On June 18, 2025, Answers Pet Food was issued a Warning Letter from FDA.
The Warning Letter was issued after an inspection (follow up to Answers recall in September 2024).
Quotes from the Warning Letter:
“You did not implement sanitation controls to provide assurances that your facility is maintained in a sanitary condition adequate to significantly minimize or prevent the hazard of environmental pathogens, as required by 21 CFR 507.34(a)(1) and (c)(2).”
“Inspectional findings that indicate your sanitation preventive control is inadequate include:
“i. FDA Investigators collected environmental samples on July 23, 2024, under sample 1263703, that revealed the presence of L. monocytogenes on seven surfaces in your facility, including Zone (b)(4) food-contact surfaces.
• Subsample 15, Zone (b)(4), collected on the (b)(4) above the (b)(4) grinder hopper.
• Subsample 20, Zone (b)(4), collected on the (b)(4) of the mixer.
• Subsample 30, Zone (b)(4), collected on the (b)(4) next to the (b)(4).
• Subsample 34, Zone (b)(4), collected on the (b)(4) next to the (b)(4) adjacent to the (b)(4) table.
• Subsample 36, Zone (b)(4), collected on an apparent (b)(4) for the (b)(4) directly above the (b)(4) conveyer from the (b)(4) grinder to the (b)(4) grinder.
• Subsample 41, Zone (b)(4), collected on a (b)(4) of a (b)(4) in the food manufacturing area.
• Subsample 44, Zone (b)(4), collected on the (b)(4) leading to the (b)(4).”
“In your response dated October 18, 2024, you said you discussed FDA’s observations with your staff, you are increasing cleaning and sanitizing prior to production, and you are implementing additional swabbing and environmental testing. However, we are unable to assess these changes because you did not provide supporting evidence that the new procedures provided in the exhibits to your response have been consistently and adequately implemented. We will verify and evaluate your corrections during the next inspection.”
“Your procedure ‘Program for Supply Chain Control,’ dated July 24, 2024, indicates that when applicable you will collect letters of guarantee (LOGs) and/or certificates of analysis (COAs) from your suppliers. You did not determine and conduct appropriate supplier verification activities and satisfy all documentation requirements, as required by 21 CFR 507.115(a)(2).”
“…you were unable to provide COAs for turkey and pork ingredients used to manufacture your raw pet food between July 22 and July 24, 2024.”
To read the full FDA Warning Letter, Click Here.
Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
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Laurie Coger
July 10, 2025 at 4:59 pm
Clearly, Answers is not committed to maintaining a clean production facility. Obviously not a product I would feed my dogs, or recommend for my clients’ dogs. Answers is NOT the answer.
Sue
July 11, 2025 at 8:41 am
It’s all about quantity NOT quality with pet feed places, it truly is disgusting! We don’t get this product up here in Victoria BC or at least I have never seen Answers, but if I do I will not be buying that and that you can be sure! Thank you Susan for all you do to help us out here in consumer land.
T Allen
July 11, 2025 at 9:16 am
SEVEN surfaces? This is serious. This is a hazard to employees as well as pet owners and their pets. And on top of that they didn’t get COAs. The plant should have been shut down until retested but the FDA won’t do that because the company would lose money. I hope the FDA demanded all product be held for testing. Not counting on it. Don’t by Answers products!
Sarah
July 11, 2025 at 2:00 pm
Omg the following email was sent to retailers over this:
“”
ANSWERS PET FOOD FIGHTS BACK FOR THE RAW PET FOOD COMMUNITY
As has happened to so many raw pet food companies, the FDA/CVM, who do not hide their bias against raw pet food, once again, is trying to slap our hands and draw attention to public hysteria.
There is no question that bacterial food borne illness occurs in the world. With that said, every raw pet food company is not negligent, nor does every raw producer potentially pose a threat to or cause harm to the public and/or their pets. On June 18, 2025, the FDA issued a WARNING LETTER to our company suggesting that we “may have produced a product that was injurious to health”. In this case, that language is part of a boiler plate paragraph issued in Warning Letters.
In this case, the FDA’s sampling and testing of product occurred almost one year prior to the letter. Now, a year later, out of nowhere we received a WARNING LETTER telling us that our products “may have been injurious to health.” Although the language in the “boiler plate” letter is similar to others issued by the FDA, the same wording and its effects are both misleading and damaging to us and all raw pet food companies. For the past 16 years, our company has diligently responded to every allegation and complied with every investigation. Without ever finding that our products have caused harm to a human or pet, we continue to be harassed by the government. We are doing our best to fight inuendo and shadows, it seems it is far easier for social media and certain industry voices to join the rumor mill, than to adequately investigate the truth… about pet food. Please make no mistake about it, there can be no dispute by rumor mill or government: ANSWERS PET FOOD HAS NEVER BEEN FOUND BY ANY CREDIBLE SOURCE TO HAVE CAUSED HARM TO ANY HUMAN BEING OR ANY PET.
Answers has and always will maintain the highest standards of cleanliness and nutrition to manufacture and promote only the healthiest products. Our products are manufactured at our own plant with supervision of professional food safety personnel under the most sanitary conditions possible, adhering to Good Manufacturing Practices and principles since we were founded. Our plant is professionally cleaned, swabbed, and tested. Our products are sourced from the highest quality U.S.D.A. inspected providers supplying Letters of Guarantee.
We care about your pets and know how important our products are to keeping them healthy. We have fed countless pets through the years and have so many testimonials about the benefits of feeding Answers, too numerous to list. As always, our number one concern is the health of your pets. You can count on us for the very best and safest raw pet food for your furry loved one!
Thank you for your continued support of us and raw pet food.
Your advocates at Answers Pet Food
“”
Objectively speaking, the tone of this message sounds very defensive
Britt
July 11, 2025 at 7:16 pm
What happened to Answers? They used be at the top of the game for quality products. Was there some kind of upper management shakeup that led to declining safety standards?
Britt
July 11, 2025 at 7:18 pm
Or is this just FDA BS?
Susan Porter
July 11, 2025 at 9:26 pm
Is it the case that no Listeria monocytogenes is allowed on surfaces at a meat packing plant? I’m just wondering if raw dog food companies are held to a higher standard than human meat facilities. Is some kibble company trying to destroy a competitor in collaboration with someone at the FDA, allegedly or is the bacteria count actually significant and dangerous and indicative that Answers is actually a dirty facility? Bacteria is everywhere and will be found on surfaces at unless the surface has just been sanitized at the end of the day. I think if a dog owner is afraid of a bit of Listeria then they probably should not feed raw but in my opinion it all depends on the amount. As we found out later with covid, the test can be made so sensitive that it is detected at sub-infective levels and is not meaningful. Just sayin’