MSG is vegetable protein based. I'd be cautious (let's say healthily skeptical) about the analysis you can read online about ingredients -- there's an awful lot of non-science out there. I also would not believe all you read about bad press on various dog foods. There is perhaps no area of animal care in which there is more rumour, innuendo, obsessions, prejudices and whisper campaigns than with pet food. It always amazes me that the same people who happily take home ice cream, crisps, crackers, biscuits, tinned foods etc will worry so much about what a dog eats.
That's not to dismiss the serious problems that have arisen but a lot of the stuff out there is just hogwash.
Royal Canin and Burns are both excellent foods but for personal reasons people may not be happy with one or either. Depending on what particular obsessions people have with dog food
-- eg grains, protein levels, type of protein, beet pulp additions, soy etc etc etc -- just about any food may not pass muster. Then there are the people that will only feed raw, and out at the very extremes, only raw road kill/prey animals.
(I am sure these same people then order a pizza for themselves from Dominos... :lol: ). The best approach is really to learn about ingredients, read as much as you can, and go with what you feel comfortable with. I've 'been there, done that' with most approaches including raw. (I've also fed my four cats almost nothing but Royal Canin cat food for a decade and have four VERY healthy, glossy, fit cats.
Never have had a single serious health issue with any of them.)
I tend to feed homecooked mixed with a mid-cost quality kibble and fresh veg and fruit and range of treats. I feel really expensive kibbles are a waste of money but like expensive shampoos, if they make people happy and suit them and their dogs, than no harm (except to the pocketbook!) in buying them. If I could get a premade raw I'd rotate that in too but none is available in Ireland.
As a kibble I tend to feed Royal Canin or James Wellbeloved, usually rotating flavours of the latter. If I could easily get it I'd probably rotate that with something like Burns or Arden Grange.
On hydrolyzed animal protein:
Hydrolyzed Animal Protein (HAP)
Hydrolyzed Animal Protein (HAP) is normally used as a flavour enhancer and is made by treating bone material or the carcasses of poultry, cows or pigs with acid, heat and high pressure.
You can easily find kibble that won't contain this -- dog food is a booming market and there are more foods than anyone could feed in a lifetime, it seems sometimes! :lol: