Jimbo’s Raw Cat Food Review

Jimbo’s raw cat food hit the headlines with high praise from legions of happy owners who gave the company five-star reviews in a Canstar survey some years ago. As a couple of my cats will eat nothing except Jimbo’s I wanted to find out more about the company and explore the benefits of a raw diet for New Zealand’s cats in this vital cat food review. Is raw helpful? What kind of raw food does Jimbo’s provide for pets? Let’s find out.

For cat owners who want a natural diet but who don’t have the time to make homemade cat food Jimbo’s pet food is an excellent choice. No hunting in corners for specialised raw food or worrying about additives. Jimbo’s for cats and dogs is on your supermarket shelf fresh, chilled and readily available. You may even find the Jimbo’s chicken mince as frozen medallions which several of my cats recommend.

Why Feed Raw?

• Raw meat is easy for obligate carnivores like cats to digest.
• A raw diet can hep with weight control for tubby cats.

If you are not sure of the benefits raw feeding can bring, Jimbo’s provide a helpful breakdown for raw feeding.

NOTE: Good raw food shouldn’t be smelly when it is fresh. Our fresh products are conveniently packed in handy containers meaning you don’t have to handle the meat.

Jimbo’s FAQ’s

Jimbo’s Raw Meat Cat Food

We have had feedback from overseas readers who envy the option to buy at local shops. What prompted Jimbo’s to place its products in supermarkets, not specialised pet stores?

Jimbo’s actually have 3 sections to their business.

• Online shopping (fantastic with the pressures in 2022). They can deliver the best dog and cat food to your door here. It’s great for people to buy raw cat food online, especially for the multi-pet household.
• Jimbos – fresh and frozen natural pet food available at the supermarket as part of your weekly shop.
• Purely Pets – sold as a frozen portioned (meat patty) natural, preservative and grain-free petfood with formulations using wild harvested Rabbit, Hare and Possum as well as traditional meats.
• NOTE: Purely Pets is no longer a Bombay pet foods home delivery service but is readily available throughout New Zealand including Animates Pet Stores.

The Jimbo’s Raw Cat Food Range

• STEAK ‘N KIDNEY. Made from lean beef and high-quality lean kangaroo plus nutritious kidney. A good product to feed if you want to make sure your pet is getting some offal in their diet.
• HEARTY BEEF. Bombay foods raw beef cat food recipe. A nutritious combination of beef, lean kangaroo and heart, providing high-quality protein sources as well as nutritious offal that supplies extra vitamins, minerals and essential amino acids. 
• SUPREME. This is Duty’s favourite. Supreme is a very lean product made of 100% New Zealand beef. The meat is diced into chunks rather than minced, making it a chewier alternative to standard mince.
• KANGAROO. This is a rich in quality protein for the good health of your pet. While this product is traditionally marketed as a premium cat food, it is also great for dogs
• VEAL: Veal is low fat, highly nutritious food that is great for overweight animals or those that tend to gain weight easily. Veal meat is high in B vitamins for brain health and development. Veal protein is very different to adult beef protein, so even a lot of animals with beef allergies can digest veal without a problem.
• Our cats also love the best frozen raw cat food – the multi-pet option Purely Pets frozen chicken medallions. A portion at a time can be defrosted and enjoyed. 

Can Cats Eat Jimbo’s Dog Food?

From Jimbo’s: “Yes. All Jimbo’s products are safe for both cats and dogs (excluding Veal Bones – these are for dogs over 6kg only). Jimbo’s products are designed to be fed raw – just the way cats and dogs would eat in the wild.

The Jimbo’s Team is dedicated to supplying fresh, meaty diets to New Zealand’s cats and dogs, and we have a wide range of products to suit even the fussiest pets. Jimbo’s products are 100% locally made, tasty, nutritious and you can find them in leading supermarkets nationwide.

Jimbo’s Product Range

Is Jimbos OK for Diabetic Cats?

This quote from Jimbos will shed some light on the question but, as always consult your vet before you make any dietary changes for a diabetic cat.

“Because of the strong links between diabetes and pancreatitis as well as other fat-related diseases, a moderately low fat diet may be the safest for your pet. All of the Jimbo’s Cat Food products have a low level of fat (some are less than 1%!), and guess what: even our Cat Food products are great for dogs too!”

Will My Cat Eat Raw Food?

Raw is not something you just put in front of your cat and expect them to eat it. I recommend a gradual and slow introduction over a period of a week or two. Do not rush any transition. It is important your cat learns that Jimbo’s is the best in their own time. After you have carefully tried to transition to a raw diet and your cat is not happy return to their favourite tinned or kibble.

I came across a great blog post that you might like to check out too. All about decoding your cat food labels. It’s a good introduction to what is really in your cat food.

Jimbo’s redesigned its food packaging.

How much feedback did customers give to help with the development of the new boxes?

Years of anecdotal and specific feedback from customers created a rich landscape of desires for the new packaging, incorporating these with the expectations of the business to ensure we are accurate, efficient, environmentally friendly resulted in a great container. The packaging has collected 3 packaging awards outside of NZ to date and we expect it to do well in the NZ packaging awards this year!

For a valuable insight into the care and commitment of Jimbo’s check out this video with Mr Allen. He comments on the importance of the customers and the way they value the brand. 

Thank you, Mr Allen, for speaking to us and introducing Jimbo’s to our readers.  We congratulate Jimbo’s raw food on their success and know they will continue to produce quality raw cat food.

Jimbo’s Cat Food Interview

I wanted to find out more about Jimbo’s, who are a New Zealand North Island company so I spoke to David Allen, Jimbo’s General Manager (recently retired).

Firstly, congratulations David Allen on topping the Canstar survey. There was some major multinational competition so Jimbo’s must be pleased to get the pet owners vote.

Absolutely, without pet owners and pets, we have no business but, harking back to our core purpose, producing products that help cats and dogs live a longer, happier, healthier lives, it would seem we have achieved our purpose by virtue of the fact, our customers are the most satisfied.

For our overseas readers, can you introduce Jimbo’s raw diet cat food?

Jimbos is fresh, natural, minimally processed fresh meat pet food.  The format is a chunky meat mince using lean muscle meat and high-quality offal’s from free-range animals. Manufactured and distributed daily across New Zealand, the business has been trading for almost 50 years, Jimbo’s has been in existence for 25 of those. 

Consumers are becoming more conscious about the source of their pets’ foods. How important is it for Jimbo’s to source its product here in New Zealand and to source honestly and ethically?

Vital to what we do, 100% New Zealand meat from a supply chain that we can trust.

Jimbo’s is fresh and raw. For anyone wanting to explore a raw diet for the first time, how can Jimbo’s help?

Contact us from our website and or check out our FAQs as a starting point for our raw diet. 

Jimbo’s is a real favourite with our senior Dusty and it works well with his sensitive digestive system. A combination of healthy raw and probiotics is a great recipe for us to try.

Jimbo’s Helpful Fun

• You can see the fun labels Jimbo’s designed for the strong, reusable, food containers here.
• Why Feed Raw? – Head to Jimbo’s raw cat food page on the why’s and hows of raw feeding. 
• Read the reports from delighted pet owners on their Jimbo’s pets