AAFCO Ch6 taurine

AAFCO Ch6 definition 6.12 Taurine is a product that contains a minimum of 97% 2-aminoethanesulfonic acid; the percentage of taurine must be guaranteed. It is used as a nutritional supplement in cat foods, dog foods, and fish foods; taurine may also be added to the feed of growing chickens, where the total taurine content of the complete feed shall not exceed 0.054% (21 CFR 573.980) (Proposed 2017 rev. 1, Adopted 2019 rev. 1; IFN 5-09-821). For cats, taurine is an essential amino acid (cats cannot synthesize sufficient amounts endogenously); the AAFCO cat food nutrient profile sets a taurine minimum of 0.10% DM (1000 mg/kg) on a dry-matter basis, with the US profiles dataset listing 0.10% DM for extruded (dry) and 0.20% DM (2000 mg/kg) for canned cat food. For dogs, taurine is not an AAFCO-required nutrient — dogs can synthesize it from methionine and cysteine — which is why the dog profiles set no taurine minimum.