Cracked Pearled Barley

Grain mills polish barley kernels, separating the hull and some bran. They cut the remaining grain into smaller pieces, making a dry ingredient for pet food production.^5,7,10

1. 01 // Source Dry barley Dry barley kernels arrive at the mill with their outer hulls still attached.
2. 02 // Process Polished Milling removes the hull and polishes away some or all of the bran around each kernel.
3. 03 // Process Cracked The mill cuts the polished kernels into smaller pieces, exposing more surface area before cooking.
4. 04 // Output Cracked pearled barley Dry broken pieces reach the kibble plant as a milled grain ingredient.

1. 01

   Supplies starch energy

   Pearled barley is mostly starch. In a small dog study, the carbohydrate fraction of a barley diet was digested well, though less completely than the rice and corn diets.^1,5

2. 02

   Helps form kibble

   Starch binds and expands during food processing. Barley supplies that starch alongside the recipe's other grains, animal ingredients and fats.^1,5

How much A trial with 16 dogs tested barley at 10, 20 and 40% of complete diets; it did not isolate the cracked pearled form.⁶

1. Brands say

   Barley gives dogs usable energy

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   In a study of 8 beagles, the barley diet's carbohydrate fraction was 90.10% digestible. Pearled barley samples contained about 73% starch. The feeding study used powdered barley, so it cannot rank this cracked form against other cuts.^1,5

2. Brands say

   Cracking makes pearled barley easier to digest

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Cutting makes smaller pieces, and pearling speeds cooking. A composition study measured pearled barley, but no dog trial compared cracked pearled barley with intact kernels for digestibility. Faster cooking does not prove better digestion.^1,5

3. Brands say

   Barley fiber improves gut health

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   A 16-dog thesis trial fed barley at up to 40% and found no improvement in fecal odor, postprandial glycemia or plasma cholesterol. Its conclusion proposes carbohydrate changes could raise gut SCFA production, a suggested direction, not a measured barley result.⁶

4. Brands say

   Barley steadies blood sugar and lowers cholesterol

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   In the one trial that isolated barley, 16 dogs fed up to 40% saw no improvement in postmeal glucose or plasma cholesterol. Favorable trials in 15 and 12 diabetic dogs fed peas and barley together, so barley's share is unknown.^2,3,6

5. Brands say

   Cracked pearled barley is a whole grain

   Outruns the evidence

   Evidence

   1. Strong
   2. Some
   3. Thin
   4. None

   Pearling removes the hull and some or all of the bran before cutting. A grain composition study classifies pearled barley as something other than whole grain. The fiber that remains does not restore the removed bran.⁵