Open Farm Review 2024: Ethical Pet Food

Overview

Are you looking for a high-quality pet food delivery service that uses sustainable ingredients? Then Open Farm could be the service for you.

All pet owners want the very best for their furry friends, and a pet food delivery service could be a convenient way to achieve this. Open Farm is dedicated to providing ethical and sustainable pet food for both cats and dogs, with easily traced ingredients. 

I’ve tested out the food on my own pet family, scoured the Open Farm website, and taken straw polls from other pet owners to hear their thoughts too. Overall, I give Open Farm a massive two thumbs up.  In this review, I’ll explain why, covering the food, the delivery and unboxing process, how to order, and what the service will cost you, so you can decide if it’ll raise your thumbs up too.

Open Farm Is Best For

• Sustainability-minded pet owners 

• Young-adult to middle-aged pets 

• Pet owners that need help building a diet for their pet

Open Farm May Not Be Great For

• Pet owners who want organic pet food

• Puppies and kittens 

Open Farm Meals

Plans and Recipes

Open Farm has two options when it comes to meal plans: a one-time shipment, or a subscription. Subscriptions are flexible, and you can choose to receive an order anywhere from every two weeks to every two months. The exact meal options will vary depending on whether you’re shopping for a cat or a dog. 

For dogs, you can pick from dry food, rustic stews, freeze-dried raw food, gently cooked food, treats, and supplements & bone broth. The dry food comes in 20 different varieties, so you can cater it to your dog’s preferred proteins. It also includes two recipes for puppies. 

There are six varieties of wet rustic dog stews: chicken, beef, wild-caught salmon, chicken and salmon, mackerel and herring, and turkey. The freeze-dried raw food also comes in six varieties, and is designed to give dogs a high-protein, raw diet. The gently cooked food comprises freshly cooked meat and veggies and offers four options to choose from. 

You can also pamper your pooch with the four different dog treats which are available, and eight different supplements, including bone broths and kefir blends. 

As for cats, you have similar options, with four dry foods, six wet foods, and eight bone broths and supplements. Unfortunately, Open Farm doesn’t offer cat treats or kitten food. 

If you want to try an Open Farm product without paying for a full size bag or committing to a subscription, you can get free samples at any Open Farm retailer location. Simply use the store finder feature on the website to find your nearest seller. 

Ingredients

One of Open Farm’s missions is to make pet food that’s not only good for your pet, but also good for the planet. 

All of its ingredients are partnered with Certified Humane®, and Open Farm takes pride in its strong vetting process for farmers and suppliers. If you’re concerned about the source of your ingredients, there’s a tracking system that’ll show you your pet food’s exact journey, from farm to bowl. 

Open Farm is also dedicated to sustainability. It only sources from suppliers that practice sustainable farming, and all fish in Open Farm foods are caught according to Oceanwise’s strict sustainable-fishing practices.  

A common food sensitivity in pets is gluten, and while Open Farm isn’t a specifically gluten-free brand, it’s recipes do not contain gluten. However, meals are not prepared in a certified gluten-free kitchen. 

Nutrition

Nutrition is at the forefront of Open Farm’s mission. The company employs a team of food scientists, food manufacturers, animal scientists, and animal nutrition specialists to build food formulas with  perfectly balanced nutrition. 

While Open Farm supplies several different food products with a variety of ingredients, it doesn’t currently offer any recipes specific to pet weight loss. 

Unboxing

Your delivery will come with all of your pet food in separate bags. Meals aren’t pre-portioned, but Open Farm provides detailed serving size recommendations based on breed, weight, and health goals on the back of the food bags. 

Food from Open Farm will always have a “best by” date on the back bottom right corner of the bag. Wet food should be refrigerated after opening, and it should be consumed within three days. 

The large shipment box from Open Farm is easily recyclable at home, but the pet food bags themselves will have to be sent back to Open Farm to be recycled. 

Shipping & Delivery

Open Farm currently delivers all over the continental US, as well as some parts of Canada. For orders that are over $50, shipping to the US , shipping is free. For orders under $50, as well as those shipping to Canada, there’s a shipping charge of $5.99. 

