Category: pet food

Party Animal Inc. sues Evanger’s because of drug in dog food

Party Animal Inc. has filed suit in federal court against Evanger’s Dog and Cat Food Co. Inc. because dog food Evanger’s produced for Party Animal was found to be contaminated with the animal euthanasia drug pentobarbital.

The Food and Drug Administration confirmed the presence of the drug during testing after a consumer complaint. Two varieties of Party Animal’s Cocolicious dog food tested positive for the drug, which was found earlier this year in Evanger’s branded dog food after several dogs became ill. One of those dogs died despite emergency medical care.

On April 24, Party Animal recalled 13-ounce cans of “Cocolicious Beef & Turkey” dog food, lot 0136E15204 04 with a best-by date of July 2019, and “Cocolicious Chicken & Beef” dog food, lot 0134E15 237 13 with a best-by date of August 2019, after learning about the potential contamination from a customer.

The 13-page suit, filed May 5 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, lists eight complaints and claims damages in excess of $20 million. Also named as a defendant in the case is Evanger’s sister company, and Nutripack LLC.

The complaint outlines several counts, including:

  • Breach of written contract;
  • Breach of oral contract;
  • Breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing;
  • Fraud;
  • Negligent misrepresentation;
  • Breach of implied warranty;
  • Breach of express warranties; and
  • Implied indemnity.

In February, Evanger’s recalled certain production lots of Evanger’s brand “Hunk of Beef” and Against the Grain brand “Pulled Beef” canned dog foods after pentobarbital was found in samples of both products. Evanger’s expanded the recall in March 2017 to include all products manufactured using meat from a single supplier during a specific time period.

In its own $20 million lawsuit, filed in Cook County, IL, on April 25, Evanger’s named Bailey Farms LLC as the supplier of meat used in the recalled dog foods, accusing the meat company of breach of contract, breach of implied warranties and fraud.

Party Animal’s fraud complaint against Evanger’s is based on the manufacturer’s claim of USDA organic certification for the two recalled products.

Bailey Farms LLC is not listed as a certified organic operation in the USDA Organic Integrity Database. Therefore, meat supplied by Bailey Farms would not qualify for the USDA’s organic certification.

According to the database maintained by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Evanger’s received certified organic status for certain of its products in 2010. “Cocolicious Beef & Turkey,” and “Cocolicious Chicken & Beef” canned dog foods were added to the USDA organic database effective Aug. 14, 2015.

This article first appeared on Food Safety News and is reposted here with permission

Recalls and Alerts: June 13-14, 2017

Here is today’s list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals, allergy alerts and miscellaneous compliance issues. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

Allergy Alert: Golden Platter Foods Inc. recalls approximately 31,662 pounds of poultry and beef products due to undeclared milk. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products, which were shipped to retail and institutional locations in Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.

Allergy Alert: Joseph Seviroli Inc. recalls approximately 114,409 pounds of beef ravioli products due to undeclared milk. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products, which were shipped to distribution locations in Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, and Rhode Island.

Food Safety Recall: Wildway LLC recalls certain Wildway and Trader Joe’s brands of grain-free granola products due to possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of recalled products. The Wildway products were distributed nationwide; the Trader Joe’s product was sold in the states of AL, AZ, CA, CO, CT, D.C., DE, LA, MA, MD, ME, NH, NM, NJ, NV, NY, OK, PA, RI, TX, UT, VA and VT.

Food Safety Recall: OFD Foods, LLC. recalls MOUNTAIN HOUSE FREEZE DRIED SPICY SOUTHWEST BREAKFAST HASH (3.88-oz. pouch; pouch code 3253174; best by date of Dec. 2046) due to possible foreign matter (rubber) contamination. The recalled product was shipped to retail locations nationwide and sold directly to consumers through internet sales.

Food Safety Recall: Willis Ocean Inc. (Brooklyn, NY) recalls Duck brand Frozen Steamed Uneviscerated Scomber Fish (Clear plastic-wrapped styrofoam tray; Product of Thailand; UPC 040459097206) because the product was not properly eviscerated prior to processing, resulting in a risk of Clostridium botulinum contamination.

Pet Foods Safety Recall: Loving Pets recalls various dog treats because of the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. The recalled products were sold under the following brand names: Loving Pets Barksters™, Loving Pets Puffsters™ Snack Chips, and Whole Hearted™. Please refer to the recall notice for additional product details.

