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Pet Food Regulations

Pet Food Safety Protocol

What is the procedure each pet food company follows when they receive a consumer complaint? This is what I asked over 80 pet food manufacturers. Here’s what those who are talking shared…

What is the procedure each pet food company follows when they receive a consumer complaint?  This is what I asked over 80 pet food manufacturers.  Here’s what those who are talking shared…

On March 22, 2011 I sent the following questions to over 80 dog food and cat food manufacturers…

As a service to pet parents, TruthaboutPetFood.com is compiling information from pet food manufacturers regarding the adverse event protocol of each company.  Please respond to all of the following questions at your earliest convenience…

When a pet parent contacts you reporting a sick, dying, or dead pet they believe to be caused from your pet food/treat – what is your company protocol for handing the report?

What is the procedure for first complaint in a pet food batch?

Are there subsequent procedures followed for additional complaints (same batch)?

Do you provide the pet parent with a report of your investigation?

Typically, how long does it take for the pet parent to receive a response to your investigation of their complaint?

Do you investigate even without a veterinarian statement?

Do you retain a portion of each batch of pet food for testing?  If yes, for how long do you keep this food?

Should the worst happen, and a recall be initiated, what is the estimated length of time from date investigation begins to date recall is announced?

Any additional information you’d like to provide would be appreciated.

Thank you,
Susan Thixton
Truth about Pet Food
www.TruthaboutPetFood.com

There were many pet food manufacturers that were extremely pleased that TruthaboutPetFood.com was providing this information to consumers.  Two manufacturers that are noted below, will be sending me their safety protocol soon.  But as you can see, not many bothered to provide petsumers with this very important information.

Here are the responses I received…

Addiction
Here is the information you requested about our company.

Addiction Pet Foods was founded by a Holistic Veterinarian and Clinical Nutritionist and passionate pet parents united in a mission to improve the health and lives of pets around the world.  We have had companion animals throughout our lives and have all felt the heartache and pain of our pets being ill at one time or the other.  Therefore, there is nothing more important to us than ensuring that the foods we make are nutritious, safe and healthful.

Although we very rarely receive complaints from our customers, we take each and every instance seriously.  In order to conduct a proper investigation we ask the pet parent to share as much information as they can such as where they purchased the food, the batch number, expiration date, the nature of their pet’s condition, age, breed, known allergies, medical history and any special circumstances surrounding their illness.  We see this step as vitally important since it allows us to quickly identify the relevant batches of food for investigation as well as the possible causes for the illness.  Upon receiving information from pet parents, we use a multi-disciplinary group made up of a veterinarian, food safety technologists and customer service personnel to investigate and take action in cases when a complaint is received.  With adequate information provided, we aim to determine the likely cause within 48 hours and provide an initial report to the pet parent within 72 hours with them writing to us.

All feedback about food is kept in a database and each batch is monitored for trends and patterns that could raise any concerns. This trend monitoring allows us to react expediently and more rapidly to potential problems than otherwise possible.

All our foods are part of a traceability program which allows us to identify the source of raw materials in every batch of food produced. We retain samples of each batch so that we have product on hand for testing as required.

In the event that the food has been determined to pose a safety concern, we will issue a recall within 24 hours to distributors, retailers and consumers. Recall information will also be available on our website www.addictionfoods.com.

We understand that there are many factors that may cause a pet to become ill, and we see it as our responsibility to work with the pet parent to swiftly and accurately isolate the cause, whether food borne or otherwise, so that the correct treatment can be given.

Addiction is fully committed to swiftly and comprehensively investigating and addressing any complaints. Our priority is first and foremost the well-being of the dogs and cats on our foods and we will do all that we can to provide pet parents with accurate information to ensure the health of their pets.

I hope we answered all of your questions.  Please let me know if there’s anything else I can do for you.

Halo
V.P. David Yaskula responded: “We’re proud we’ve NEVER been recalled, but as you know, accidents can happen to even the best pet food companies, and the procedures you are inquiring about are CRITICAL.

