The biggest news is ingredient changes. More chicken is being added to the chicken-based formulas, and some of that is in the form of chicken meat, not meal. So the first ingredient will now be "chicken" in the chicken-based formulas such as Chunks, Mini-Chunks, Large Breed Adult, Puppy Original, and Puppy Large Breed foods. Lamb-based foods such as Lamb Meal and Rice Formula and Less Active Lamb Meal and Rice will still use lamb meal as the main protein source. Because fresh lamb meat is scarce in the U.S., Iams has traditionally bought lamb meal from New Zealand.

Adding this fresh meat, plus the use of chicken fat and chicken digest, improve the aroma, taste and texture of the foods.

The dry Iams dog foods also benefit from a new, patented carbohydrate blend. The company is using barley and grain sorghum, which are highly-digestible carbos. They provide balanced energy that help maintain normal blood sugar levels, and avoid the highs and lows that usually occur after eating. That helps prevent obesity. Iams conducted over 1,000 dog hours of blood sugar response studies to develop this combination.

Iams has also received a patent on its fiber combination, with moderately fermentable beet pulp as its base.

Even Iams Less Active, Less Active Lamb Meal & Rice Formula, and Iams Senior foods have been revamped to include the innovations mentioned here. But a bigger change is the addition of L-Carnitine, a natural, vitamin-like compound that's made in the body, and which helps burn fat. In feeding tests, dogs fed diets with L-Carnitine lost 50% more fat and maintained more muscle than dogs on a traditional high-fiber weight-loss diet. (Carnitine is made in the body from the amino acids lysine and methionine, and is found in raw meat.)

Iams is also launching a Large Breed Adult Formula, similar to the Eukanuba Large Breed Adult Formula it introduced earlier this year (see March/April 1999 Good Dog!). The big difference is the Iams brand food doesn't have fish meal for more omega-3 fatty acids. Like the Eukanuba brand, it does, however, contain less fat than other foods in the Iams family, and glucosamine to help prevent joint problems in larger dogs. The Eukanuba brand also contains chondroitin sulfate, for additional joint support.

You'll also see new packaging when you shop the Iams aisle at the pet store. Each product is now color-coded by both lifestage and formula. Puppy foods and biscuits all are in yellow, Adult in green, lamb meal in red, Less Active in blue, and Senior in purple. Different varieties within each category have color-coded blocks with the formula name on them.