Pet Food Recall - IAMS, Eukanuba affected - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

james t kirk · 03-17-2007, 05:52 AM

Pet Deaths Prompt Recall of Pet Food
By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer

Friday, March 16, 2007

(03-16) 15:33 PDT WASHINGTON, (AP) --

A major manufacturer of dog and cat food sold under Wal-Mart, Safeway, Kroger and other store brands recalled 60 million containers of pet food Friday after reports of kidney failure and deaths.

An unknown number of cats and dogs suffered kidney failure and about 10 died after eating the affected pet food, Menu Foods said in announcing the North American recall. Product testing has not revealed a link explaining the reported cases of illness and death, the company said.

"At this juncture, we're not 100 percent sure what's happened," said Paul Henderson, the company's president and chief executive officer. However, the recalled products were made using wheat gluten purchased from a new supplier, since dropped for another source, spokeswoman Sarah Tuite said. Wheat gluten is a source of protein.

The recall covers the company's "cuts and gravy" style food, which consists of chunks of meat in gravy, sold in cans and small foil pouches between Dec. 3 and March 6 throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

The pet food was sold by stores operated by the Kroger Company, Safeway Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and PetSmart Inc., among others, Henderson said.

Menu Foods did not immediately provide a full list of brand names and lot numbers covered by the recall, saying they would be posted on its Web site —

_ early Saturday. Consumers with questions can call (866) 463-6738.

The company said it manufacturers for 17 of the top 20 North American retailers. It is also a contract manufacturer for the top branded pet food companies, including Procter & Gamble Co.

P&G announced Friday the recall of specific 3 oz., 5.5 oz., 6 oz. and 13.2 oz. canned and 3 oz. and 5.3 oz. foil pouch cat and dog wet food products made by Menu Foods but sold under the Iams and Eukanuba brands. The recalled products bear the code dates of 6339 through 7073 followed by the plant code 4197, P&G said.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...w130537D87.DTL

I saw this on CNN this morning. If you feed your dog or cat Iams or Eukanuba, you may want to reconsider your options. Apparently the nice healthy pet food is causing kidney failure and death in pets.

I took a lot of heat on the pet food thread about my utter contempt for the processed pet food industry. Well, maybe I'se ain't so stoopid after all.

Proctor and Gamble (one of the biggest corporations in the world) which makes IAMS and Eukanuba has a wee bit of a problem on their hands this morning.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew...hub=TopStories

Hanxter · 03-17-2007, 07:12 AM

here... http://www.menufoods.com/recall/

i like the recall pdf... "not for press release"

Atropos4 · 03-17-2007, 07:30 AM

As far as the food that is killing the pets is the wet food only. As I don't feed mine wet food I'm not worried.
Although it did catch my attention as two of my kitties were very recently ill. Their bloodwork however was fine.

Guess I'm lucky my pets don't like those brands of food.

*edit
More info has been released. As captain hasn't updated yet I'll add it to my post.

http://www.menufoods.com/recall/index.html
The link to the cat and dog list of all recalls.
Taken from above site.

Dog
Americas Choice, Preferred Pets
Authority
Award
Best Choice
Big Bet
Big Red
Bloom
Bruiser
Cadillac
Companion
Demoulas Market Basket
Eukanuba
Food Lion
Giant Companion
Great Choice
Hannaford
Hill Country Fare
Hy-Vee
Iams
Key Food
Laura Lynn
Loving Meals
Meijers Main Choice
Mixables
Nutriplan
Nutro Max
Nutro Natural Choice
Nutro
Ol'Roy Canada
Ol'Roy US
Paws
Pet Essentials
Pet Pride - Good n Meaty
Presidents Choice
Price Chopper
Priority
Publix
Roche Bros
Save-A-Lot
Schnucks
Shep Dog
Springsfield Prize
Sprout
Stater Bros
Total Pet, My True Friend
Western Family
White Rose
Winn Dixie
Your Pet

Cat
Americas Choice, Preferred Pets
Authority
Best Choice
Companion
Compliments
Demoulas Market Basket
Eukanuba
Fine Feline Cat
Food Lion
Foodtown
Giant Companion
Hannaford
Hill Country Fare
Hy-Vee
Iams
Key Food
Laura Lynn
Li'l Red
Loving Meals
Meijer's Main Choice
Nutriplan
Nutro Max Gourmet Classics
Nutro Natural Choice
Paws
Pet Pride
Presidents Choice
Price Chopper
Priority
Save-A-Lot
Schnucks
Sophistacat
Special Kitty Canada
Special Kitty US
Springfield Prize
Sprout
Total Pet, My True Friend
Wegmans
Western Family
White Rose
Winn Dixie

More brands may be added to the lists as they have said it will continue to be added to throughout the day.

Also even Science Diet is recalling some foods
http://www.hillspet.com/menu_foods/Menu_Foods_en_US.htm

cyrnel · 03-19-2007, 09:13 PM

According to the release, Menu shipped over 1 billion cans last year. Certainly a bunch. Cut it down to Dec-Mar and we're talking maybe 400million? Now I realize the number of reports points to a small sub-set being affected, but my particular sub-set isn't rolling the dice.

I pitched my cans and started homebrew meals mixed with what's left of his dry. How about you? Is this thing affecting your purchases?

analog · 03-20-2007, 07:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by james t kirk

Apparently the nice healthy pet food is causing kidney failure and death in pets.

That's a wee bit of an overreaction, don't you think? They had a manufacturing incident where a portion of the ingredients turned out to be harmful because of that one specific batch. The article isn't telling you that all pet food ever made is going to kill your pet.

I suppose when we had the spinach e-Coli scare, you quipped that the nice healthy spinach was causing vomiting and diarrhea. It's an isolated cause for a specific reason- you make it sound like they've systematically manufactured poison.

