Nom Nom Review 2023: Pet Food Backed by Science

Overview

Looking for some pet food backed by science? Nom Nom might be your answer. I’ve researched and analyzed the company to see if its service measures up. I carefully weighed its pet food according to six different metrics.

These metrics run the gamut from meals (how they’re prepared and what they contain) to customer service to prices, and even more. From my research, I learned a particularly astounding tidbit of information.

Nom Nom has not one, but two, Board Certified Veterinary Nutritionists on its team. At the time of writing, there are only around 100 Board Certified Veterinary Nutritionists in the country. I mean, wow! When it comes to scientific expertise, you can rest assured Nom Nom has that covered.

And it pays off. They craft delicious, nutritious recipes with fresh, whole ingredients that are balanced with essential nutrients and vitamins. They believe that quality nutrition is critical to the health and well-being of pets.

Overall, I found the company to be pretty darn good. Not perfect, but still impressive. Now, let’s dig into the details and see what all the ruckus is about!

Pros

• Offers meals for dogs

• Employs two board-certified veterinary nutritionists on staff

• Has probiotic supplements to support pet health

• Offers Microbiome Testing Kits to track the digestive health of your pet

• Canceling and//or managing your account is fairly easy

• Special discount: Take 60% Off Your First Order

Cons

• No app

Nom Nom Is Best For

• Owners of dogs

• Dogs who want fresh food

• Dogs who want whole ingredients

Nom Nom May Not Be Great For

• People who rely on FAQ/help sections (they’re a little confusing)

• Dogs that don’t like previously frozen food

Nom Nom Meals

Plans and Recipes

Nom Nom offers four types of recipes for dogs (Beef Mash, Chicken Cuisine, Pork Potluck, and Turkey Fare). The recipes are designed with allergies and sensitivities in mind. So, if your pet has such, Nom Nom will recommend one or two recipes in preference to others. 

To test the system out, I checked off food allergies or sensitive stomach for my dog Cicero when I submitted his details, and Nom Nom recommended the Pork Potluck meal. Failing that, I also had the option of purchasing up to two different kinds of probiotic supplements , and/or a Microbiome Testing Kit for gut health. Impressive, huh?

Nom Nom uses only a limited number of ingredients in each of its recipes. These recipes contain real meats and real veggies. And, you can customize which recipes to use with a little help from Nom Nom and the filter it uses.

The brains behind the recipes are the two Board Certified Veterinary Nutritionists Dr. Justin Shmalberg and Dr. Caitlyn Getty as well as seven other scientists. Dr. Shmalberg helps guide recipe formulation. He also advises on pet nutrition. Dr. Getty focuses on pet illness and nutrition optimization.

There are less than 100 Board Certified Veterinary Nutritionists throughout the U.S. It says something that Nom Nom has two of them in its corner. They develop every recipe according to the nutritional guidelines set by the AAFCO Food Nutrient Profiles.

Ingredients

Nom Nom calls itself a vertically integrated company, so it oversees every step of the process in the creation of its pet food. The ingredients are sourced from U.S. growers and suppliers using sustainably-sourced food as often as possible.

It uses the highest quality proteins and vegetables. Meals are formulated to meet the nutritional levels of the AAFCO nutrient profiles for dogs. Let’s look closer at one of the dog foods Nom Nom provides.

Here’s the ingredient list (from www.nomnomnow.com ) for Beef Mash, a recipe that has been developed to help build muscle and maintain it. Puppies, seniors, and a host of dogs in between will relish it to no end.

As you can see, there are a lot of nutrients and vitamins in there. They come from a special nutrient mix. To simplify a little, and to give you a better idea of what’s in there, here’s a simplified list of ingredients: ground beef, potatoes, eggs, carrots, peas, nutrient mix, and fish oil. Yep. Seven. That’s it.. 

If you take a closer look at two of the above-listed ingredients, eggs and potatoes, you can break them down a little. This should give you a better idea of the nutritional value of the Beef Mash recipe as a whole.

Potatoes are second on the list of ingredients. Protein-packed and full of energy, potatoes provide a great boost to your dog’s health. Eggs are third on the list of ingredients. They’re high in protein and serve as a good source of amino acids and fatty acids. They also provide a good number of vitamins. 

You’ll find that all the other ingredients contribute to a healthy, happy pet..

