60 million containers of pet food recalled

[Reptscue]

60 million containers of pet food recalled
Store brands sold at Wal-Mart and Safeway tied to kidney failure, deaths

Updated: 1 hour, 50 minutes ago
A major manufacturer of dog and cat food sold under Wal-Mart, Safeway, Kroger and other store brands recalled 60 million containers of wet 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. 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 — www.menufoods.com/recall — 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. Its three U.S. and one Canadian factory produce more than 1 billion containers of wet pet food a year. The recall covers pet food made at company plants in Emporia, Kan., and Pennsauken, N.J., Henderson said. Guide Pet nutrition

Henderson said the company received an undisclosed number of owner complaints of vomiting and kidney failure in dogs and cats after they had been fed its products. It has tested its products but not found a cause for the sickness.

“To date, the tests have not indicated any problems with the product,” Henderson said.

The company alerted the Food and Drug Administration, which already has inspectors in one of the two plants, Henderson said. The FDA was working to nail down brand names covered by the recall, agency spokesman Mike Herndon said.

Menu Foods is majority owned by the Menu Foods Income Fund, based in Ontario, Canada.

Henderson said the recall would cost the company the Canadian equivalent of $26 million to $34 million.


60 million containers of pet food recalled - Pet Health - MSNBC.com

[luker3232]

60 freakin million!

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[Reptscue]

The company said it manufacturers for 17 of the top 20 North American retailers.

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[luker3232]

60 mill is like ~ around 100 gagillion in texas

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[TheBoaGuy]

Not to be rude but what do you expect from the cheapest dog food you can buy. The saying is true you get what you pay for. If you care for your pets buy them good food.

[diggy415]

i just fed the safeway brand to my dog tonight and now i see it, great, all will be pulled until further notice. irronically, my 9yr old rott had blood tests done and no show of any cancer and yet he passed over a year ago, while feeding him these kinds of foods, so was my best friends GSD no blood test showed any reason of illness, both are deceased, now i wonder..........

[Reptscue]

Originally Posted by TheBoaGuy

Not to be rude but what do you expect from the cheapest dog food you can buy. The saying is true you get what you pay for. If you care for your pets buy them good food.

Nutro is a good food that is affected...

[Reptscue]

This was taken from John White's post about this...
Thanks John!!!!!!!!

http://www.menufoods.com/recall/Pres...l_03162007.pdf

For more info see: Menu Foods Income Fund - Annual General Meeting

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[B25Wolfpack]

Looks like all the dog food comes from the same place but we pay high prices for the name on the bag. Am i understanding this right?

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[Reptscue]

Sarah Tuite, a company spokeswoman, has said the recalled products were made using wheat gluten purchased from a new supplier, which has since been dropped for another source. Wheat gluten is a source of protein.

Taken from this site.....
Pet food recall has animal owners frantic - Pet Health - MSNBC.com

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[wisherp]

Originally Posted by TheBoaGuy

Not to be rude but what do you expect from the cheapest dog food you can buy. The saying is true you get what you pay for. If you care for your pets buy them good food.

Nutro is in there and that is a good food. But it is all wet food so yeah it is all bad that way. wet stuff in the can food is the worse thing to give your cat or dog. so yeah i agree that it is bad stuff

[Reptscue]

Actually cats do not metabolize complex carbs in dry food well, so it causes type 2 diabeties. And more water for you cats (canned food is about 70% water) help maintain a healthy urinary tract. We see many cats with urinary crystals. Canned is only bad for their teeth.

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[Genevieve]

i work at a vets office and this is what we were given to hand out to clients who are concerned. Also you can go to the Iams web site and they will have more info on the recalls.

I wanted to share with you all that if you have any questions or concerns there is a number you can call to get information. 1-866-895-2708

To read can product codes, refer to the botton of the can. for
Foil pouches, the code numbers are located at the lower left hand corner on the back of the pouch.
If the second line of the code begins with 6339 to 7073 followed by 4197 then you should stop feeding that food and call this number to recall the food.
If any of your cats or dogs show sings of vomiting, and lethargy you need to contact your Vet Immediately.

It is only canned and wet food that is a problem. If you are feeding dry kibble you should be ok.

[amercnwmn]

Eukanuba and Iams were the first two pet foods I fed my Chihuhua, Peppy (RIP) because his teeth were so bad. He died of kidney failure, but I figured it had to do with the infection from living with horrible dental problems for so long. My mother fed her late Yorkshire Terrier, Cupcake the same wet foods I fed Peppy. She also died of renal failure, but she was a TINY Yorkie, and many of those dogs have health issues. This has been a few years ago, so I don't know that they are related..But it is very sad to think that many people believed they were caring for their dogs when they were unwittingly killing them.
I see many lawsuits coming from this.

Oh and the foods, they were not only recommended but PRESCRIBED by my vet, and they were not cheap in comparison to others.

[TammyJamaica]

This is really awful. I have three dogs, 2 large rotty/shepherd mixes and a Shi-Tzu, but I have been feeding them the dry dog/puppy food - Purina or Pedigree, do you think this is OK? Apart from this I give them cooked mince and rice, cornmeal, liver and other cooked food more than 70% of the time.

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[Genevieve]

Purina is fine as well as Hills science diet and prescription diets. also Wellness food is fine.

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