Quote:

I took a lot of heat on the pet food thread about my utter contempt for the processed pet food industry. Well, maybe I'se ain't so stoopid after all.

Your prejudice notwithstanding, this has nothing to do with the "processed pet food industry", it has to do with one supplier and one batch of bad ingredient. Don't you think it's a little irresponsible to lead people to believe there's something wrong with pet food as a whole because of this one specific problem?

Thankfully, my dogs only eat dry food, so no worries here. I hope everyone else's are faring well, too.

james t kirk · 03-20-2007, 01:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by analog

That's a wee bit of an overreaction, don't you think? They had a manufacturing incident where a portion of the ingredients turned out to be harmful because of that one specific batch. The article isn't telling you that all pet food ever made is going to kill your pet.

I suppose when we had the spinach e-Coli scare, you quipped that the nice healthy spinach was causing vomiting and diarrhea. It's an isolated cause for a specific reason- you make it sound like they've systematically manufactured poison.

Your prejudice notwithstanding, this has nothing to do with the "processed pet food industry", it has to do with one supplier and one batch of bad ingredient. Don't you think it's a little irresponsible to lead people to believe there's something wrong with pet food as a whole because of this one specific problem?

Thankfully, my dogs only eat dry food, so no worries here. I hope everyone else's are faring well, too.

No.

All processed pet food is bad for your animal.

Take a look at that list. It's pretty obvious that like most other manufacturing, there are 2 or 3 manufacturers out there who just slap the product in whatever bag. Eukanuba today, IAMS tomorrow.

Dry food is far worse for your animal than the wet stuff by the way.

Pet food is made to be convienient for humans and give corporations a way of disposing of garbage that they would have to pay to get rid of otherwise.

I am simply trying to educate people who have been duped over the years by the pet food industry.

Atropos4 · 03-20-2007, 02:43 PM

A client of ours; their dog died and two days later their cat died of kidney failure. They called us today to let us know that in fact their pets were eating the infected food.

James: I agree with some of what you are saying and we've been feeding our dog more of a raw diet. I think what alot of people are having a problem with is how you are informing people. Noone who is a loving pet owner wants to be made to feel they are a bad parent when really they are trying their best with what they know.

Cynthetiq · 03-20-2007, 03:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by james t kirk

No.

All processed pet food is bad for your animal.

Take a look at that list. It's pretty obvious that like most other manufacturing, there are 2 or 3 manufacturers out there who just slap the product in whatever bag. Eukanuba today, IAMS tomorrow.

Dry food is far worse for your animal than the wet stuff by the way.

Pet food is made to be convienient for humans and give corporations a way of disposing of garbage that they would have to pay to get rid of otherwise.

I am simply trying to educate people who have been duped over the years by the pet food industry.

Actually it's called CONTRACT PACKAGING or even another word for it, Private label manufacturing. It is no different than any foodstuffs you buy for your own consumption.

It got too expensive to own your own plants for the time that you didn't have any production runs, so many companies got out of the manufacturing business.

Miss Mango · 03-21-2007, 03:46 AM

There is a lot of heated debate going on right now regarding just how long these companies have been adding toxic stuff to their diets. This recall is about canned and gravy based diets, but who knows if these things have been added to kibble and other types of commerical diets all along.

The hardest thing to swallow (no pun intended) with this is that wheat gluten is a filler. It doesn't serve any purpose, so why are these companies adding it to being with? The other is that people have been told for years to trust Hills and other "quality" diets such as Iams and alot of them came vet recommended.

I've fed my own cats Iams dry for years and changed their diet over to Innova Evo because one wouldn't shed the weight that he needed to. Before switching the cats over, I changed the dogs diet from Pedigree because my dogs were having weight issues as well. My reasons for switching them besides the weight issues was because I got tired of my pets being fed all fillers. If I filled up on crap all the time, I'd have weight issues too.

If either of these companies go under the gun for adding toxic ingredients to their diets, I'm going to be pissed, but they are not companies owned by Proctor and Gamble, ect so I'll have an easier time getting some kind of recourse.

The concern doesn't end with dogs and cats though as companies like Mazuri and Purina make tons of diets for all kinds of animals including exotic diets. Monkey chow, ostrich diets, ect.

Intense1 · 03-22-2007, 10:00 PM

So as an uneducated pet owner, does this all mean that it is better to feed my dog dry food as opposed to wet food?

Mighty Dog Lamb with rice dinner isn't included in the list - but is it dangerous to feed to Thelma Lou? It's about the only thing she eats consistently, so should I try to alter her food?

It's a hard question, since it involves changing my pet from her beloved food to another one.

Yeesh - what to do?

Elphaba · 03-23-2007, 09:16 AM

It was reported on the radio today that rat poison has been found in the contaminated food. I don't have a confirmation, but if this is true, I hope the bastard that did this is found and prosecuted.

analog · 03-23-2007, 11:29 AM

No one is "adding toxic ingredients" to the formulas. One particular shipment of a specific ingredient from a third company was used and happened to have something in it that is now being discovered.

Some of you make it seem like they've started intentionally packaging these products with poisons, and that's just flat-out irresponsible and incorrect. Knowledge is power, people. One ingredient- from another manufacturer- tainted- you SERIOUSLY think they bought an ingredient with RAT POISON in it on purpose? Really?

*passes out the tinfoil hats*

This is just like any other food issue- some ingredient is found to be tainted, and they have to recall all of their product manufactured during the time the tainted ingredient was used- THAT is why they have lot numbers, tracking numbers, dates, etc.- so that IF an issue arises, they can instantly put a stop to its distribution.

Quote:

Originally Posted by james t kirk

No.

All processed pet food is bad for your animal.

Take a look at that list. It's pretty obvious that like most other manufacturing, there are 2 or 3 manufacturers out there who just slap the product in whatever bag. Eukanuba today, IAMS tomorrow.

