What score does Zignature Essence LIR Ocean Recipe get in this review?

It scores 87 out of 100 on our published label rubric. The panel opens with Whitefish, and the score table on this page shows every signal, its points and the label fact behind it. Crude protein is guaranteed at 38 percent.

Is Zignature Essence LIR Ocean Recipe suitable for puppies?

It is written for growth: the label is a puppy recipe, so it fits puppies first. Adult dogs can eat it, but its calorie and nutrient density are aimed at a growing dog.

How many calories are in Zignature Essence LIR Ocean Recipe?

The label gives 4,063 kcal per kilogram and 447 kcal per cup. Portion by calories rather than by the look of the bowl.

Has Zignature dog food been recalled?

Our November 2026 check of FDA recall records found no posted dog food recall events for Zignature. That is what we could verify, not proof of a perfect history.

Is Zignature Essence LIR Ocean Recipe grain free?

No: its panel includes Quinoa, so it is a grain inclusive recipe. The full ingredient list above shows every grain line in label order.

Zignature Essence LIR Ocean Recipe review

Zignature · Essence LIR Ocean Recipe · Dry food · Growth (puppy)

87 / 100Our label score

★★★★½4.5 of 5 stars, from the score

38%Crude protein (min)

447kcal per cup

0FDA recall events for the brand

On the facts printed on its own label, Zignature Essence LIR Ocean Recipe scores 87 out of 100 on our rubric: a strong label by the standards of this database. The panel opens with Whitefish, and the first ingredient signal earns 20 of its 20 points. At 38% crude protein it ranks 5 of the 54 Zignature recipes we scored for protein. Crude fat reads 24.5%.

At 447 kcal a cup it is calorie dense: small measuring errors become extra meals over a month, so this is a food to weigh rather than eyeball. Its adequacy claim rests on formulation: balanced on paper against the AAFCO nutrient profiles rather than fed to dogs in a trial. Our November 2026 check of FDA records found no posted dog food recall events for Zignature.

The panel runs to 16 ingredient lines. 4 of them are animal source lines and 4 are plant lines. Salt appears at line 9 of 16: ingredients listed after salt are present in small amounts, a standard reading aid for long panels. The vitamin and mineral pack begins around line 12; the 5 lines from there on are mostly supplements, preservatives and functional extras rather than staple foods.

The label facts

Maker	Pets Global, Inc.
Format	Dry food
Life stage	Growth (puppy)
Full ingredient list, in label order	Whitefish Herring Whitefish Meal Herring Meal Quinoa Pumpkin Sunflower Oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols) Natural Flavor Salt Potassium Chloride Choline Chloride Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Niacinamide, D-Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid) Mixed Tocopherols (Preservative) Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Iodate) Taurine Rosemary Extract
Guaranteed analysis	Crude protein (min) 38% · crude fat (min) 24.5% · crude fiber (max) 3% · moisture (max) 10%
Dry matter reading	With the water taken out, the same analysis reads 42.2% protein and 27.2% fat. Dry matter is how wet and dry foods can be compared fairly.
Calories	4,063 kcal/kg, 447 kcal/cup, as labeled
AAFCO adequacy	is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for growth, excluding growth of large size dogs (70 lbs. or more as an adult).
Price	Not listed. We publish a price only when we have verified it from a dated listing, and we had not for this recipe when the label was read.

How the score breaks down

Signal	Points	What the label shows
First ingredient	20 / 20	Whitefish, a named whole animal protein, opens the panel.
Animal protein depth, first 10 ingredients	12 / 15	4 of the first ten ingredients are named animal ingredients.
Protein level for the life stage	15 / 15	Crude protein reads 38% as labeled, read against the growth (puppy) stage the label claims.
Fat level fit	3 / 10	Crude fat reads 24.5% as labeled.
Whole foods versus filler-flagged ingredients	10 / 10	None of the rubric's flagged ingredients appears in the first ten.
Artificial colors and preservatives	10 / 10	No artificial colors, color-retention chemicals or artificial preservatives appear in the panel.
AAFCO adequacy basis	7 / 10	Formulated to meet AAFCO profiles for all life stages, except growth of large size dogs, so it sits in the stated-stage band rather than the full all-life-stages band.
FDA recall history	10 / 10	No FDA posted dog food recall events for this brand were found in our November 2026 check.
Price tier	Not scored	Not scored in this round. We publish a price only when we have verified it from a dated listing.
Total	87 / 100	Scaled from 87 of 100 available points. Stars are the score divided by 20, rounded to the nearest half. The method is published in full on the dog food hub.

Ingredient notes: the first ten, one by one

Definitions below are written from AAFCO's ingredient definitions in our own words. They describe what an ingredient is, never what a brand claims about it. Names that appear in our ingredient dictionary link to it; the dictionary counts how many scored recipes carry each ingredient.

Whitefish. Whitefish is a named fish, bringing animal protein and, in oily species, omega 3 fats. Fish first panels suit dogs that react to land meats.
Herring. Herring is a named fish, bringing animal protein and, in oily species, omega 3 fats. Fish first panels suit dogs that react to land meats.
Whitefish Meal. Whitefish Meal is the named animal rendered and ground, with water and most fat cooked off before it is weighed. Per kilo it carries far more protein than the fresh meat does.
Herring Meal. Herring Meal is the named animal rendered and ground, with water and most fat cooked off before it is weighed. Per kilo it carries far more protein than the fresh meat does.
Quinoa. Quinoa is a plant ingredient, bringing energy, fiber or plant protein to the panel.
Pumpkin. Pumpkin is a fiber rich vegetable makers add to steady digestion; it soaks up water in the gut.
Sunflower Oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols). Sunflower Oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols) is a natural preservative. It slows the fats in the food turning rancid and is the alternative to chemical preservatives.
Natural Flavor. Natural Flavor is a flavoring: a spray or powder added so the food tastes stronger to the dog. It is not a protein source and our rubric does not count it as one.
Salt. Salt covers sodium, a required mineral that also lifts palatability.
Potassium Chloride. Potassium Chloride belongs to the vitamin and mineral pack that brings the recipe up to a complete profile. Minerals named as proteinates are bound to protein, a form the gut absorbs more readily.

Who it suits

Active, lean dogs that burn through protein and hold weight easily
Puppies: the label is written for growth, which adult maintenance foods are not
Owners who want a named whole meat, not a meal or a plant, at the top of the panel

Who should skip it

Dogs that gain weight easily, unless every portion is weighed
Owners who specifically want a food proven in feeding trials rather than by formulation

The brand's recall record

No FDA posted dog food recall events for this brand were found in our November 2026 check of FDA recall records. That is a statement about what we could verify, not proof of a perfect history.

See the full dog food recall tracker for recent events across all brands.

Other Zignature recipes we scored

Recipe	Score / 100	Protein	Format
Zssential Formula	98	32%	Dry food
Zssential Small Bites Formula	98	32%	Dry food
Puppy Formula	97	31%	Dry food
Select Cuts Puppy with Super Grains	94	26.5%	Dry food
Trout and Salmon Formula	93	31%	Dry food
Trout and Salmon Small Bites Formula	93	31%	Dry food
Turkey Formula	93	32%	Dry food
Turkey Small Bites Formula	93	32%	Dry food
Pork Formula	92	30%	Dry food
Freeze Dried Zssential Entree	91	38%	Freeze-dried food
Zssential Formula Wet Food	91	11%	Wet food
Essence LIR Landfowl Formula	90	41%	Dry food

Those are the twelve highest scoring of the 53 other Zignature recipes we scored. The full comparison, flagship review included, is on the Zignature brand review.

Feeding it

Switch foods gradually over about a week, mixing more of the new food into the old each day. Portion by calories, not by the look of the bowl: our feeding calculator works out a daily amount from your dog's weight, and this recipe's calorie line above is the number it needs.

What that means at the bowl, for a typical neutered adult (resting energy 70 times body weight to the power 0.75, times 1.6; treats come out of the same budget):

Dog's weight	Daily energy	Of this recipe, at 447 kcal a cup
3 kg	about 255 kcal	about 0.6 cups
10 kg	about 630 kcal	about 1.4 cups
20 kg	about 1,059 kcal	about 2.4 cups
30 kg	about 1,436 kcal	about 3.2 cups

Puppies, pregnant dogs and very active dogs need more; older and weight watching dogs need less. The calculator linked above adjusts for those cases.

Zignature Essence LIR Ocean Recipe: our recipe review