Tag: Pet Health

Why Contaminated Pet Food Matters

It’s not always easy to explain to people who do not share their lives with pets – be they dogs, cats, birds, reptiles or other creatures – why FDA and CDC should devote so much time and attention to an outbreak of Salmonella illnesses that has affected only a handful of people.

I could say that contaminated pet food matters because infected pets may transmit their illness to people. And that would be true.

I could say that contaminated pet food matters because a child might taste a piece of the food and become infected. And that would be true.

I could say that it is the responsibility of every manufacturer to provide a safe product, regardless of the target audience. And that would be true.

But I was reminded this morning of the real reason that contaminated pet food matters, when I read the story posted by an eFoodAlert reader. In case you missed it, here is the story of Jelly and Bishop, told by Linda (Pittsford, NY):

I was feeding both my 4-year-old and 6-year-old Portuguese Water Dogs Taste of the Wild Bison for about five years. My 4-year-old, Jelly, was about 38 pounds and a much smaller dog than my 6-year-old, Bishop who is larger and weighs about 55 pounds. (There is a range of sizes in the Portuguese Water Dog b/c fishermen with small boats bred smaller dogs; fishermen with larger boats bred larger dogs).

It was in January 2012 that I noticed some vomiting from Jelly. That discontinued, but bloody stools followed, first in Jelly, then beginning the next day in Bishop, as well.

I brought my dogs to the Vet.

Next I noticed Jelly was having urinary accidents all over the house. I didn’t understand this, b/c he was, of course house trained.

Bish did not do this. Jelly was VERY thirsty, and peeing all the time in huge amounts. After awhile, Jelly started to pee bloody urine, in very small amounts. I took him to the vet.

Then Bish started with this as well. Both back to the vet.

I felt my dogs were being poisoned, (I just had this feeling,) but I had no poisons in my home, and it was winter outside. I was perplexed.

The bloody urine went on for about a week, my vet doing all kinds of tests, X- rays, blood work. All the while, I was feeding my dogs Taste of the Wild, Bison, b/c the recall wasn’t announced until May,2012, and this was back in January 2012.

Jelly was at the vet’s for 4 hours on the day he died. He sat on my lap the whole time. I am grateful for those four hours.

The vet was unsure of what was happening. That afternoon, Jelly started to yelp in pain so horribly I knew it was the end. He stumbled about the room in a daze, screaming bloody murder. Then, immediately, he seized. I immediately drove him to the Emergency Hospital. He was incontinent of large amounts of urine on the way. At the hospital, he went into a coma, cardiac and respiratory arrested, and died.

Bishop recovered on his own, which I attribute to his larger size.

I miss Jelly so much and feel responsible for his awful death. I was his advocate, his protector, and here I was feeding him poison by the name of Taste of the Wild Bison Dog Food.

And that’s why contaminated pet food matters.

Ohio Identified Second Diamond Pet Foods Salmonella Problem

Routine testing carried out by the state of Ohio was responsible for the discovery of Salmonella in Diamond Pet Foods’ Diamond Naturals Small Breed Adult Dog Lamb & Rice Formula. The finding resulted in the recall of one production code (DSL 0801) of the dry dog food earlier this month.

The contaminated product, which was recalled on May 18th, was manufactured at Diamond’s Meta, Missouri facility, and not at the Gaston (South Carolina) production plant. The Gaston facility has been the focus of a foodborne disease outbreak investigation since mid-March.

The Salmonella found by Ohio in the Missouri-made product has been identified as Salmonella Liverpool, according to Laura Alvey, Deputy Director of Communications Staff for FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine. The strain is different from the Salmonella Infantis outbreak strain that was recovered from dry pet food manufactured at the Company’s Gaston facility.

According to the Company’s recall notice, the affected pet food was distributed in Colorado, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin (but not in Ohio). The company added that further distribution through other pet food channels may have occurred.

This latest information underscores some important lessons:

  1. Diamond Pet Foods has “issues” in more than one of its manufacturing facilities;
  2. Routine finished product testing carried out by state agencies is an important food safety enforcement tool; and
  3. The list of states to which the recalled food was distributed is unreliable, as it does not take into account redistribution or internet-based sales.

Finally, protect yourself, your family members and your pets from becoming statistics in the Diamond Pet Foods outbreak, by taking the following precautions:

  • Check your supply of pet food to see whether it is affected by the recall. If it is on the recall list, either throw it away or return the unused portion to the retailer.
  • If you have handled one of the recalled products and you develop symptoms of Salmonella (stomach ache, diarrhea, etc), seek immediate medical attention and mention the possible link to pet food.
  • If your dog or cat was fed one of the recalled products and develops symptoms of gastrointestinal illness (vomiting or diarrhea), seek immediate veterinary attention. Ask your veterinarian to test your pet for Salmonella. If the test is positive, you or your veterinarian should contact FDA immediately.
  • Review the FDA Tips for Preventing Foodborne Illness Associated with Pet Food and Pet Treats, and follow its recommendations to keep your family and your pets safe.
  • Monitor eFoodAlert’s Diamond Pet Foods, Etc. Recalls – 2012 page. It will be updated as more information becomes available.

Above all, be aware that dogs may be infected with Salmonella – and may shed the bacteria in their stool – without showing any outward symptoms of illness. If your pet has consumed a Diamond Pet Foods dry dog food, be especially careful to wash your hands after handling the animal, and supervise closely any interaction between children and your pet.