Dry food is far worse for your animal than the wet stuff by the way.

Pet food is made to be convienient for humans and give corporations a way of disposing of garbage that they would have to pay to get rid of otherwise.

I am simply trying to educate people who have been duped over the years by the pet food industry.

I appreciate that you have strong opinions- but that's what your entire post is... opinion.

That post contains no less than 4 outrageous claims with absolutely nothing to support them. Show me data- show me anything that proves you aren't just proselytizing on your own agenda. Because right now, I see a lot of righteous indignation aimed at myself and all the other loving pet owners in this thread, and you're calling all of us idiots or corporate zombies or something, and it's not appreciated.

Back up your opinion, or stop masquerading your opinions as fact.

Also- the dig at the pet food industry about "2 or 3 manufacturers slapping the product in whatever bag" just illuminates your general lack of knowledge on all food industries, pet and human alike. This is an extremely common practice, and has been for years- how this is even supposed to factor into the food being bad is beyond me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miss Mango

The hardest thing to swallow (no pun intended) with this is that wheat gluten is a filler. It doesn't serve any purpose, so why are these companies adding it to being with? The other is that people have been told for years to trust Hills and other "quality" diets such as Iams and alot of them came vet recommended.

I think you're lacking some education on wheat gluten. It's used as an alternative to soy-based meat substitutes like tofu. Some say it tastes even more like meat than tofu because of it's texture. It's often used in place of meat in Asian, vegetarian, Buddhist, and macrobiotic cuisines (*with some assistance from Wiki). So it's a meat substitute... used to feed humans (and very commonly so)... being put in animal food... it can't be that they're trying to simulate meat, can it?? Simulate meat in animal food? Why would they want to do that??

All sarcasm aside, if this truly bothers you, you'd have a heart attack if you knew how much "filler" goes in most human food.

Miss Mango · 03-23-2007, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elphaba

It was reported on the radio today that rat poison has been found in the contaminated food. I don't have a confirmation, but if this is true, I hope the bastard that did this is found and prosecuted.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17754681/

Quote:

ALBANY, N.Y. - Rat poison was found in the pet food suspected of causing kidney failure that killed at least 16 cats and dogs, but scientists still don’t know how it got there, state officials said Friday.

The toxin was identified as aminopterin, which is used to kill rats in some countries, state Agriculture Commissioner Patrick Hooker said.

The poison may have been used on wheat imported from China, NBC News correspondent Tom Costello told MSNBC TV.

Aminopterin is not registered for killing rodents in the United States, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, though it is used as a cancer drug. State officials wouldn’t speculate on how the toxin got into Menu Foods’ now-recalled pet food but said no criminal investigations had been launched.

Scientists at the New York State Animal Health Diagnostic Center at Cornell and at the New York State Food Laboratory tested three cat food samples provided by Menu Foods and found Aminopterin in two of them. Hooker said they would test individual components of the pet food, as well. The early test results were released to give veterinarians a better idea of how to treat sick animals.

“Any amount of this product is too much in food,” Hooker said.

Aminopterin, also used as a cancer drug, is highly toxic in high doses. It inhibits the growth of malignant cells and suppresses the immune system.

In dogs and cats, it can cause kidney failure, according to Donald Smith, dean of Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

The Food and Drug Administration has said the investigation into the pet deaths was focusing on wheat gluten in the pet food. Wheat gluten itself would not cause kidney failure, but the common ingredient could have been contaminated, the FDA said.

Bob Rosenberg, senior vice president of government affairs for the National Pest Management Association, said he had never heard of the substance before Friday.

“It would make no sense to spray a crop itself with rodenticide,” Rosenberg said, though he said grain shippers typically put bait stations around the perimeter of their storage facilities.

Recall delay
The pet deaths led to a recall of 60 million cans and pouches of pet food produced by Menu Foods and sold throughout North America under 95 brand names. There have been several reports of kidney failure in pets that ate the recalled brands, and the company has confirmed the deaths of 15 cats and one dog.

Menu Foods last week recalled “cuts and gravy” style dog and cat food. The recall sparked concern among pet owners across North America. It includes food sold under store brands carried by Wal-Mart, Kroger, Safeway and other large retailers, as well as private labels such as Iams, Nutro and Eukanuba.

The company, already facing lawsuits, planned a media teleconference for later Friday, a spokesman said. It is majority owned by Menu Foods Income Fund of Streetsville.

A complete list of the recalled products along with product codes, descriptions and production dates was posted on Menu Foods' Web site. The company also designated two phone numbers that pet owners could call for information: (866) 463-6738 and (866) 895-2708.

No criminal investigation so far
A spokesman for New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said he was not aware of any criminal investigation involving the tainted food. FBI spokesman Paul Holstein in Albany said Friday he was not aware of any FBI involvement in the case.

“I don’t know where we’ll go from here,” he said.

Quote:

Originally Posted by analog

I think you're lacking some education on wheat gluten. It's used as an alternative to soy-based meat substitutes like tofu. Some say it tastes even more like meat than tofu because of it's texture. It's often used in place of meat in Asian, vegetarian, Buddhist, and macrobiotic cuisines (*with some assistance from Wiki). So it's a meat substitute... used to feed humans (and very commonly so)... being put in animal food... it can't be that they're trying to simulate meat, can it?? Simulate meat in animal food? Why would they want to do that??

All sarcasm aside, if this truly bothers you, you'd have a heart attack if you knew how much "filler" goes in most human food.

I'm not going to argue about this.

Wheat Gluten has no place in dog food. I don't feed my dogs or my cats that crap. http://www.frommfamily.com/contact-recall-info.php Feel free to check out the ingredients list while you're there. I've had this diet as well as my cats checked over by a animal nutritionist.

If you want to eat that stuff, all the more power to ya! Fruits, veggies and clean sources of protein work just fine for me. Now if the animals that I'm eating are eating the stuff, well I'm shit out of luck as soy messes with my cycles, so it's either eat and take a risk or bleed more than I have to. I take my chances with organic chicken.

