What % protein do the expensive koi foods contain?

on a quick search I saw 32' 35, and 40 %
the ones for 40% sold for hundreds of dollars for 40 lbs.

the ones for 32 to 35% were less! but at least 3 to 6 times more
expensive...I'm in a hurry and only did a very quick search.

When comparing crude protein % vs price it's worth keeping in mind that crude protein = nitrogen. The nitrogen can come from protein sources and non-protein sources. So "crude protein" is not "protein".

To figure out what you're buying you really have to read the ingredient list. And unfortunately you also have to be aware of tricks manufacturers play. They'll use several low quality sources so they appear further down the list.

The % of protein that comes from animal sources is more useful. Lower quality manufacturers really don't like to advertise ingredients and % from animal sources is really hard to find. Higher quality food manufacturers provide this info up front because they want you to know.

Also beware some online retailers just happen to drop "crude" in their text and say something like "30% protein" which is very dishonest imo.

I certainly have no problem with lower quality foods. For most regular backyard ponds there's no big issue. For people feeding multiple pounds of food per day they can feed much less of the higher cost/higher quality food (so the cost difference isn't as much as it first appears) and they get less waste which is worthwhile for them. So anyone with high fish loads may want to consider food more closely.

Good points waterbug guy.
I just checked this food which is available at many pet food
outlets and stores. The pellets sell for 12.00 for 5 lbs which
equals 96.00 for 40 lbs....as apposed to 25.00 for 40 lbs.
of Big Strike or Rise Pond fish food.

link below ...

Wardly Pond food

Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein min 33.0%
Crude Fat min 2.5%
Crude Fiber max 4.5%
Moisture max 10.0%
Phosphorous min 0.9%
Ascorbic Acid
(Vitamin C)

Here is a link that might be useful: Koi food

My koi food has poultry feathers in it, so it must be good. :)

Absolutely Mucky! The proof is in the bag!

cliff and joann i have been using big strike for the 2ond. year now find it to be as good if not better than rise.i dont have show koi, but some really nice koi and they love the big strike.i buy a bag of the 2 drs.color and growth food and mix it in the big strike.i just cant see paying more for koi food than i do steak.

Hi Joe, glad to see you're having the same good feedback
from your koi as we are from our koi regarding the Big Strike.
We don't have show koi either, non the less we treat them as
if they are show koi. :)

Our koi are extremely active and friendly. They enjoy being hand fed,
and almost shimmy up the rocks all the way to try and get their
fair share. When we have guests, they are totally amazed at how
our fish are so active and always swim on top of the water.
I always say, they are happy fish.

This video is an example of how much they loved the Rise; so
far we are having the same reaction to the Big Strike.

I must sound like an advertisement for this pond food, I just want to
share with backyard ponders that your fish can be happy and healthy on pond fish food that doesn't have to cost a fortune and be imported from Japan...and I agree fish food shouldn't cost a pound as much as steak does! :)
Here is an example of our koi being hand fed by a little tourist.
I have a more recent video, however this video is a good example
of the koi trying to shimmy up the rocks to get their fair share of food.

This post was edited by cliff_and_joann on Fri, Jul 18, 14 at 10:51

Here's the video, I had trouble posting it a minute ago.

The little guy favors the orange koi (Sunny) and does his best to
just give the food to Sunny.

Here is a link that might be useful: Koi Feeding

You know that kiddo will grow up to have a pond :-)

i buy a bag of the 2 drs.color and growth food and mix it in the big strike
If you're looking to save some money I would reconsider mixing color/growth food in. That stuff is expensive.

Color enhancing food for example is used for short periods, a couple of months, to get fish ready for a show. Diluting means you don't really get any benefit. Even at full strength and done at the right time of year it's pretty hard to tell the difference. The other risk is using it all the time you could be turning white in your fish (if you have any whites) into a more yellowish tint. White is kind of important because it makes the other colors pop.

Of course if color isn't that important there's no reason to pay extra for that food.

I was sitting out on the deck with my IPad and they were trying to get
some food stuck between the rock. You would think that we never feed
them.
They sure look like they would come completely out of the water for a morsel
of food.

Here is a link that might be useful: Koi shimmering out of the water.