I’ll get back to you soon!

David”
Halo’s full response will be posted when received.

Happy Tails Pet Food
When a pet parent contacts you reporting a sick, dying, or dead pet they believe to be caused from your pet food/treat – what is your company protocol for handing the report?
Speak with our Veterinarian to determine possibility.  Identify if there have been any other complaints from this lot.  How long has the Lot been in distribution.

Determine the nature of the complaint, look at the size of the lot, how long has it been in distribution, and check retained samples.

Determine if the complaint is of the same nature as any other complaint in this lot.  Speak to our Veterinarian about severity if applicable.

The pet parent will be notified within 24 hours of the complaint submission.  They are informed of the results of investigation via email or verbal communication.

The pet parent will be notified within 24 hours of the complaint submission.  If an investigation is required, on average the time to respond to the pet parent will be under 72 hours.

We have an in-house Veterinarian that is involved with most complaints.

Every lot of pet food manufactured has a minimum of 3 samples retained for a minimum of 18 months.

If a recall was to be initiated, it would be announced within 24 hours.

Honest Kitchen
Hi Susan,
Answers are below! Thanks for the opportunity to participate in this.
Lucy

We document the nature of the problem, the recipe that was being fed and the lot code / production date. We then typically request a sample (about 1 cup) be submitted to us. This is sent to an independent lab for screening.

When the lab results come back, these are communicated to the customer. Typically, no parameters fall outside the normal expected limits for our products. If they ever do, then our retained lot samples are tested to determine if they too have any abnormal values.
All reports of palatability issues and illness are documented so that we can instantly determine if more than one complaint ever occurs in a single batch.

We have not yet had a case where two samples from the same batch had matching abnormal values. Occasionally there may be a couple of reports of palatability or a pet vomiting when eating the same batch but these typically get traced back to other causes, for example the animal consuming dirty beach water, or a box of food being left on a porch in blazing sun, or being subjected to extreme heat in transit. We also rely on our retained batches to compare lab findings of returned samples.

Do you provide the pet parent with a report of your investigation?
Yes.

It can take a few days for the sample to arrive at our office. It is then sent to a lab out of state for independent testing. This can take up to two weeks depending on the nature of the tests ordered. We receive the results by email and are able to communicate the findings to the customer right away.

Do you investigate even without a veterinarian statement?
Yes

Yes, we retain a sample from every single lot produced, for 12 months.

I would estimate that this would occur within two weeks. If multiple reports of problems were ever reported with a single batch, then ‘rush’ testing would be ordered so that we could expedite the dissemination of information quickly.

Any additional information you’d like to provide would be appreciated.
The Honest Kitchen’s foods are produced in a human food facility, under the same regulations for human food production. We produce our diets in accordance with already established HACCP guidelines and Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP’s) for human foods.

Our products undergo routine and random screening for a wide spectrum of contaminants (read more here: http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/products/learn/product-integrity/

Our facility also operates a ‘mock recall’ drill twice annually where a fictitious scenario is rehearsed at the plant, assuming that the routine test results for a single ingredient came back in an abnormal range. We are able to trace the exact lots of food that were produced with any given lot number of a particular ingredient, and then track the production dates, arrival at the warehouse, and the customers who placed orders within a specified time period to contact them as a first priority, in addition to normal public procedures for announcing a problem with a lot.

At The Honest Kitchen, we directly purchase each and every one of our raw ingredients and work with many suppliers whom we’ve known and worked with for many years. We do not leave purchasing or procurement to a third party, so that we have full control and transparency into what’s going into our foods. We buy nothing that is unfit for human consumption.

Mulligan Stew
Stew takes requests of this nature very seriously and employs a standard protocol if such an instance were to occur.  This situation is the exact reason our Company developed our signature Formulation Guarantee Program.  This program tests each manufactured batch (by an independent lab and upon completion of the production, before it goes out for sale) and then posts the results on the company web site for everyone’s review 24/7.