Elphaba · 03-23-2007, 01:18 PM

Thank you, Miss Mango. I'll save analog's tin foil hat for another day.

Lady Sage · 03-23-2007, 01:27 PM

I agree. The person responsible needs to be maimed.

It was perhaps an "accident" or perhaps a pissed off workers way of getting revenge. Either way I can not wait to see the quaint excuse.

Tin foil hats indeed.

Charlatan · 03-23-2007, 04:47 PM

Mango... Fromm's is one of the two or three manufactures that I trust, another is Hund 'n' Flocken.

Here is a good read about what goes into Commercial Pet Food and how it is made: http://www.api4animals.org/facts.php?p=359&more=1

waltert · 03-24-2007, 12:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cynthetiq

Actually it's called CONTRACT PACKAGING or even another word for it, Private label manufacturing. It is no different than any foodstuffs you buy for your own consumption.

It got too expensive to own your own plants for the time that you didn't have any production runs, so many companies got out of the manufacturing business.

i just have to say that I got a tour of the georgia pacific paper mill in Arkansas when I was there doing business, and...WOW.

its really amazing to see a manufacturer churning out things in such high volumes, and i was blown away by how many different labels they produce under.

anyway, its kind of sad, but I must say that Im impressed with how fast this was caught. 60 million cans of poisonous food and 20 dead cats... not too shabby in my book. the modern technology age never ceases to amaze me.

james t kirk · 03-24-2007, 11:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by analog

No one is "adding toxic ingredients" to the formulas. One particular shipment of a specific ingredient from a third company was used and happened to have something in it that is now being discovered.

Some of you make it seem like they've started intentionally packaging these products with poisons, and that's just flat-out irresponsible and incorrect. Knowledge is power, people. One ingredient- from another manufacturer- tainted- you SERIOUSLY think they bought an ingredient with RAT POISON in it on purpose? Really?

*passes out the tinfoil hats*

snip

I appreciate that you have strong opinions- but that's what your entire post is... opinion.

That post contains no less than 4 outrageous claims with absolutely nothing to support them. Show me data- show me anything that proves you aren't just proselytizing on your own agenda. Because right now, I see a lot of righteous indignation aimed at myself and all the other loving pet owners in this thread, and you're calling all of us idiots or corporate zombies or something, and it's not appreciated.

Back up your opinion, or stop masquerading your opinions as fact.

Also- the dig at the pet food industry about "2 or 3 manufacturers slapping the product in whatever bag" just illuminates your general lack of knowledge on all food industries, pet and human alike. This is an extremely common practice, and has been for years- how this is even supposed to factor into the food being bad is beyond me.

Do your own google search, or better yet, use your brain and a bit of common sense.

I've posted links to scores of different websites in other threads and posted about my experience with my animals, my vets, what I have learned.

There are hundreds of websites on the net reporting on the evils of processed pet food. I've been braying about it for a couple of years now since my eyes were opened.

You can do what you want. I really don't care if you don't like what I am saying.

By the way, it was reported last night on the CBC that it is rat poison in the pet food that is causing the deaths.

Now how'd that get there?

The government doesn't have the resources to ensure the safety of the food that we eat, let alone pet food. There are simply no regulations or policing of the pet food industry.

Now pass me my tin foil hat please.

Miss Mango · 03-25-2007, 01:27 PM

What I want to know is why Menu Foods was getting stuff from China anyway? To save a buck?

All the more reason it shouldn't be added to pet foods IMO.

Thanks for the tip Charlatan. It's another pet food company I'll be checking out as lots of people that don't want to feed raw or BARF are having a hard time trying to figure out what companies they can buy from.

Charlatan · 03-28-2007, 08:34 AM

Mango... the fact that it's come from China is besides the point. It could have just as easily come from Wisconson. The industry is unregulated.

The commercial pet food industry can put whatever they want into pet food, including euthanized pets.

The_Jazz · 03-28-2007, 08:48 AM

Mango, there's most likely a lot more products that come from China than you realize. Almost every bicycle and every bike helmet sold in the US are made in China. Most ladders and tools are made there. The raw materials for most herbal supplements for humans are made there.

In other words, goods imported from China aren't necessarily bad nor poor quality. Some are but at about the same rate as ones made in the US.

So if Menu Foods was doing it to save a few dollars, that's great. They should have done a better job with their quality control. This same problem could have come from a US or Canadian supplier as well.

james t kirk · 03-30-2007, 03:05 PM

I'm still wearing my tin foil hat and still making my pets their own pet food.

Now it's Hills (aka Colgate Palmolive) that has been exposed as selling pet food that contains poisons.

This shit has been going on for YEARS folks.

Hence the reason so many cats have kidney problems (mine included, before I switched her to real food)

TORONTO — A massive North American pet food recall got even bigger Friday as Hills Pet Nutrition recalled one of its brands of dry cat kibble for fear it contained melamine, the same toxin that forced Menu Foods to pull “cuts and gravy” products from shelves across the continent.

Hills recalled its Prescription Diet m/d Feline Dry food after melamine, a chemical used as a fertilizer in Asia and also to make plastic kitchenware, was identified as the likely culprit in the Menu Foods recall — one of the largest of its kind ever in North America.

“Hill's is taking this precautionary action because during a two-month period in early 2007, wheat gluten for this product was provided by a company that also supplied wheat gluten to Menu Foods,” the company said in a statement on its website.

“U.S. Food and Drug Administration tests of wheat gluten samples from this period show the presence of a small amount of melamine.”

The tainted wheat gluten was produced in China and distributed by a lone unidentified American company, U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Cornell University scientists said Friday.

Their findings contradict the New York State Food Laboratory's tests, which pointed to aminopterin — a rat poison — as the likely culprit.

