Nutra Complete vs Freshpet, which one belongs in your dog’s bowl? They both promise “real food” instead of plain kibble, but they’re not the same kind of food at all. Nutra Complete is freeze-dried raw that comes in a shelf-stable bag. Freshpet is gently cooked and lives in the refrigerator at the store.
So the real question is less “which brand is better” and more “which format fits your dog and your kitchen.” I’ll compare the two on ingredients, nutrition, prep, price and recall history, then give you a clear pick for different situations.
Freeze-Dried Raw vs Fresh Cooked: The Quick Difference
Freeze-dried raw food is raw meat, organs and produce with the water pulled out. It isn’t cooked, so it keeps the texture and flavor of raw food, and you can serve it dry or add water. Because it’s raw, the FDA’s general advice on raw pet food applies: wash your hands and your dog’s bowl, and think twice if anyone at home is very young, elderly or immune-compromised.
Fresh cooked food like Freshpet is cooked at lower temperatures than kibble and packed without preservatives, which is why it has to stay cold. It looks a lot like meatloaf. You slice it and serve it. Our guide to the different types of dog food goes deeper into each format.
Company Histories
About Nutra Complete
Nutra Complete is made by Ultimate Pet Nutrition, a company based in Encino, California and founded by veterinarian Dr. Gary Richter. It’s been selling since about 2019, mostly online through its own site and Amazon. In June 2025 Nutra Complete reached about 650 Pet Supplies Plus stores, its biggest retail launch so far.
The line is small: beef, pork and chicken recipes in 5-ounce, 16-ounce and 48-ounce bags. The company says the food is made in the USA with U.S.-sourced ingredients.
About Freshpet
Freshpet was founded in 2006 in Secaucus, New Jersey by Scott Morris, Cathal Walsh and John Phelps, three former pet food executives. It was the first company to put refrigerated pet food in stores across North America, and it’s been publicly traded on Nasdaq since 2014. Food is made in its own plants in Pennsylvania and Texas.
Freshpet is a much bigger range: Vital, Select, Homestyle Creations, Dognation and Nature’s Fresh, sold as rolls, bags of chunks and tubs. You’ll find it in the Freshpet fridge at most grocery stores, Walmart, Target and pet stores. We cover the lineup in our full Freshpet dog food review.
For two very different formats, they have a fair bit in common. Both put animal protein first, both skip artificial preservatives, and both are pitched at owners who want something closer to “real food” than kibble. Both are also easy to use as a topper if you can’t afford them as a full diet.
Nutra Complete recipes:
Premium Beef
Premium Pork
Chicken
Freshpet lines:
Freshpet Vital
Freshpet Select
Homestyle Creations
Dognation
Nature’s Fresh
Differences
Ingredients
Nutra Complete Beef is mostly beef. The first five ingredients are beef, beef liver, beef kidney, flaxseed and dried kelp, followed by fruits and vegetables like blueberry, carrot, sweet potato and spinach. That meat-and-organ mix is what you’d expect from a raw diet.
Freshpet Vital Chicken starts with chicken and chicken liver, then carrots, sweet potatoes and pea protein. Pea protein is a common way to raise the protein number on the label with a plant source. It’s not harmful, but it means some of that protein isn’t from meat.
Nutritional Value
You can’t compare the labels as printed, because Freshpet is 65% water and Nutra Complete is 5%. On a dry matter basis, Freshpet Vital Chicken works out to roughly 46% protein and 34% fat. Nutra Complete Beef is roughly 39% protein and 37% fat. So the freeze-dried food is actually the richer, fattier one, and the fresh food has more protein per bite once you take the water out.
Fat that high matters if your dog is overweight or has a history of pancreatitis. Ask your vet before feeding Nutra Complete as a full diet in that case.
Preparation and Storage
Nutra Complete can go straight from the bag as crunchy bites, or you add warm water (about 2 parts food to 1 part water) and wait three minutes. Unopened bags sit in the pantry. Once rehydrated, leftovers keep three to five days in the fridge.
Freshpet needs no prep. You cut a slice off the roll or scoop from the bag. But it has to stay cold the whole time, and an opened roll should be used within about seven days. If you’re buying for a small dog, that can mean throwing some away.
Pricing
Nutra Complete is the pricier way to feed a dog. A 5-ounce bag was $15.49 at 1-800-PetMeds in October 2026, and the feeding guide calls for about 1¾ cups a day for a 20-pound dog. That’s why most owners use it as a topper. Bigger bags bring the price per ounce down.
Freshpet costs more than kibble but noticeably less than freeze-dried or subscription fresh food. Currently, their Vital for small breeds costs around $9.99 per pound, while the food roll is more budget-friendly at approximately $4.37 per pound.
Freshpet wins on convenience. It’s in the refrigerated case at most supermarkets, big-box stores and pet stores. Nutra Complete is mostly online (its own site, Amazon and 1-800-PetMeds), plus Pet Supplies Plus stores since 2025.
Recall History
Nutra Complete has no recalls on record that I could find. Freshpet has had two, both single lots and both for possible salmonella:
June 2021: one lot of Freshpet Select Small Dog Bite Size Beef & Egg Recipe (1-lb bags, sell-by Oct. 30, 2021). Product meant to be destroyed was shipped to some Publix and Target stores by mistake.
Freshpet reported no illnesses either time. You can check any brand in our dog food recall database.
Nutra Complete vs Freshpet: Which Is Best for Your Dog?
Budget: Freshpet. Nutra Complete is hard to afford as a full diet for anything but a small dog.
Convenience: Freshpet if you shop at the supermarket, Nutra Complete if you’d rather keep a bag in the cupboard and travel with it.
Raw feeding: Nutra Complete. Freshpet is cooked.
Young kids or anyone immune-compromised at home: Freshpet, to avoid handling raw meat.
Picky eater on kibble: either one works as a topper. Start with a spoonful.
As for me and my pack, Freshpet is the clear favorite! My dogs seem to prefer it, perhaps because of its more appealing aroma, chewier texture, and ease of eating, especially since I have small dogs.
However, every dog has different tastes and preferences, so what works best for my pack may not necessarily be the best choice for yours. At the end of the day, it all comes down to your pet’s individual needs, preferences, and nutritional requirements. This is simply my personal experience with my beloved pets, and yours may be completely different!
Verdict
For most dogs, I’d go with Freshpet. It’s cooked, easy to buy, labelled for all life stages and a lot cheaper to feed as a full meal. Its two recalls were small and caught early.
Nutra Complete makes sense if you want raw food without thawing frozen patties, or a shelf-stable topper that makes kibble exciting again. Just watch the fat content, follow raw-food hygiene, and treat it as a topper unless the bag says it’s complete and balanced.
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Noreen possesses a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science degree from Informatics International College. While this credential might not elucidate her passion for pets, it does demonstrate her technical expertise and diverse character.
We watch the FDA and every major brand so you don’t have to. The moment a dog food is recalled, you’ll get an email with the brand, the lots affected, and what to do. Nothing else, no spam.