We would have the consumer send us a sample of the food batch, including the bag or can, (we send the label to pick up from  Fed Ex).  Then we would compare the product dating with the independent test results from the Formulation Guarantee test results, already posted on the company web site.  If there are any discrepancies, we begin investigations with the manufacturer.  

Are there subsequent procedures followed for additional complaints (same batch)?  If this were to occur, then we would compare the cases side by said to see what, if any, similar issues are present – with or without the Company’s product in question.

Do you provide the pet parent with a report of your investigation?  Yes

In about 2-3 weeks, if product testing was required.  Otherwise the Company reports any and all findings to the consumer as soon as possible.  

Do you investigate even without a veterinarian statement?  Yes

Do you retain a portion of each batch of pet food for testing?  If yes, for how long do you keep this food?  Yes, this is the standard for all manufactured batches of Mulligan Stew.

If the product was deemed to include anything related to a potential pet health concern, it would be recalled immediately.  

Nature’s Logic
Promise of response from Nature’s Logic Scott Freeman soon.  Will be posted here when received.

Nutrish
Every report from a concerned pet parent is reviewed and investigated. First, we check production records to confirm raw material and finished product specifications were met.  Then we review complaint records to determine if we’ve received a similar complaint.  Finally, we work with the pet parent to obtain a sample of the food for further analyses based on the specifics of the adverse reaction reported.  If a sample of the food is not available from the pet parent, we will pull samples we’ve retained from the same batch for analysis. These steps are completed within the first 24 hours.  The analysis of the sample is then performed both by internal Ainsworth laboratory technicians as well as by third party laboratory facilities.

We follow the same procedure outlined above for any complaint.

Any additional samples are collected and form part of the data set used to assess product quality and safety.  Knowledge gained from these data determines next steps.

If the pet parent requests a formal report of results, we provide it.

Within 15 days – this is driven by time required to perform thorough internal and external testing and analysis.

Yes.  We investigate all pet parent concerns regardless of whether or not a veterinarian statement is provided.  We consider all information provided.

Yes, for one month beyond the expiration date printed on the package.

The safety of our pets is our #1 priority.  It’s not only the right thing to do for our pets, but it is the right thing to do for our business.  Although we have not been involved in any recalls to-date, our policy is to act quickly and adhere to the federal requirement that any identified food safety risk needs to be reported within 24 hours of determination.

For additional information on our Triple Check Food Safety System, feel free to visit our website (http://www.ainsworthpets.com/safety).

Orijen
When a complaint is initiated by a consumer, we let the consumer know that we have received their email (or phone call) and will be opening a file or checking into the matter for them. We can check with Quality Assurance on lot numbers if they are provided, again lab results will be available for each lot number of our products. We do extensive testing on all kibble before we release it to our shipping warehouse. All of our finished kibble is held before shipping in order to have testing done for Salmonella and Enterobacteriaceae (which includes E.coli) etc., this is part of our quality control process. No product is shipped until all of our tests come back clear.

From there, we can arrange for testing on a sample of the consumers kibble, we try to tailor our response to the individual needs and concerns of each person who contacts us.

Our Quality Assurance department logs and tracks all complaints, so we know if more than one has come in on a particular lot number.

PeopleFud
PeopleFüd takes the health and wellbeing of each and every dog eating our food very seriously. Our insistence on true human food-grade ingredients and human-grade production facilities adds a self-imposed higher standard than the rest of our industry. Due to both the quality of the ingredients and strictness of our manufacturing protocol we have never had a recall. Below is our companies plan in the unlikely event that an issue was discovered.

Reports of a dying or dead animal would trigger testing by our industrial third-party independent lab.

We respond within 24 hours to every question we receive pertaining to the health of a pet and our food via email or phone.  Our initial inquiry would involve understanding prior and current pet diet and the duration and symptoms exhibited to ascertain if we dealing with an actual health issue or a consumer education issue as they transfer their pet to a whole food diet.