The important thing is that officials have isolated wheat gluten as the tainted ingredient, said Paul Henderson, CEO of Menu Foods, the Mississauga, Ont., pet food manufacturer at the centre of one of the continent's largest-ever consumer-product recalls.

“Regardless of what might be the causative agent, the vehicle that delivered the problem into our supply chain was the wheat gluten,” Mr. Henderson told a news conference Friday.

“The fact that we now have that comfort allows us to stand up and say that we're not using the wheat gluten anymore and that the products that were manufactured subsequent to the 6th of March are safe.”

At a news conference in Washington, U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials said a batch of the tainted wheat gluten, provided by an unnamed American supplier, was also shipped to a company that manufactures dry pet food.

Officials are still trying to determine whether the company actually used any of the tainted wheat gluten in its dry pet food, said Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine.

Link to rest:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...tory/Business/

Miss Mango · 03-31-2007, 09:08 AM

Miss Mango · 04-02-2007, 07:11 PM

And a few more...

http://www.delmonte.com/petfoodrecall.html

http://www.avma.org/aa/menufoodsreca...ews_070331.asp

This last is regarding Pedigree and is not for the US, atleast not yet.
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl...5/ai_114410165

cyrnel · 04-02-2007, 07:27 PM

Not to make light of this, but if the plot follows Planet of the Apes much longer then the contaminant will be found to have come from space and we'll all start adopting furry relatives.

Meanwhile I'm rapidly learning about homebrew dog food.

Glory's Sun · 04-03-2007, 06:59 AM

eh..

I never feed my dogs wet food anyway.

So yeah, I'm still buying Eukanuba. It's been good to me and my dogs for years.

Atropos4 · 04-07-2007, 09:16 AM

For those of you that didn't know. The recall has expanded to dry foods and pet treats. I'm glad I already figured they would and took precautions.

james t kirk · 04-10-2007, 04:32 PM

An interesting aside, aparently the CFO of the company that made all of the poison pet food (Menu Foods) that was originally recalled for featuring RAT POISON cashed out a pile of shares just prior to the announcement that pets were dying all over the place.

Imagine that.

Now, he claims it's just a co-incidence........

Of course it is, of course......

Pet food insider sold shares before recall
CFO calls sale a 'horrible coincidence'
KEITH MCARTHUR

From Tuesday's Globe and Mail

The chief financial officer of Menu Foods Income Fund says it's a "horrible coincidence" that he sold nearly half his units in the troubled pet food maker less than three weeks before a massive recall of tainted pet food.

Insider trading reports show that Mark Wiens sold 14,000 units for $102,900 on Feb. 26 and Feb. 27. Those shares would be worth $62,440 today, based on yesterday's close of $4.46 a unit.

That represented 45 per cent of Mr. Wiens's units. After the sale, he still owned 17,193 units and options to purchase 101,812 units, according to insider trading reports.

"It's a horrible coincidence, yes . . ." Mr. Wiens said yesterday.

"I hold myself to the highest ethical and moral standards possible. I wouldn't do anything to imperil the high governance standards that I demand of myself or anybody in the company."

Mr. Wiens said the first reports of illnesses and deaths related to Menu Foods products came in to the company's toll-free customer relations line in late February.

But he said he did not hear of any possible problem with the company's products until early March.

On March 16, the Streetsville, Ont., pet food maker recalled 60 million containers of cat and dog food.

"In terms of process, during any given year, we get consumer complaints all the time and it becomes matter of course for our technical people, so it's not something that necessarily gets flagged right to the top on an ongoing basis," Mr. Wiens said.

Menu Foods president and chief executive Paul Henderson has previously said Menu Foods ended its relationship with its Chinese supplier of wheat gluten on March 6.

By that date, it was clear "something was wrong" with some of the company's products, Mr. Henderson said at a press conference on March 30. In the first week in March, animals in routine taste tests of the company's "cuts and gravy" products began showing symptoms of kidney failure.

Mr. Wiens said he has not been approached by the Ontario Securities Commission or any other regulators about the timing of his unit sales. OSC spokeswoman Wendy Dey said the company routinely reviews insider trading reports, but does not comment on individual cases.

Jay Strosberg, a Windsor, Ont., lawyer who has filed a lawsuit against Menu Foods on behalf of a woman whose six-year-old cat died of kidney failure on Feb. 22, said regulators should look into Mr. Wiens's trades to see whether the buyers bought at inflated prices.

"At this point in time, we have absolutely no information about what the company knew or when they knew it," Mr. Strosberg said. "That information would not be disclosed to us until we're further along in the class action."

Mr. Wiens said he sold his shares in late February for financial planning purposes. He was prohibited from trading until Feb. 16 because of a blackout period related to the company's fourth-quarter results, he said.

But when he learned about the trouble with the company's products, he knew his trades would raise some questions, Mr. Wiens said.

"Certainly there would be questions when you piece all the timing together. I understand that," Mr. Wiens said.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...Story/Business

Miss Mango · 04-11-2007, 04:28 AM

Quote:

I hold myself to the highest ethical and moral standards possible

Compared to what? Pond scum which isn't low enough for what this man has done. :x