Nutrition

Dog food in the states isn’t released to the public without providing a guaranteed nutrition analysis. Here’s the Guaranteed Analysis for the Beef Mash recipe (again, from www.nomnomnow.com):

Guaranteed Analysis for Beef Mash

Crude Protein  8% min

Crude Fat  4% min

Crude Fiber  1% max

Moisture 77% max

As you can see, the Beef Mash is low in fiber (although it’s still a respectable level) and higher in protein. It’s also a little on the low side in regards to fat. If you look through the other recipes, you’ll realize each one has its own strengths and weaknesses.

The pet food is gently-cooked. There are no high-temperature vats involved nor is there any extrusion. Once cooked, each ingredient is carefully and precisely mixed in small batches by a specially-made, one-of-a-kind machine.

This keeps the critical nutrients sealed within and the food highly digestible. Overall, the preparation process keeps the meals well-balanced and nutritious.

Unboxing

All Nom Nom’s boxes contain the appropriate meal packs for your pet, dry ice to cool the container, and insulators to keep it cool. The meals should arrive cool to the touch and may sometimes even arrive frozen.

Nom Nom provides easy, personalized instructions with each one of its deliveries. Accordingly, you’re supposed to keep the food frozen and just thaw the food prior to serving. Thawed meals should keep in the refrigerator for up to seven days. Frozen meals will keep in the freezer for up to six months.

All you need to do in terms of meal prep is just thaw the food and serve. The meals are perfectly pre-portioned by Nom Nom’s specially designed machine (it’s a machine Nom Nom designed itself, so it’s one-of-a-kind!). One meal. One serving. One happy dog!

All of the boxes, insulators, and meal pack material are recyclable. The contents of a shipped box are kept cool with dry ice (do NOT touch the dry ice) which sublimates over time and is believed to be more environmentally-friendly than the gel packs other companies use.

Shipping & Delivery

Now let’s look at the shipping and delivery process. The food from your first delivery should last about two weeks. That should be enough for you to figure out whether you want to stay with Nom Nom or not.

After those first two weeks, your delivery schedule resets to a customized time period depending upon the characteristics of your pet. Four weeks. Six weeks. Whatever is needed.

From then on, shipments are delivered automatically, so you never run out of food. But don’t fret, you can customize your delivery options and schedules as you see fit. You can also add a probiotic supplement to any order you like.

Currently, Nom Nom delivers to the 48 contiguous states – which I find pretty impressive. The meals are shipped Monday through Thursday. Due to distance and such, the actual date the food arrives will vary depending upon your location. However, there are no deliveries on Mondays.

Rescheduling your order is a fairly easy process that’s clearly explained in the Help section under Delivery Assistance. It consists of four steps (from www.nomnomnow.com):

1. Select Reschedule or cancel delivery under the Account Actions section of your Nom Nom Account's home page.

2. Click the dropdown menu next to your current delivery to view all available delivery dates.

3. Select your new delivery date.

4. Click Save delivery date.

Nom Nom doesn’t have an app, but there’s a lot of information on the website. What I didn’t like was how that information was organized. It’s split between a FAQ and a Help section instead of just being listed all in one place. I found that frustrating to navigate when looking for answers.

Ordering from Nom Nom

I found the ordering process at Nom Nom easy to understand and straightforward. There are a couple of different steps involved, depending on what you’re trying to do, but they’re all fairly basic.

How to Sign Up

Signing up, for example, is really easy. All you have to do is answer a few questions about your dog and provide your necessary info and you’re good to go. The information is gathered through a questionnaire.

In the first step of the questionnaire, you provide your dog’s name, gender, and breed.

Once you answer that question, you’re clear to continue through the rest of the questionnaire. It only takes a minute or two to answer all nine. Here’s a brief list of all the questions.

1. Pet name, gender, and breed

2. Pet weight and age

3. Pet body condition (underweight, ideal, or overweight) and target weight

4. What’s up with the pet? (condition: e.g. picky eater, food allergies, etc…)

5. Select meals

6. Add GI-Targeted Probiotic or not

7. Owner’s name and email

8. Shipping Address

9. Review Order and Provide Payment details

Once you’ve signed up, the next task is managing your subscription.