We believe our process and ingredients are clearly superior to any other company on the market today.  As the company owners we actually eat from each batch made prior to release to the public. If there is an initial complaint determined to be a real health risk, we would pull several product items randomly from that batch to thaw and inspect. Depending on the specifics of the complaint and what is found from inspecting the product our response would then range from continued monitoring to full third-party lab inspection and recall of product from retail shelves.

Two or more credible calls on a single batch would immediately move us to do a full battery of third-party lab tests on the product. Scale and scope of testing would depend on details of the complaint but could include the following and/or additional tests:

Food Pathogen Analysis via PCR Analysis
E. coli O157:h7
Salmonella
Listeria Monocytogenes

Based on the results of those tests we would be ready if needed to pull all products from our retail store shelves and contact our email list of consumers and store owners as well as local media.

We would certainly share all relevant details from our findings as soon as they are available.

Individuals with concerns would receive a response from our company alerting them to our investigative plans with 24 hours. We would then need two days for any initial testing by our company.  If outside lab reports are needed testing can take several days to a week.

Do you investigate even without a veterinarian statement? Yes.

Currently we are a small enough company that this has not been necessary, since the geographic footprint for our product is very small and we know exactly where product from each batch is. If we did not have any of that particular product in our warehouse, we could very easily obtain some from our retail stores.

A recall could start within an hour of receiving a report showing an issue with the batch. That recall would be announced the same day via mail list, press release and retail store contact. Depending on the particulars of the scenario including if an outside lab test is required, time from investigation to recall could be as short as 48 hours, or as long as one week.

As a small boutique producer of food for dogs PeopleFüd is in a unique position to maintain very tight control over both our manufacturing and distribution networks. By virtue of only using human grade ingredients that are domestically produced and also using production standards that meet or exceed those for the production of food for humans, we believe we are taking precautions above and beyond any that are currently found in the pet food industry.

Petcurean
In response to your enquiry, I’ve taken the time to outline the quality and safety measures that Petcurean has in place:

Our products are manufactured at plants which are EU, FDA and CFIA certified, meaning they must uphold a very high standard of sanitation, cleanliness and manufacturing practices. Our products are made using our recipes and standards, with our specified high quality ingredients. Other plant safeguards include:

We demand that food ingredients used in our recipes be fit for human consumption, and free of contaminants.

Ingredients are tested prior to receiving for quality assurances including but not limited to; nutritional integrity, aflatoxins, microtoxins, and moisture levels.

During production, NIR (Near Infra Red) technology is used to measure properties like fat, protein and moisture content of the food.

Between production runs of different products, we demand a complete cleaning and sanitation to ensure the integrity of our foods. As well, raw ingredient bins are dedicated to just one particular ingredient, and raw material bins are cleaned between batches. Finished products are kept in a separate location from raw ingredients. Employees in different areas of production utilize strict protocols to ensure no cross contamination.

Petcurean also commissions independent auditing by NSF- Cook & Thurber, and the American Institute of Baking, both organizations used for human food audits.

In the event of a complaint, batch numbers are logged, and details of the complaint registered. The response procedure is dictated by the information contained in the complaint but may include additional dialogue with the consumer to determine some of the specifics about the incident (transition time for switching, previous food fed, other medical conditions present etc.). We do not require a veterinarian report to do an investigation, however communication may occur between Petcurean and a certified veterinarian. If required, our tracking methods allows us to flag the batch in question for further testing. The investigating and reporting timelines vary, and reports are made available to the consumer involved upon request. We treat these matters very seriously and have been recognized for our prompt and thorough approach to consumer concerns.

Petcurean retains, in our warehouse facility, final tested food samples of all lots produced. All lot numbers can be tracked immediately using our complete and thorough tracking protocol. Retained samples are stored for a period of 18 months (check this). In the event of a recall, we are able to use our tracking protocol to determine where the batch involved has been shipped and will take action to immediately notify distributors who would then notify stores to pull the product involved from the shelf.