03-17-2007, 05:52 AM	#1 (permalink)
james t kirk Junkie Location: Toronto	Pet Food Recall - IAMS, Eukanuba affected Pet Deaths Prompt Recall of Pet Food By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer Friday, March 16, 2007 (03-16) 15:33 PDT WASHINGTON, (AP) -- A major manufacturer of dog and cat food sold under Wal-Mart, Safeway, Kroger and other store brands recalled 60 million containers of pet food Friday after reports of kidney failure and deaths. An unknown number of cats and dogs suffered kidney failure and about 10 died after eating the affected pet food, Menu Foods said in announcing the North American recall. Product testing has not revealed a link explaining the reported cases of illness and death, the company said. "At this juncture, we're not 100 percent sure what's happened," said Paul Henderson, the company's president and chief executive officer. However, the recalled products were made using wheat gluten purchased from a new supplier, since dropped for another source, spokeswoman Sarah Tuite said. Wheat gluten is a source of protein. The recall covers the company's "cuts and gravy" style food, which consists of chunks of meat in gravy, sold in cans and small foil pouches between Dec. 3 and March 6 throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico. The pet food was sold by stores operated by the Kroger Company, Safeway Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and PetSmart Inc., among others, Henderson said. Menu Foods did not immediately provide a full list of brand names and lot numbers covered by the recall, saying they would be posted on its Web site — _ early Saturday. Consumers with questions can call (866) 463-6738. The company said it manufacturers for 17 of the top 20 North American retailers. It is also a contract manufacturer for the top branded pet food companies, including Procter & Gamble Co. P&G announced Friday the recall of specific 3 oz., 5.5 oz., 6 oz. and 13.2 oz. canned and 3 oz. and 5.3 oz. foil pouch cat and dog wet food products made by Menu Foods but sold under the Iams and Eukanuba brands. The recalled products bear the code dates of 6339 through 7073 followed by the plant code 4197, P&G said. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...w130537D87.DTL I saw this on CNN this morning. If you feed your dog or cat Iams or Eukanuba, you may want to reconsider your options. Apparently the nice healthy pet food is causing kidney failure and death in pets. I took a lot of heat on the pet food thread about my utter contempt for the processed pet food industry. Well, maybe I'se ain't so stoopid after all. Proctor and Gamble (one of the biggest corporations in the world) which makes IAMS and Eukanuba has a wee bit of a problem on their hands this morning. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew...hub=TopStories

03-17-2007, 07:30 AM	#3 (permalink)
Atropos4 Think about it Location: North Carolina	As far as the food that is killing the pets is the wet food only. As I don't feed mine wet food I'm not worried. Although it did catch my attention as two of my kitties were very recently ill. Their bloodwork however was fine. Guess I'm lucky my pets don't like those brands of food. edit More info has been released. As captain hasn't updated yet I'll add it to my post. http://www.menufoods.com/recall/index.html The link to the cat and dog list of all recalls. Taken from above site. Dog Americas Choice, Preferred Pets Authority Award Best Choice Big Bet Big Red Bloom Bruiser Cadillac Companion Demoulas Market Basket Eukanuba Food Lion Giant Companion Great Choice Hannaford Hill Country Fare Hy-Vee Iams Key Food Laura Lynn Loving Meals Meijers Main Choice Mixables Nutriplan Nutro Max Nutro Natural Choice Nutro Ol'Roy Canada Ol'Roy US Paws Pet Essentials Pet Pride - Good n Meaty Presidents Choice Price Chopper Priority Publix Roche Bros Save-A-Lot Schnucks Shep Dog Springsfield Prize Sprout Stater Bros Total Pet, My True Friend Western Family White Rose Winn Dixie Your Pet Cat Americas Choice, Preferred Pets Authority Best Choice Companion Compliments Demoulas Market Basket Eukanuba Fine Feline Cat Food Lion Foodtown Giant Companion Hannaford Hill Country Fare Hy-Vee Iams Key Food Laura Lynn Li'l Red Loving Meals Meijer's Main Choice Nutriplan Nutro Max Gourmet Classics Nutro Natural Choice Paws Pet Pride Presidents Choice Price Chopper Priority Save-A-Lot Schnucks Sophistacat Special Kitty Canada Special Kitty US Springfield Prize Sprout Total Pet, My True Friend Wegmans Western Family White Rose Winn Dixie More brands may be added to the lists as they have said it will continue to be added to throughout the day. Also even Science Diet is recalling some foods http://www.hillspet.com/menu_foods/Menu_Foods_en_US.htm __________________ Minds are like parachutes. They work better open. "If I were Hermione, I would have licked his pantleg." Last edited by Atropos4; 03-17-2007 at 02:18 PM.. Reason: added lists of recalls*

03-19-2007, 09:13 PM	#4 (permalink)
cyrnel Adequate Location: In my angry-dome.	According to the release, Menu shipped over 1 billion cans last year. Certainly a bunch. Cut it down to Dec-Mar and we're talking maybe 400million? Now I realize the number of reports points to a small sub-set being affected, but my particular sub-set isn't rolling the dice. I pitched my cans and started homebrew meals mixed with what's left of his dry. How about you? Is this thing affecting your purchases? __________________ There are a vast number of people who are uninformed and heavily propagandized, but fundamentally decent. The propaganda that inundates them is effective when unchallenged, but much of it goes only skin deep. If they can be brought to raise questions and apply their decent instincts and basic intelligence, many people quickly escape the confines of the doctrinal system and are willing to do something to help others who are really suffering and oppressed." -Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media, p. 195

03-20-2007, 02:43 PM	#7 (permalink)
Atropos4 Think about it Location: North Carolina	A client of ours; their dog died and two days later their cat died of kidney failure. They called us today to let us know that in fact their pets were eating the infected food. James: I agree with some of what you are saying and we've been feeding our dog more of a raw diet. I think what alot of people are having a problem with is how you are informing people. Noone who is a loving pet owner wants to be made to feel they are a bad parent when really they are trying their best with what they know. __________________ Minds are like parachutes. They work better open. "If I were Hermione, I would have licked his pantleg." Last edited by Atropos4; 03-20-2007 at 03:59 PM..