Managing Your Subscription

Although managing your subscription is easy at Nom Nom, there are drawbacks. First off, there are really two FAQ pages. One is called the FAQs and the other is labeled as the Help section. It’s a minor issue, but I found being forced to look in two different locations for answers a little annoying. 

However, you can reschedule orders, manage deliveries, or even cancel your account with relative ease. Most tasks are easily accomplished under your account online. Failing that, you can contact Customer Support manually by email or by telephone.

Instructions for many tasks, like changing your delivery date or adding a new pet, can be found under an appropriate subtitle in either the FAQ or Help section. In the case of changing the delivery date, for example, a step-by-step process is given in the Help section under Delivery Assistance.

Customer Service

It is, generally, very easy to contact Customer Service at Nom Nom. There are email forms, a chatbot that has the option to go live, and a phone number. My personal favorite is the chatbot. I can look stuff up myself, and if the AI can’t handle it, it’s easy to go straight to Support.

I also like the chatbot (or phone) because it’s probably the quickest. I tested the live chat out and found the human support agent to be quick, professional, and friendly. No problems, whatsoever.

Nom Nom provides 4 different meals, each tailored to meet distinct dietary needs. For instance, if your dog suffers from allergies or other sensitivities, the most common meal suggestion I encountered was Pork Potluck.

Although food cannot be returned, the money from your first order can be refunded if the dog isn’t seeing any benefits and you contact the company within 30 days.

Cancellation of your account is relatively easy. You can either do it via your account online, or by email, chat box, or phone call. You can also update payment or delivery options or both just as easily. No hassle at all..

Nom Nom Recalls

Tyson Foods, a supplier of Nom Nom, announced a massive recall of some of its chicken products that may have been contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. As a result, Nom Nom issued a voluntary recall for its Chicken Cuisine on July 8, 2021.

Prices

When purchased by weight, prices range from $49 for 6 lbs of food to $98 for 12 lbs. Naturally, a smaller dog or a more active one will eat less than a larger, less active animal. Where a 6 lb bag will likely be suitable for a small dog and last several weeks, a larger animal might need more. 

How much depends on the particular characteristics of the dog. Nom Nom calculates the price of its dog food order based on such things as weight goals, calorie intake needs, age, activity level as well as the selected recipes..

Nom Nom offers supplements to round out and enhance your dog’s diet. Nom Nom has two different kinds of probiotics: Full Spectrum and GI Targeted. Each 30 day supply costs: $40 ($30 on discount). It also offers a Microbiome Test Kit for $90 at the time of this writing.

Finally, it’s worth noting that if you are still undecided, Nom Nom will give you a special trial offer for your first box. And, although the taxes Nom Nom charges may differ from state to state, the shipping is always free.

Although it doesn’t offer partial plans for any of its meals, Nom Nom does allow you to order multiple recipes for each delivery.  So if your dog is a picky eater or just wants a little more variety, Nom Nom can help. 

Nom Nom also has a special discount Take 60% Off Your First Order available which you can take advantage of to help reduce the overall price of your order.

If your dog isn’t happy with the food or he/she isn’t seeing the benefits you hoped, Nom Nom will refund the money from your first order. The only stipulation is that you must contact Nom Nom within 30 days of the order being delivered. The food itself can’t be returned as it’s perishable.

The Bottom Line: Is Nom Nom Worth It?

Nom Nom is definitely worth it. To start with, Nom Nom’s science-backed food is a huge plus. Its drawbacks are largely limited to the organization of the help material on the website. And that’s an easy fix.

As for the recall, the one it had wasn’t its fault at all. And, regardless, it followed the necessary procedures to take care of it as quickly as possible. So, I think anyone looking for a healthy science-based diet for their pet should give Nom Nom a serious look.

FAQ

Is Nom Nom good dog food?

Yes, Nom Nom is good dog food. The recipes Nom Nom uses have the backing of two board-certified veterinary nutritionists. They’re involved in the development of the recipes the company uses in every step of the process.

Is Nom Nom dog food raw?

Although Nom Nom uses fresh ingredients, the ingredients are cooked, not raw. The food is gently cooked in small batches instead of vats and is never extruded. Meals are shipped frozen to seal in nutrients.

Is Nom Nom dog food grain free?

Three of the four dog meals do not list any grains as an ingredient. The fourth meal, Turkey Fare, lists brown rice. So, you have several grain-free options as well as one option with grain. So, in this case, you can have it both ways.