Once your order is placed, it’ll normally take 1-5 days to arrive, but the exact time will depend on your location. If you order before 1:00 PM EST, your order will ship the same day. Open Farm doesn’t require you to be home for your delivery, so you won’t miss it if you’re not in. 

If you’re not 100% satisfied, you can return your purchase and get a refund, as long as you call or email customer support within 15 days. 

Ordering From Open Farm 

The ordering process is pretty smooth. Read on for more details. 

How to Sign Up

1. Build your order – use the plan recommended by the quiz, or custom-build your own.

2. Select auto-shipment or one-time purchase – auto-shipments can be renewed every two weeks to every two months.

3. Enter shipping information and pay.

Managing Your Subscription

Managing your subscription with Open Farm is easily done within your account. All changes must be completed before the order is processed (about a week before a scheduled shipment). 

You can manage your orders, change dates, add or subtract ingredients, or cancel your subscription by logging into your Open Farm account and clicking on “My Subscriptions” and then going to “Modify Subscriptions”. 

Customer Service

Open Farm provides 3 methods for contact: email, telephone, and real-time chat. Moreover, there's an extensive FAQ section on the Open Farm site that can respond to almost any query you may have.

Unfortunately, neither the phone line nor the live chat feature are available on weekends. The phone is operational from 9AM-5PM EST and the chat room is available from 9AM-7PM EST from Monday-Friday. 

Email is available 24-hours a day, but your email likely won’t be answered until 24-48 hours later. 

Open Farm Recalls

Good news! Open Farm has never had any of its products recalled. 

Prices

Open Farm is definitely at the higher end when it comes to pricing, but you get your money’s worth. You can also benefit from using our special discount code Save up to 20% on first time orders with code DR20 for even more savings.

Bone Broths are the cheapest product available, starting at $6.64 for a 12 fl oz bottle with auto-shipments. Without auto-shipping, they’ll cost $6.99. 

For dry food, dog food starts at $18.99 with auto-shipments ($19.99 without), and cat food starts at $24.22 with auto-shipments ($25.49 without) for a four-pound bag. 

Wet food is slightly pricier, with dog food costing $45.59 with auto-shipments ($47.99 without) and cat food costing $30.39 with auto-shipments ($31.99 without) for a 12-serving pack. 

Dog treats will cost you $11.39-$11.99 and the gently cooked meals start at $75.99 with auto-shipments ($79.99 without) for an eight pound box. 

If your pet doesn’t take to the food, Open Farm is happy to accept returns for a full refund on most orders, provided you request one within 15 days of the purchase and return the product to the company. One notable exception to the return policy is if you’ve bought three or more of the same product, in which case you won’t be able to get a refund. 

The Bottom Line: Is Open Farm Worth It?

In my opinion, yes. When it comes down to it, Open Farm is a great option for pet parents that want to feed their furry family members the very best sustainable and ethical food. However, it probably isn’t a great option for shoppers on a budget, or those that want 100% organic food. 

Open Farm offers top-quality products with the convenience of a flexible delivery plan that you can customize to fit your lifestyle. However, this service does come at a price. 

FAQ

Is Open Farm Grain-Free? 

Open Farm is not a grain-free pet food company, and most of its pet foods do contain at least small amounts of healthy grains like alfalfa. Open Farm does have grain-free treats, bone broths, and supplements. Open Farm’s food formulations are based on veterinary and food science to optimize your pet’s health, whatever their needs are.  

Is Open Farm Gluten-Free?

Open Farm pet foods are gluten-free, but according to the website’s FAQ page, the foods are not made in a certified gluten-free kitchen, so it cannot guarantee that there’s no contamination. Open Farm also has an ingredient tracker, so you can always know when and where the ingredients in your pet’s food are coming from. 

Where Does Open Farm Ship From? 

Open Farm food is shipped from its manufacturing facility in Minnesota, but the company itself is based in Toronto, Canada. When you get your order, you’ll see that it says “Made in the USA”, as well as “Formulated in Canada”. This is because the recipes are designed in Canada, and then sent to the US for manufacturing. This is also why there is a shipping fee for all orders shipping to Canada.