Don't worry, they say, they won't swell up inside your dog. The nutritional value is the same no matter how it's served. The freeze-dried food doesn't have an indefinite shelf life. Because the plastic bags the frozen or freeze-dried food comes in are not oxygen barrier packaging, the food will remain good for a few months, according to the best information I could get on the subject. The ingredients of AFS Pet Patties include meat by-products, beef, liver, and finely ground bone.
Some cultured yeast is added, and charcoal is included for denaturing.
The main purpose of this is to meet an obscure government regulation that says the food shouldn't be something people can eat, only animals. Charcoal helps the food meet this USDA regulation. This food is very heavy on organ meat. That's what the by-products are. There's apparently some really good stuff in the ingredients, something you don't find remaining after regular dog food processing.