BHA

BHA Glossary: BHA, or butylated hydroxyanisole, is a synthetic antioxidant preservative used to stop the fats in a food from going rancid. Fat oxidation, or rancidity, is one of the main ways a pet food spoils: it destroys flavour, degrades fat-soluble vitamins and generates compounds that are unpalatable and potentially harmful, so an antioxidant system is genuinely necessary, especially in fat-rich recipes. BHA does this job effectively and cheaply, which is why it has long been used in feed. Its use is governed by regulatory limits: in the European Union, antioxidants of this kind are authorised feed additives with defined maximum levels, and they must be declared (EU additive regulation). BHA is frequently discussed together with its close relative [BHT](/glossary/bht), and the two are often the focus of consumer concern about synthetic additives, with some studies prompting debate over high-dose effects, even though the amounts permitted in feed are far below those. This concern is precisely why many premium brands have moved toward natural alternatives, chiefly mixed [tocopherols](/glossary/tocopherols), a form of [vitamin E](/glossary/vitamin-e), and rosemary extract, accepting their shorter protective life in exchange for a cleaner label. On a pack, BHA appears among the additives, sometimes under an E number. See the [Petipedia glossary](/glossary) for related preservatives.

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