03-22-2007, 10:00 PM	#10 (permalink)
Intense1 Crazy Location: Music City burbs	So as an uneducated pet owner, does this all mean that it is better to feed my dog dry food as opposed to wet food? Mighty Dog Lamb with rice dinner isn't included in the list - but is it dangerous to feed to Thelma Lou? It's about the only thing she eats consistently, so should I try to alter her food? It's a hard question, since it involves changing my pet from her beloved food to another one. Yeesh - what to do? __________________ (none yet, still thinkin')

03-17-2007, 07:12 AM	#2 (permalink)
Hanxter The Griffin	here... http://www.menufoods.com/recall/ i like the recall pdf... "not for press release"

03-21-2007, 03:46 AM	#9 (permalink)
Miss Mango Psycho	There is a lot of heated debate going on right now regarding just how long these companies have been adding toxic stuff to their diets. This recall is about canned and gravy based diets, but who knows if these things have been added to kibble and other types of commerical diets all along. The hardest thing to swallow (no pun intended) with this is that wheat gluten is a filler. It doesn't serve any purpose, so why are these companies adding it to being with? The other is that people have been told for years to trust Hills and other "quality" diets such as Iams and alot of them came vet recommended. I've fed my own cats Iams dry for years and changed their diet over to Innova Evo because one wouldn't shed the weight that he needed to. Before switching the cats over, I changed the dogs diet from Pedigree because my dogs were having weight issues as well. My reasons for switching them besides the weight issues was because I got tired of my pets being fed all fillers. If I filled up on crap all the time, I'd have weight issues too. If either of these companies go under the gun for adding toxic ingredients to their diets, I'm going to be pissed, but they are not companies owned by Proctor and Gamble, ect so I'll have an easier time getting some kind of recourse. The concern doesn't end with dogs and cats though as companies like Mazuri and Purina make tons of diets for all kinds of animals including exotic diets. Monkey chow, ostrich diets, ect.

03-23-2007, 09:16 AM	#11 (permalink)
Elphaba Deja Moo Location: Olympic Peninsula, WA	It was reported on the radio today that rat poison has been found in the contaminated food. I don't have a confirmation, but if this is true, I hope the bastard that did this is found and prosecuted. __________________ "You can't ignore politics, no matter how much you'd like to." Molly Ivins - 1944-2007

03-23-2007, 01:18 PM	#14 (permalink)
Elphaba Deja Moo Location: Olympic Peninsula, WA	Thank you, Miss Mango. I'll save analog's tin foil hat for another day. __________________ "You can't ignore politics, no matter how much you'd like to." Molly Ivins - 1944-2007

03-23-2007, 01:27 PM	#15 (permalink)
Lady Sage Mistress of Mayhem Location: Canton, Ohio	I agree. The person responsible needs to be maimed. It was perhaps an "accident" or perhaps a pissed off workers way of getting revenge. Either way I can not wait to see the quaint excuse. Tin foil hats indeed. __________________ If only closed minds came with closed mouths. Minds are like parachutes, they function best when open. It`s Easier to Change a Condom Than a Diaper Yes, the rumors are true... I actually AM a Witch.

03-23-2007, 04:47 PM	#16 (permalink)
Charlatan Getting it. Super Moderator Location: Lion City	Mango... Fromm's is one of the two or three manufactures that I trust, another is Hund 'n' Flocken. Here is a good read about what goes into Commercial Pet Food and how it is made: http://www.api4animals.org/facts.php?p=359&more=1 __________________ "My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars." - Old Man Luedecke

03-25-2007, 01:27 PM	#19 (permalink)
Miss Mango Psycho	What I want to know is why Menu Foods was getting stuff from China anyway? To save a buck? All the more reason it shouldn't be added to pet foods IMO. Thanks for the tip Charlatan. It's another pet food company I'll be checking out as lots of people that don't want to feed raw or BARF are having a hard time trying to figure out what companies they can buy from.

03-28-2007, 08:34 AM	#20 (permalink)
Charlatan Getting it. Super Moderator Location: Lion City	Mango... the fact that it's come from China is besides the point. It could have just as easily come from Wisconson. The industry is unregulated. The commercial pet food industry can put whatever they want into pet food, including euthanized pets. __________________ "My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars." - Old Man Luedecke

03-28-2007, 08:48 AM	#21 (permalink)
The_Jazz Asshole Administrator Location: Chicago	Mango, there's most likely a lot more products that come from China than you realize. Almost every bicycle and every bike helmet sold in the US are made in China. Most ladders and tools are made there. The raw materials for most herbal supplements for humans are made there. In other words, goods imported from China aren't necessarily bad nor poor quality. Some are but at about the same rate as ones made in the US. So if Menu Foods was doing it to save a few dollars, that's great. They should have done a better job with their quality control. This same problem could have come from a US or Canadian supplier as well. __________________ "They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." - B. Franklin "There ought to be limits to freedom." - George W. Bush "We have met the enemy and he is us." - Pogo

03-30-2007, 03:05 PM	#22 (permalink)
james t kirk Junkie Location: Toronto	Pet Food Recall GETS EVEN BIGGER I'm still wearing my tin foil hat and still making my pets their own pet food. Now it's Hills (aka Colgate Palmolive) that has been exposed as selling pet food that contains poisons. This shit has been going on for YEARS folks. Hence the reason so many cats have kidney problems (mine included, before I switched her to real food) TORONTO — A massive North American pet food recall got even bigger Friday as Hills Pet Nutrition recalled one of its brands of dry cat kibble for fear it contained melamine, the same toxin that forced Menu Foods to pull “cuts and gravy” products from shelves across the continent. Hills recalled its Prescription Diet m/d Feline Dry food after melamine, a chemical used as a fertilizer in Asia and also to make plastic kitchenware, was identified as the likely culprit in the Menu Foods recall — one of the largest of its kind ever in North America. “Hill's is taking this precautionary action because during a two-month period in early 2007, wheat gluten for this product was provided by a company that also supplied wheat gluten to Menu Foods,” the company said in a statement on its website. “U.S. Food and Drug Administration tests of wheat gluten samples from this period show the presence of a small amount of melamine.” The tainted wheat gluten was produced in China and distributed by a lone unidentified American company, U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Cornell University scientists said Friday. Their findings contradict the New York State Food Laboratory's tests, which pointed to aminopterin — a rat poison — as the likely culprit. The important thing is that officials have isolated wheat gluten as the tainted ingredient, said Paul Henderson, CEO of Menu Foods, the Mississauga, Ont., pet food manufacturer at the centre of one of the continent's largest-ever consumer-product recalls. “Regardless of what might be the causative agent, the vehicle that delivered the problem into our supply chain was the wheat gluten,” Mr. Henderson told a news conference Friday. “The fact that we now have that comfort allows us to stand up and say that we're not using the wheat gluten anymore and that the products that were manufactured subsequent to the 6th of March are safe.” At a news conference in Washington, U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials said a batch of the tainted wheat gluten, provided by an unnamed American supplier, was also shipped to a company that manufactures dry pet food. Officials are still trying to determine whether the company actually used any of the tainted wheat gluten in its dry pet food, said Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine. Link to rest: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...tory/Business/

