Treyfish
Moderator
Hogs ate pet food tainted with chemical Date: 24 Apr 2007
Salvaged pet food contaminated with an industrial chemical was sent
to hog farms in as many as 6 states, federal health officials said
Tuesday. It was not immediately clear if any hogs that ate the
tainted feed then entered the food supply for humans.
Hogs at a farm in California ate the contaminated products, and
officials were trying to determine whether hogs in New York, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Utah and Ohio may have eaten the tainted
food. Hogs at some of the farms -- it wasn't immediately clear which
--have been quarantined.
A spokesman for the Food Safety and Inspection Service, Steven Cohen,
said in a statement that the FSIS was trying to determine whether the
hog farms in the states other than California actually fed the
material to their animals.
Hogs that were confirmed to have eaten the tainted food were
processed at a federally inspected facility in California, Cohen said.
"All of that meat is under control at the facility," he said. "It is
important to keep in mind this is a small number of farms that may
have received this feed."
The urine of some hogs tested positive for the chemical, melamine,
the Food and Drug Administration said.
"At this point, I don't have a definitive answer other than to say
that the issue is being addressed," Stephen Sundlof, the FDA's chief
veterinarian, told reporters when asked if any of the hogs had
entered the human food supply. A poultry farm also may be involved,
he added.
The FDA also said it planned to begin testing a wide variety of
vegetable proteins at firms that imported the ingredients to make
everything from pizza dough to infant formula, and protein shakes to
energy bars. The ingredient list includes wheat gluten, corn gluten,
corn meal, soy protein and rice bran.
Pet food companies have recalled more than 100 brands of cat and dog
food since the first reports of animal deaths a little over a month
ago.
Investigators have found melamine in at least 2 imported Chinese
vegetable proteins used to make pet foods. The chemical possibly was
used to skew analyses that measured the protein content of the
ingredients, wheat gluten and rice protein
concentrate.
There were no direct shipments of either of the 2 ingredients to
firms that make food for humans or for animals used as food, said
Michael Rogers who directs field investigations for the FDA.
A second, related chemical called cyanuric acid also has been found
to contaminate rice protein concentrate samples, Sundlof said.
The analyses the FDA plans to begin later this week will look at
producers of both food for humans and animal feed, said Dr. David
Acheson, the chief medical officer within the agency's Center for
Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. Acheson stressed that there was no
evidence any of the other vegetable proteins had been contaminated,
but that the FDA wanted to "get ahead of the curve" and raise
awareness among manufacturers.
FDA officials said the hogs were fed salvaged pet food made with
tainted rice protein concentrate. The food was given to the animals
prior to the products' recalls, Rogers said. Adulterated food cannot
be legally fed to either humans or animals, Sundlof said.
Meanwhile, the FDA is sampling for melamine and related compounds in
all wheat gluten, rice protein and corn gluten coming into the United
States from China.
Also Tuesday, the FDA said another pet food company, SmartPak, had
recalled products made with tainted rice protein concentrate. The
company said the recall covered a single production run of its
LiveSmart Weight Management Chicken and Brown Rice Dog Food.
[By Andrew Bridges]
--Communicated by:
Jim Cook <jimcook@panix.com> and ProMED-mail Rapporteur Mary Marshall
[Swine in the North Carolina case have been confirmed to be under quarantine.
It is critical to note that, according to this article, the FDA has
expanded its testing to other glutens in other food sources.
The situation with the pet food and the swine foods highlights issues
for human food as well. Cyanuric acid is most often used in swimming
pools to slow the breakdown of chlorination by sunlight. Certainly
this is not a product for use in food. The exact reason for this
being in the gluten products is not entirely clear. It is speculated
that it was intended to falsely lower the measurement of melamine in
the gluten. There is no evidence to support this speculation at this
time. - Mod.TG]:tiphat: Not a pretty picture.
http://tinyurl.com/yvmwuo
Salvaged pet food contaminated with an industrial chemical was sent
to hog farms in as many as 6 states, federal health officials said
Tuesday. It was not immediately clear if any hogs that ate the
tainted feed then entered the food supply for humans.
Hogs at a farm in California ate the contaminated products, and
officials were trying to determine whether hogs in New York, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Utah and Ohio may have eaten the tainted
food. Hogs at some of the farms -- it wasn't immediately clear which
--have been quarantined.
A spokesman for the Food Safety and Inspection Service, Steven Cohen,
said in a statement that the FSIS was trying to determine whether the
hog farms in the states other than California actually fed the
material to their animals.
Hogs that were confirmed to have eaten the tainted food were
processed at a federally inspected facility in California, Cohen said.
"All of that meat is under control at the facility," he said. "It is
important to keep in mind this is a small number of farms that may
have received this feed."
The urine of some hogs tested positive for the chemical, melamine,
the Food and Drug Administration said.
"At this point, I don't have a definitive answer other than to say
that the issue is being addressed," Stephen Sundlof, the FDA's chief
veterinarian, told reporters when asked if any of the hogs had
entered the human food supply. A poultry farm also may be involved,
he added.
The FDA also said it planned to begin testing a wide variety of
vegetable proteins at firms that imported the ingredients to make
everything from pizza dough to infant formula, and protein shakes to
energy bars. The ingredient list includes wheat gluten, corn gluten,
corn meal, soy protein and rice bran.
Pet food companies have recalled more than 100 brands of cat and dog
food since the first reports of animal deaths a little over a month
ago.
Investigators have found melamine in at least 2 imported Chinese
vegetable proteins used to make pet foods. The chemical possibly was
used to skew analyses that measured the protein content of the
ingredients, wheat gluten and rice protein
concentrate.
There were no direct shipments of either of the 2 ingredients to
firms that make food for humans or for animals used as food, said
Michael Rogers who directs field investigations for the FDA.
A second, related chemical called cyanuric acid also has been found
to contaminate rice protein concentrate samples, Sundlof said.
The analyses the FDA plans to begin later this week will look at
producers of both food for humans and animal feed, said Dr. David
Acheson, the chief medical officer within the agency's Center for
Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. Acheson stressed that there was no
evidence any of the other vegetable proteins had been contaminated,
but that the FDA wanted to "get ahead of the curve" and raise
awareness among manufacturers.
FDA officials said the hogs were fed salvaged pet food made with
tainted rice protein concentrate. The food was given to the animals
prior to the products' recalls, Rogers said. Adulterated food cannot
be legally fed to either humans or animals, Sundlof said.
Meanwhile, the FDA is sampling for melamine and related compounds in
all wheat gluten, rice protein and corn gluten coming into the United
States from China.
Also Tuesday, the FDA said another pet food company, SmartPak, had
recalled products made with tainted rice protein concentrate. The
company said the recall covered a single production run of its
LiveSmart Weight Management Chicken and Brown Rice Dog Food.
[By Andrew Bridges]
--Communicated by:
Jim Cook <jimcook@panix.com> and ProMED-mail Rapporteur Mary Marshall
[Swine in the North Carolina case have been confirmed to be under quarantine.
It is critical to note that, according to this article, the FDA has
expanded its testing to other glutens in other food sources.
The situation with the pet food and the swine foods highlights issues
for human food as well. Cyanuric acid is most often used in swimming
pools to slow the breakdown of chlorination by sunlight. Certainly
this is not a product for use in food. The exact reason for this
being in the gluten products is not entirely clear. It is speculated
that it was intended to falsely lower the measurement of melamine in
the gluten. There is no evidence to support this speculation at this
time. - Mod.TG]:tiphat: Not a pretty picture.
http://tinyurl.com/yvmwuo
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For example, FDA does not know which regions of the country may or may not be impacted by the problem, which firms are the major manufacturers and exporters of vegetable proteins to the United States, where these vegetable proteins are grown in China, and what controls are currently in place to prevent against contamination. According to the Chinese government, Xuzhou Anying did not declare the contaminated wheat gluten it shipped to the United States as a raw material for feed or food. Rather, according to the Chinese government, it was declared to them as non-food product, meaning that it was not subject to mandatory inspection by the Chinese government. In addition, in a communication to the U.S. government, the Chinese government has requested that FDA either request or require that U.S. importers of plant protein products insist on AQSIQ certification, based on AQSIQ testing, as part of the import contract. According to a media report, China's Foreign Ministry issued a statement that the contaminated vegetable protein managed to get past Chinese customs without inspection because it had not been declared for use in pet food. The news report said the contamination problem has prompted China to step up inspections of plant-based proteins and to list melamine as a banned substance for food exports and domestic sales. This information indicates that there are manufacturing control issues that cannot be linked to specific sources in China, but instead require country-wide monitoring. 3. On April 17, 2007, pet food manufacturers in South Africa recalled dry cat and dog food due to formulation with a contaminated corn gluten, a vegetable protein. FDA has learned that the corn gluten was contaminated with melamine and that the corn gluten had been imported from a third-party supplier in China. According to news reports, the contaminated pet food has been linked to the deaths of approximately 30 dogs in South Africa.GUIDANCE: Districts may detain without physical examination, all Vegetable protein products from China. Appropriate screening criteria have been set. For questions or issues concerning science, science policy, sample collection, analysis, preparation, or analytical methodology, contact Mr. Thomas Savage, Division of Field Science, at 301-827- 1026. If a firm, shipper or importer believes that their product should not be subject to detention under this import alert they should forward information supporting their position to FDA at the following address: Food and Drug Administration Division of Import Operations and Policy (HFC-170) 5600 Fishers Lane, Room 12-36 Rockville, MD 20587 In order to adequately assess whether a manufacturer has the appropriate controls and processes in place to ensure the quality of the product being produced, the firm or shipper must provide the following information: 1. Documentation showing that a minimum of five (5) consecutive entries have been released by FDA based on third party laboratory analyses using FDA recommended methods and that all shipments did not contain the presence of melamine and/or melamine analogs. AND 2. Certificate, such as from AQSIQ, indicating that an inspection of the manufacturer was conducted and adequate controls are in place. Information should also include: a. Copy of the inspectional reports and compliance status of the manufacturer. b. If products were sampled during the course of the inspection, test results indicating that the products are free of melamine and/or melamine analog. All requests for removal (exemption) from DWPE will be forwarded by DIOP to CVM (HFV-230) or CFSAN (HFS-606) for evaluation depending on the intended final use in animal or human food.PRIORITIZATIONGUIDANCE: IFOI: No purging requiredKEYWORDS: Feed, pet food, human food, melamine, gluten, protein, concentrate, rice, wheat, corn, soy, mung beanPREPARED BY: Cathie Marshall, CVM, HFV-232, 240-276-9217 Salvatore Evola, CFSAN, HFS-606- 302-436-2164 Linda Wisniowski, DIOP, HFC-172, 301-443-6553DATE LOADEDINTO FIARS: April 27, 2007 ATTACHMENTFirms and products exempt from detention without physical examination (Currently there are no firms listed in the attachment):tiphat: 
