Chicken Meal

No. The word meal only describes how the chicken was processed. It is a concentrated meat protein with no grain in it.

Chicken meal is chicken flesh and skin, sometimes with bone, that has been cooked, dried and ground. AAFCO defines poultry meal as the dry rendered product from clean flesh and skin with or without accompanying bone, and says rendering leaves mainly protein and minerals. It is one of the most common proteins in dry cat food. For a cat with a chicken allergy or other medical condition, ask your veterinarian.

Source: aafco.org

Chicken meal packs a lot of protein into a small weight, which suits dry food. Fresh chicken is mostly water, so after cooking and drying, a pound of chicken meal holds far more protein than a pound of fresh chicken. That lets a kibble reach a high protein level. It also adds amino acids that cats use for muscle and energy.

Chicken meal is made of chicken flesh and skin, with or without bone. AAFCO describes poultry meal as the dry rendered product from a combination of clean flesh and skin with or without accompanying bone. During rendering, heat and pressure remove most of the water and fat. What is left is a concentrated protein powder, which is why it is often near the top of dry food labels.

Source: aafco.org

The difference is which parts of the bird go in. AAFCO describes poultry meal as clean flesh and skin, with or without bone. Poultry by-product meal is made from other parts, such as necks, feet, undeveloped eggs and intestines. Both are rendered into a dry protein powder. Pettings scores chicken meal 5 out of 5 and chicken by-product meal 2.

Source: aafco.org

Pettings gives chicken meal 5 out of 5 and lists it as a named animal protein. It appears on 60 of the 149 dry cat foods we list, which makes it one of the most common ingredients in dry food. Each food's page shows how it scores overall.