Pressed Cranberries

Pressed cranberries are cranberry material that has been pressed, a step most often used to extract juice. They appear in small amounts in a few dry cat foods. We found no FDA or Merck guidance specific to cranberry in cat food. If your cat has urinary stones or another medical condition, ask your veterinarian rather than relying on any single ingredient.

Pressed cranberries are added for fiber and the cranberry name, which many owners link with urinary health. The Pettings page notes there is no strong evidence that cranberry prevents urinary tract infections in cats. In cat food the amount is small, usually near the end of the ingredient list.

Pressed cranberries have gone through a pressing step, usually to remove juice, so what remains is mostly skin and seed rather than whole fruit. Plain cranberries on a label usually means whole or ground fruit. Pettings lists each cranberry form as a separate ingredient because the names describe different forms.

Yes, cranberries contain oxalate, a compound that can combine with calcium in urine. The Merck Veterinary Manual lists calcium oxalate as one of the most common bladder stone types in cats. The amount of cranberry in dry cat food is small, and a cat with a stone history is usually fed a diet chosen by its veterinarian.

Source: merckvetmanual.com

Pettings gives pressed cranberries 3 out of 5 and lists it as a fruit or vegetable ingredient. It appears on 1 of the 149 dry cat foods we list. The page notes that cranberries contain oxalate and are usually present in small amounts. Each food's page shows how it scores overall.