03-31-2007, 09:08 AM	#23 (permalink)
Miss Mango Psycho	... Last edited by Miss Mango; 03-31-2007 at 09:39 AM..

04-02-2007, 07:11 PM	#24 (permalink)
Miss Mango Psycho	And a few more... http://www.delmonte.com/petfoodrecall.html http://www.avma.org/aa/menufoodsreca...ews_070331.asp This last is regarding Pedigree and is not for the US, atleast not yet. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articl...5/ai_114410165

04-02-2007, 07:27 PM	#25 (permalink)
cyrnel Adequate Location: In my angry-dome.	Not to make light of this, but if the plot follows Planet of the Apes much longer then the contaminant will be found to have come from space and we'll all start adopting furry relatives. Meanwhile I'm rapidly learning about homebrew dog food. __________________ There are a vast number of people who are uninformed and heavily propagandized, but fundamentally decent. The propaganda that inundates them is effective when unchallenged, but much of it goes only skin deep. If they can be brought to raise questions and apply their decent instincts and basic intelligence, many people quickly escape the confines of the doctrinal system and are willing to do something to help others who are really suffering and oppressed." -Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media, p. 195

04-03-2007, 06:59 AM	#26 (permalink)
Glory's Sun Registered User	eh.. I never feed my dogs wet food anyway. So yeah, I'm still buying Eukanuba. It's been good to me and my dogs for years.

04-07-2007, 09:16 AM	#27 (permalink)
Atropos4 Think about it Location: North Carolina	For those of you that didn't know. The recall has expanded to dry foods and pet treats. I'm glad I already figured they would and took precautions. __________________ Minds are like parachutes. They work better open. "If I were Hermione, I would have licked his pantleg."

04-10-2007, 04:32 PM	#28 (permalink)
james t kirk Junkie Location: Toronto	An interesting aside, aparently the CFO of the company that made all of the poison pet food (Menu Foods) that was originally recalled for featuring RAT POISON cashed out a pile of shares just prior to the announcement that pets were dying all over the place. Imagine that. Now, he claims it's just a co-incidence........ Of course it is, of course...... Pet food insider sold shares before recall CFO calls sale a 'horrible coincidence' KEITH MCARTHUR From Tuesday's Globe and Mail The chief financial officer of Menu Foods Income Fund says it's a "horrible coincidence" that he sold nearly half his units in the troubled pet food maker less than three weeks before a massive recall of tainted pet food. Insider trading reports show that Mark Wiens sold 14,000 units for $102,900 on Feb. 26 and Feb. 27. Those shares would be worth $62,440 today, based on yesterday's close of $4.46 a unit. That represented 45 per cent of Mr. Wiens's units. After the sale, he still owned 17,193 units and options to purchase 101,812 units, according to insider trading reports. "It's a horrible coincidence, yes . . ." Mr. Wiens said yesterday. "I hold myself to the highest ethical and moral standards possible. I wouldn't do anything to imperil the high governance standards that I demand of myself or anybody in the company." Mr. Wiens said the first reports of illnesses and deaths related to Menu Foods products came in to the company's toll-free customer relations line in late February. But he said he did not hear of any possible problem with the company's products until early March. On March 16, the Streetsville, Ont., pet food maker recalled 60 million containers of cat and dog food. "In terms of process, during any given year, we get consumer complaints all the time and it becomes matter of course for our technical people, so it's not something that necessarily gets flagged right to the top on an ongoing basis," Mr. Wiens said. Menu Foods president and chief executive Paul Henderson has previously said Menu Foods ended its relationship with its Chinese supplier of wheat gluten on March 6. By that date, it was clear "something was wrong" with some of the company's products, Mr. Henderson said at a press conference on March 30. In the first week in March, animals in routine taste tests of the company's "cuts and gravy" products began showing symptoms of kidney failure. Mr. Wiens said he has not been approached by the Ontario Securities Commission or any other regulators about the timing of his unit sales. OSC spokeswoman Wendy Dey said the company routinely reviews insider trading reports, but does not comment on individual cases. Jay Strosberg, a Windsor, Ont., lawyer who has filed a lawsuit against Menu Foods on behalf of a woman whose six-year-old cat died of kidney failure on Feb. 22, said regulators should look into Mr. Wiens's trades to see whether the buyers bought at inflated prices. "At this point in time, we have absolutely no information about what the company knew or when they knew it," Mr. Strosberg said. "That information would not be disclosed to us until we're further along in the class action." Mr. Wiens said he sold his shares in late February for financial planning purposes. He was prohibited from trading until Feb. 16 because of a blackout period related to the company's fourth-quarter results, he said. But when he learned about the trouble with the company's products, he knew his trades would raise some questions, Mr. Wiens said. "Certainly there would be questions when you piece all the timing together. I understand that," Mr. Wiens said. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servl...Story/Business