Parsley

Parsley is added to cat food to freshen breath. Its nutritional contribution for the cat is limited.

Parsley is a leafy cooking herb, and some dry cat foods add a small amount of the dried leaf. FDA lists parsley in 21 CFR 582.10 among spices and natural seasonings with GRAS status for use in animal feed. That listing covers feed use in general rather than cats specifically. If your cat has kidney disease or another medical condition, ask your veterinarian about herbs in its food.

Source: govinfo.gov

Parsley is added to some cat foods with fresher breath in mind, but we found no controlled study showing it changes breath odor in cats. Bad breath in cats often comes from dental disease, which a food herb will not fix. A cat with persistent bad breath should have its mouth checked by a veterinarian.

Many cats can nibble a little plain fresh parsley, and the curly and flat-leaf types are both culinary parsley. The herb offers little nutrition for a carnivore. Large amounts of any herb can upset a cat's stomach. In commercial cat food, parsley is dried and used at low levels for flavor and appearance.

Parsley does contain vitamin K, but the small amount in dry cat food adds little. The Merck Veterinary Manual says a cat's gut bacteria typically provide enough vitamin K, and many foods also add a synthetic form. Parsley is in the recipe mainly as an herb, not as a vitamin source.

Source: merckvetmanual.com

Pettings gives parsley 2 out of 5 and lists it as an herb or plant extract. It appears on 13 of the 149 dry cat foods we list. The page describes it as an herb added to cat food to freshen breath. Each food's page shows how it scores overall.