Comparisons
AlphaPak vs. Open Farm: Freeze-Dried Raw Beef, Side by Side
AlphaPak · Reviewed by our veterinary and formulation team · Updated September 14, 2026
AlphaPak Beef and Open Farm Grass-Fed Beef Freeze-Dried Raw are both raw and never cooked. Both carry an AAFCO statement for all life stages. Open Farm stands out for tracing where each ingredient comes from. AlphaPak stands out for the label itself: whole meat, organ, bone, and produce, no added vitamin and mineral premix, more protein, and less fat.
Open Farm built its name on knowing where every ingredient comes from, and that is a real strength. If you are choosing between Open Farm and AlphaPak, here are the facts from both labels, side by side. We read them from each company's own website on September 14, 2026, and we link to every page at the bottom.
The facts, side by side
| AlphaPak Beef | Open Farm Grass-Fed Beef Freeze-Dried Raw | |
|---|---|---|
| Main protein | Beef | Beef |
| First five ingredients | Beef meat, flaxseed, beef kidney, beef liver, beef heart | Humanely raised beef, beef heart, beef liver, beef kidney, organic butternut squash |
| Crude protein (min) | 51% | 41% |
| Crude fat (min) | 27.5% | 38% |
| Calories | 246 kcal per cup (4,458 kcal/kg) | 243 kcal per cup on the morsels page; 64 kcal per patty (4,928 kcal/kg) |
| Added vitamin & mineral premix | None. The list ends with mixed tocopherols, a natural preservative | Yes: dicalcium phosphate, calcium carbonate, potassium chloride, vitamins E, A, D3, and B12, niacin, pantothenic acid, riboflavin, thiamine, pyridoxine, folic acid, zinc, iron, copper, and manganese proteinates, selenium yeast, and calcium iodate. Also salmon oil and coconut oil |
| AAFCO statement | AlphaPak Freeze-Dried Dog Food is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO nutritional profiles for all dog life stages, including growth and development of large size dogs (70 lbs or more as adult dogs). | Open Farm Freeze-Dried Raw Grass-Fed Beef Recipe dog food is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for All Life Stages including growth of large size dogs (70 lb. or more as an adult). |
| Made in | USA | Not stated on the product page. Their FAQ says they partner with facilities in the United States, Canada, and Iceland |
| Safety process, as each brand describes it | We run a kill-step process and test the finished food, and the equipment it is made on, for Salmonella, Listeria, and E. coli. | Their FAQ: finished-product samples go to a third-party lab for Salmonella and E. coli testing. HPP for freeze-dried raw is not described on their site |
| Format | Cubes; add warm water before serving | Patties (10.5 and 17.5 oz) or morsels; the morsels are sold as a meal or topper |
Both foods lead with beef, heart, liver, and kidney. Both carry an AAFCO statement for all life stages, including large-breed puppies. Both add fruits and vegetables. From there, the labels part ways.
What Open Farm does well
Open Farm's traceability is the best in the category. Type the lot code from your bag into their website and you can see where each ingredient came from. Their meat comes with third-party animal welfare certifications, and they say so plainly. The recipe includes salmon oil, a marine source of omega-3. Their team also runs digestibility and stool studies on recipes, according to their FAQ. That is a thoughtful, well-run company.
Where AlphaPak pulls ahead
Read past the produce on Open Farm's label and you reach a long stretch of added nutrients: 19 vitamins and minerals, from dicalcium phosphate to calcium iodate. That is a common, accepted way to hit the AAFCO profile. It is not the only way.
AlphaPak reaches the same AAFCO profile with whole food alone. The beef, organs, bone, and produce supply every vitamin and mineral in the bag. Our list ends with mixed tocopherols, a natural preservative, and nothing else. Two foods, one standard, two very different routes.
AlphaPak is also the leaner, higher-protein recipe: 51% protein and 27.5% fat, next to Open Farm's 41% protein and 38% fat. On omega-3, we will be straight with you. Our source is flaxseed, a plant source. If your vet wants marine omega-3 in the bowl, Open Farm has it built in, and we do not.
What the research says about digestibility
In a University of Illinois study, adult dogs fed raw and mildly cooked diets digested more of their food than dogs fed kibble (Algya et al., 2018). A later study saw the same pattern with freeze-dried raw (Geary et al., 2024). These are findings about diet types, not tests of any one brand. Both AlphaPak and Open Farm are raw and never cooked, so both sit on the right side of that line. Where we go further is keeping the whole-food approach all the way to the end of the label.
How each is made safe
Open Farm's FAQ says finished-product samples go to a third-party lab for Salmonella and E. coli testing. Their site does not describe HPP for the freeze-dried line, so we do not claim it for them either way. We run a kill-step process and test the finished food, and the equipment it is made on, for Salmonella, Listeria, and E. coli. Freeze-drying does not cook the food, so treat either one like raw at home: wash hands and bowls, seal the bag, and toss rehydrated leftovers after two hours. More in is freeze-dried raw safe?.
Which one is right for your dog?
If ingredient tracing and marine omega-3 in the food matter most to you, Open Farm delivers both. If you want the shortest possible label, no added vitamin and mineral pack, more protein, and less fat, AlphaPak is built for you. Switch slowly over about a week, and talk with your vet if your dog has special needs.
Where these numbers come from
- Open Farm Grass-Fed Beef Freeze Dried Raw Patties, product page, read September 14, 2026
- Open Farm Grass-Fed Beef Freeze Dried Raw morsels, product page, read September 14, 2026
- Open Farm, FAQ, read September 14, 2026
- AlphaPak Freeze-Dried Raw Beef, product page
AlphaPak is a food, not a medicine, and nothing here replaces your vet's advice. Not sure which recipe fits your dog? Find your recipe takes about a minute, and we are happy to help.
Common questions
- Is Open Farm freeze-dried raw complete and balanced?
- Yes. Open Farm's product page states the Grass-Fed Beef recipe is formulated to meet the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for all life stages, including growth of large-size dogs. AlphaPak Beef carries an AAFCO all-life-stages statement too. The difference is how each gets there: Open Farm adds a vitamin and mineral premix, and AlphaPak does not.
- Where is Open Farm freeze-dried raw made?
- Open Farm's product page does not name the plant. Their FAQ says they partner with manufacturing facilities in the United States, Canada, and Iceland. AlphaPak is made in the USA.
- Which has more protein, AlphaPak or Open Farm?
- AlphaPak Beef is 51% protein and 27.5% fat (minimums, as sold). Open Farm Grass-Fed Beef Freeze-Dried Raw is 41% protein and 38% fat. AlphaPak is the leaner, higher-protein food of the two.
More in Comparisons
Sources
- Algya, K. M., Cross, T.-W. L., Leuck, K. N., Kastner, M. E., Baba, T., Lye, L., de Godoy, M. R. C., & Swanson, K. S. (2018). Apparent total-tract macronutrient digestibility, serum chemistry, urinalysis, and fecal characteristics, metabolites and microbiota of adult dogs fed extruded, mildly cooked, and raw diets. Journal of Animal Science. DOI: 10.1093/jas/sky235
- Geary, E. L., Oba, P. M., Templeman, J. R., & Swanson, K. S. (2024). Apparent total tract nutrient digestibility of frozen raw, freeze-dried raw, fresh, and extruded dog foods and their effects on serum metabolites and fecal characteristics, metabolites, and microbiota of healthy adult dogs. Translational Animal Science. DOI: 10.1093/tas/txae163
AlphaPak is a food, not a medicine. Our products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Statements about nutrition describe the role of whole-food ingredients in supporting normal health and are not a substitute for veterinary care. Individual results vary.