FAQs about Nutrena SafeChoice

What sets the SafeChoice products apart from other premium Nutrena feed like Empower and ProForce? It’s important to read these frequently asked questions to understand if the SafeChoice line is right for your horse or feeding program.

• What is SafeChoice known for?

  First, the Nutrena brand changed the feed industry over 20 years ago with the debut of the original SafeChoice® horse feed, the first-ever Controlled Starch horse feed to hit the market. Prior to the launch of the original SafeChoice feed, unknown starch and sugar content levels were the norm in the feed industry. While starch and sugar are effective and efficient calorie sources in horse feeds, excess intakes per meal, particularly for starch, can lead to problems in the horse. By “controlling” and setting maximums on the starch and sugar levels, our SafeChoice horse feed provided a new direction in the feed industry and helped reduce the prevalence of digestive concerns for a wide variety of horses.

  SafeChoice also changed the game again through our Topline Balance^® Technology, which focuses on amino acid content and balance to build muscle. Ensuring amino acid balance in feed is critical for delivering great appearance, strong recovery from performance, and sound growth and development. With the technology incorporated in our Nutrena products, you can build topline muscling on your horse through the feed you put in the bucket.

  Throughout the years, Nutrena has continued to focus on digestive health by including ingredients such as Pre and Probiotics and organic trace mineral complexes to support a healthy gut.  Then in 2023, Nutrena relaunched SafeChoice formulas, being the first feed on the market to offer a complete Digestive Shield™ with Controlled Starch, Pre + Pro +Postbiotics and Calcite to help optimize the entire digestive tract.

• Why did SafeChoice change its formula and product line in 2023?

  SafeChoice is still the same research-backed, controlled starch feed horse owners have learned to love and trust in the last 20 years. SafeChoice feed still contains quality ingredients, organic trace minerals, controlled starch and sugar levels, Topline Balance® with guaranteed amino acids, quality fat sources and probiotics – only we wanted to make it even better.

  Our original SafeChoice feed that was formulated in 2003, and as our team of researchers and equine nutritionists continued to do research over the years, we unlocked ways we could make the line even better by improving palatability, lowering % NSC, adding Nutri-Bloom Advantage to more products, and unlocking our Digestive Shield blend of pre + pro + postbiotics and calcite. 

• Do other brands have Digestive Shield?

  No; Digestive Shield™ is only from Nutrena and only available in the SafeChoice horse feed. In 2023, SafeChoice updated its product line up to include this proprietary blend of pre + pro + postbiotics and calcite because we know that horse owners are more educated and knowledgeable about their horse’s gut and immune health. Unlike other products on the market, SafeChoice guarantees biotics for the entire digestive tract.

• Is Controlled Starch the same as Low Starch?

  No; Controlled Starch and Low Starch are two different things, and they are intended to be.

  Controlled Starch means that we guarantee maximum sugar and starch levels on our feed tags, so horse owners know exactly what they are feeding in every scoop. Until SafeChoice pioneered Controlled Starch formulas in 2003, many feed companies did not guarantee maximum sugar and starch levels on their feed tags.

  While SafeChoice pioneered the starch and sugar trends over a decade ago—it has never focused on being the “lowest” starch and sugar feeds on the market. What the SafeChoice products deliver is the control, and the options for horse owners to choose feeds with the proper starch and sugar content for their horse and their needs.This is on purpose because horses require different levels of Non-Structural Carbohydrates (NSC) depending on their activity level, metabolic conditions, etc. SafeChoice horse feed ranges from 10% NSC in SafeChoice Special Care to 25% NSC in SafeChoice Maintenance.