Petropics
Thank you for your inquiry. When we receive a message from a consumer or veterinarian, we request the production codes on the bottom of the can, launch immediate third party testing and release the results of these tests with our consumer or veterinarian of inquiry. We have had a handful of inquiries and each time were able to fully satisfy the question of food safety. The entire investigation process usually takes 5-7 business days. We always stand on the side of safety and treat every inquiry very seriously until we are able to completely satisfy any possible concerns.

Red Moon
Hello Susan, thank you for contacting RedMoon. We would be happy to answer your questions.
We have not had anyone contact us with a concern to their pets health due to our food however our protocol is to treat each and every customer on an individual basis as we are a custom food and do not follow a policy of a one size fits all mass production.

If we have any complaints, we are most often are able to resolve any concerns by providing specific information however if not, we will either offer an exchange or our 110% money back guarantee. We will do whatever we can to resolve the issue or concern.

As for response times, we handle every complaint same day – usually we will respond within 20 minutes if we are able to.

Each of our batches does have a sample sent out to an independent lab for analysis. Due to this step, it is highly unlikely we  would ever have a problem with our food as we analyze it prior to ever sending it out to a customer. We also keep a sample of each batch ourselves. Should there ever be an issue, a huge advantage RedMoon has over other foods is that we are able to contact every person who bought that specific product immediately since we have their e-mail, address and phone number.

I hope I have been able to answer all of your questions however if not, please do not hesitate to contact me back.

Weruva
Thankfully, we have not had the level of issues you have mentioned. We do get inquiries about vomiting, diarrhea etc. We make sure we get the production code from the customer which is on the bottom of the can. We inquire about the details of the feeding and other factors that may be relevant. We keep the production code on file in the event we receive further inquiries on the batch.

We operate under international human food processing standards and have multiple ways to go back and review multiple facets of production runs if and when necessary. We only use a small handful of ingredients. For instance, the only cut of chicken we use is boneless, skinless white breast meat, and it comes from limited suppliers. We therefore can trace this back to the supply level, and with fish items, we can trace back to the boat it was caught on. We can track workers that were on the production line etc.

We haven’t got the point of a formal investigation. We deal with Thailand, so official factory documents are often translated into the bodies of emails. In the limited times we have inquired about production runs, we more or less provide the information we receive from the plant to customers.

We try to answer customers as soon as possible. Customer service is extremely important, and I make an effort to answer just about every email personally. Regarding issues that require an inquiry to the plant, our response back to a customer comes as soon as we receive a response back from our manufacturing partner. Our manufacturing partner is very good at jumping right on potential issues, but the time for response depends upon what the inquiry is.

Yes. I will have to get back to you on how long these are retained

As investigation times can vary greatly depending upon what the issue may be, I do not want to estimate a time. What I can say is that we will act promptly and appropriately to investigate any potential issues. As soon as we can confirm that our food is causing or can potentially be causing issues, we will likewise act appropriately and promptly.

If you think there is anything I left out or if you need clarification, please let me know!

When additional responses are received, they will be added above.

The way a pet food manufacturer handles an adverse event report from a petsumer – is – in my opinion – equally important to quality of ingredients and/or good manufacturing practices.  It is information that should be posted on every pet food manufacturers website and information they should be more than willing to share.

Many thanks to the pet food companies that responded.  Your responses show you understand that pet parents want to learn as much as they can about the company they trust to purchase pet food from.

 

Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author, Buyer Beware
Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
PetsumerReport.com

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1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Regina Bertoldo

    December 2, 2022 at 10:56 am

    Hello! I am curious if you have recommendations on best practices for traceability. Are the ones in the FSMA enough? Have you seen anything from any company that does it right? If so, which one? Traceability is dependent on so many layers and can fail at so different levels that seeing something that works would be fantastic for a pet owner, even one that cooks homemade food for their dog. Thanks!

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