800 mg per 1,000 kcal of diet.9
Our read // The claims
What the evidence supports
Strong: controlled studies in dogs agree. Some: small or mixed dog data. Thin: mechanism or lab work only. None: nothing, or the evidence points the other way.
-
Brands say
Comes from a sustainable, certified fishery
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
New Zealand hoki became the first large-scale whitefish fishery certified by the MSC in 2001, was recertified in 2007 and 2012, and stocks more than doubled. Certification covers the fishery, not the oil's freshness.2,4
-
Brands say
Omega-3s support your dog's joints
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
In a 24-week trial of 127 dogs with osteoarthritis, a food with 31-fold more omega-3 improved owner-rated rising, play and walking. A recipe with an undisclosed splash of hoki oil gives no such dose.5
-
Brands say
Fish oil gives a healthy skin and coat
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
A 10-week, 29-dog placebo trial of EPA 50 mg/kg and DHA 35 mg/kg daily improved atopic dermatitis scores. Flax oil also improved scores, and doses at food levels were not tested.6
-
Brands say
DHA builds puppy brains and eyes
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
A trial in 48 Beagle puppies found the high-DHA food improved reversal learning and retinal response. It is one study, run by Hill's Pet Nutrition, and it says nothing about adult dogs.7
-
Critics say
Fish oil in pet food goes rancid
Outruns the evidence
Evidence
- Strong
- Some
- Thin
- None
Oxidation is real: a crude hoki oil sample had a peroxide value of about 10, cut to about 2.3 by distillation. No study we found tested how the oil holds up inside dog food, and the label does not say which grade went in.1,8
Straight answers
What owners ask
-
Q01
Is it just filler?
NoIt is the recipe's source of EPA and DHA, which make up about 18% of the oil. It goes in at small amounts, so its low spot on the list is normal for an oil.1
-
Q02
Is hoki oil better than salmon oil?
No proofSuppliers sell it on its 2:1 DHA to EPA ratio. No dog study compares hoki and salmon oil, and the joint and skin trials used EPA and DHA from fish oil in general.2,5,6
-
Q03
Should I still add a fish oil supplement?
Only with a totalFor arthritis or itchy skin, trial doses came from a measured supplement or a high-omega-3 therapeutic food, and this food's amount is unknown. Count every source against the NRC limit of 2,800 mg EPA plus DHA per 1,000 kcal.5,6,9
Who uses it
Brands, best sellers and the company it keeps
Top brands, by foods that list it
Usually listed with, share of the foods that list it
- Flaxseed Flakes 100%
- New Zealand Green-Lipped Mussel 100%
- Chicken 50%
- Chicken Liver 50%
- Pumpkin 50%
- Broccoli 50%
- Dried Kelp 50%
- Lamb 50%
- Lamb Tripe 50%
- Venison 50%
- Lamb Heart 50%
- Lamb Lung 50%
On the shelf
Foods that list it
2 foods in our reviews list it. Here are some of them.
Our read // On the bag
Count it as omega-3, not as a dose
Hoki oil usually sits low in the list, which is normal for an oil. It tells you the food has some EPA and DHA, not how much. If you want the joint or skin effects seen in trials, ask the brand for its EPA plus DHA figure or dose a supplement separately.
Sources
What we read
Checked October 1, 2026.
- 1 Purification of Alaskan Walleye Pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) and New Zealand Hoki (Macruronus novaezelandiae) Liver Oil Using Short Path Distillation
- 2 Bulk NZ Hoki Oil
- 3 Our Operations
- 4 New Zealand hoki fisheries meet international best practice standard for sustainability
- 5 Multicenter veterinary practice assessment of the effects of omega-3 fatty acids on osteoarthritis in dogs
- 6 Effect of omega-3 fatty acids on canine atopic dermatitis
- 7 Evaluation of cognitive learning, memory, psychomotor, immunologic, and retinal functions in healthy puppies fed foods fortified with docosahexaenoic acid-rich fish oil from 8 to 52 weeks of age
- 8 Potential adverse effects of omega-3 fatty acids in dogs and cats
- 9 Journal Scan: Omega-3 fatty acids: How much is too much?