Topical Pharmaceutical Products Safety Recall: Phillips Company recalls all lots of Tetrastem, Diabecline, Tetracycline-ABC, VenomX, Acneen, StaphWash, StringMed, NoPain and LidoMed after an FDA inspection found significant manufacturing practices that calls into question the safety, identity, strength, quality and purity of unexpired drug products made at the firm during the past three years.

Canada

Allergy Alert: Les Aliments Excel S.E.C. recalls La Cage brand Chicken Bites (550g; Product codes 18530 17-041, 18530 17-062, 18530 17-076, 18530 17-090 and 18530 17-131; UPC 8 50715 00022 8) due to undeclared milk. The recalled product was supplied to consumers in Quebec.

Food Safety Recall: Tata Soupe (Montreal) recalls various soup products, as the recalled items were manufactured under conditions that do not ensure product safety. Please refer to the recall notice for a list of affected products.

Food Safety Recall: Boulangerie de Repentigny inc. recalls Swiss Emmental Cheese (variable package sizes; all affected lots) because the product label does not indicate the cheese was made using raw milk.

Europe

Allergy Alert (Ireland): Unilever recalls Knorr Chicken Powder Bouillon (pack size 900g (x6); all best before dates; all batch codes) due to undeclared milk.

Food Safety Recall (Belgium): Initia Food recalls Grilled Salted Pistachios (350g; Lot 004752-2; Best by 01/03/2018) due to elevated aflatoxin levels.

Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Dansk Supermarked recalls Vores Kyllingefilet/Chicken Fillet (2400g and 3400g; Best by 18/06/2017) due to possible metal and plastic pieces in the product.

Australia and New Zealand

Allergy Alert (New Zealand): Griffin’s Foods Ltd. recalls Eta brand Uppercuts Deli Cut Sea Salt + Balsamic Vinegar Flavoured Cereal Snack (140g; Best Before 20 OCT 17; Time Code 18:40 to 18:44 CP1) due to undeclared soy. The affected product is sold only in Countdown Sunnynook – North Shore

 

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket’s recall website.

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains
**Includes Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Dominick’s, Genuardi’s, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Carrs and Pak N’ Save.

Recalls and Alerts: June 10, 2017

Here is today’s list of food safety recalls, product withdrawals, allergy alerts and miscellaneous compliance issues. The live links will take you directly to the official recall notices and company news releases that contain detailed information for each recall and alert.

If you would like to receive automatic email alerts for all new articles posted on eFoodAlert, please submit your request using the sidebar link.

United States

Allergy Alert: Packer Avenue Foods, Inc. recalls approximately 9,690 pounds of ready-to-eat (RTE) chicken salad due to undeclared milk. Please refer to the recall notice for a detailed list of affected products, which were shipped to wholesale locations in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

Pet Food Safety Recall: United Pet Group, a division of Spectrum Brands, Inc. recalls multiple brands of packages of rawhide dog chew products after determining that certain of its rawhide chew manufacturing facilities located in Mexico and Colombia, as well as one of its suppliers in Brazil, were using a quaternary ammonium compound mixture as a processing aid in the manufacturing of rawhide chews. Quaternary ammonium compounds are anti-microbial chemicals approved for cleaning food processing equipment, but not approved in the U.S. as a processing aid in the production of rawhide chews for dogs. Exposure to quaternary ammonium compounds through direct ingestion may cause the following symptoms in dogs: reduced appetite, and gastric irritation including diarrhea and vomiting. Please refer to the recall notice for a complete list of affected products, which were distributed to retail outlets and sold online in the U.S.

Canada

Allergy Alert: Fresh Selections Inc. recalls Fresh Selections brand Meatballs & Spaghetti (1 kg; Best before dates 2017JN09 and 2017JN16; UPC 7 78809 34615 4) due to undeclared milk. The recalled product was supplied to consumers nationwide.

Some supermarket chains post recall notices on their web sites for the convenience of customers. To see whether a recalled food was carried by your favorite supermarket, follow the live link to the supermarket’s recall website.

*The Kroger umbrella encompasses numerous supermarket, marketplace and convenience store chains
**Includes Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Dominick’s, Genuardi’s, Randalls, Tom Thumb, Carrs and Pak N’ Save.