Recalls and Alerts: May 22, 2012

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: West Best Foods, Inc. (Las Vegas, NV) recalls West Best Foods Inc. Lasagna with Meat Sauce (24-lb cases; Est 6080; Produced between April 13, 2012 and May 21, 2012) and West Best Foods Inc. Deluxe Beef Lasagna (24-lb cases; Est 6080; Produced between April 13, 2012 and May 21, 2012), because of misbranding and the presence of undeclared soy. The recalled products were distributed to hotels and one distributor in Las Vegas, Nevada.
  • Allergy Alert: Harris Teeter recalls HT Traders Sorbet (Lemon, Raspberry, Mango, Coconut and Orange flavors), due to the presence of undeclared milk protein.
  • Food Safety Recall: Pacific Coast Fruit Company (Portland, OR) recalls multiple types of bagged processed salads (Please see recall notice for detailed list of affected products), because the salads may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. The recalled salads, which contain some of the salads that were recalled by River Ranch, were distributed to Fred Meyer, Avanti, and Evergreen in Oregon, Washington, Alaska and Idaho, and were supplied to VA food service in 5-lb to 20-lb bags as salad kits.
  • Food Safety Recall: Kroger recalls Private Selection Organic Baby Spinach, because the product may be contaminated with Salmonella. The recalled spinach was sold in Southwest, Dillons, King Soopers, Frys, Fred Meyer, Ralphs, Food 4 Less, QFC & Smith’s retail stores.
  • FDA Enforcement Action: U.S. Marshals, acting at the request of the Food and Drug Administration, have seized HybriSil (methylprednisolone acetate 1% percent in silicone gel), an unapproved new drug marketed by Crescendo Therapeutics, LLC (Vista, CA).
  • FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Process Managers, LLC (Winchester, KY) that a December 2011 inspection of the company’s facility found that the firm manufactures and distributes products for animal consumption. FDA’s review of the products’ labeling revealed that CalDensity® and Want A Snack™ are drugs, as they are intended for use in the mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in animals. FDA considers these products to be unapproved new animal drugs and the company’s marketing of them violates the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
  • FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Capitol Foods, Inc. (Washington, DC) that a March 2012 inspection of the company’s food warehouse and ready-to-eat shrimp egg roll manufacturing facility found serious violations of the seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulation.
  • FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Smak Sp. z.o.o. c/o and Prymat Sp. z.o.o. (44-337 Jastrzebie Zdroj, Poland) that a January 2012 inspection of the Smak Sp. acidified food facility revealed serious deviations from the acidified food regulations.
  • FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Reaction Nutrition, L.L.C. (Carnegie, PA) that a November/December 2011 inspection of the company’s dietary supplement manufacturing and packaging facility found a number of significant violations of the Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) regulations for dietary supplements.
  • FDA Warning Letter: FDA warns Inova Health System (Falls Church, VA) that a January/February 2012 inspection of Inova Blood Donor Services (Sterling, VA) documented numerous significant violations of the Current Good Manufacturing Practice (CGMP) regulations for blood and blood products.

Canada

Europe

  • Food Safety Recall (Denmark): Mozami A/S recalls Irma’s ecological balance Smoked Fillet (Product of Germany; 80g; Package date 07-05-2012; Best before 28-06-2012) and Irma’s ecological balance Salami with Peppercorns (Product of Germany; 90g; Package date 07-05-2012; Best before 11-06-2012), due to incorrect expiration dates. Correct Best before dates should be 28-05-2012 for both products.
  • Outbreak Alert (UK/Canary Islands Cruise): The Daily Mail reports that 170 passengers on the Boudicca were sickened with suspected norovirus during a 13-day trip to the Canary Islands. Some of the infected passengers were quarantined during the cruise. The ship was met by National Health Service staff and ambulance crews when it docked in Greenock, Scotland.
  • Animal Feed Safety Notification (EU #2012.0669): Salmonella Agona in soybean meal from Italy; distributed to Austria.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0672): Unauthorized formic acid in white sour cabbage from Poland; distributed to Slovakia.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0673): Bone fragments in chilled pate from Belgium; distributed to Denmark.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0676): Pentachlorophenol in guar gum from India; distributed to Germany.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0679): Excessive sulphite in dried apricots from Turkey, via Lithuania; distributed to Estonia.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0680): Aflatoxins in halva with pistachios from Turkey; distributed to the United Kingdom.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0681): Nitrofuran metabolite (nitrofurazone) in honey from New Zealand; distributed to the United Kingdom.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0682): Foreign bodies in dates from the United Kingdom; distributed to Iceland.
  • Pet Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0683): Salmonella Derby in bulls pizzle from Germany; distributed to Austria.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0684): Excessive polyphosphates in frozen plaice fillets from the Netherlands; distributed to Italy.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0685): Foreign body in pudding rice from Italy; distributed to the United Kingdom.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0688): Excessive sulphite in dried apples from China, via Lithuania; distributed to Estonia.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0689): Listeria monocytogenes in fresh Norwegian smoked salmon from Poland; distributed to Italy.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0691): Histamine in tins of sardines in oil and tins of sardines with tomatoes from Morocco; distributed to Congo, France, Hong Kong and Switzerland.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0692): Unauthorized chlorfluazuron in chilled kale from Thailand; distributed to Switzerland.
  • Food Safety Notification (EU #2012.0693): Salmonella infantis in frozen chicken meat from Poland; distributed to Slovakia.

Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands

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 web site.

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