herring

Fish

Herring is a small oily forage fish — named protein with a strong omega-3 story. How Bowlmark scores named fish.

Also appears on labels as: whole herring · fresh herring · deboned herring · atlantic herring

What it is

Herring is a small, oily forage fish contributing named animal protein and long-chain omega-3s. Sitting low on the food chain, it accumulates less mercury than large predatory fish — the quiet advantage of the small oily species.

Why it's in pet food

Herring brings the salmon story at forage-fish economics: real protein, real EPA and DHA. Whole herring near the top of a label is a genuinely strong ingredient.

How Bowlmark scores it

Scores are deterministic math over the printed label — the rules below apply to every product identically, and nothing estimates or fills in a blank.

Herring is on the engine's named-protein list: 15 points on the ingredient-quality pillar when fresh herring leads the label; a named herring meal earns 12 in that slot, or 8 when it sits second or third. Generic "fish meal" takes a 10-point deduction instead — the engine prices the naming.

Read the full methodology

Foods that list herring

Ranked by score where scores exist. Placement here is never sold.

Compare foods that list herring

Same species, same form, both scored — closest scores first, so the comparison is a real one.

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Sources

Cite this page

Bowlmark. "Herring in pet food — what it is and how it scores." https://www.bowlmark.com/ingredient/herring

Engine: Methodology engine v1.1.0 · config 13c99e2f
Verified: Last verified August 9, 2026

No stored score to stamp yet — the engine and config above are the ones a scan runs today.

How the engine works Citation registry