The FDA and each US State pet food regulatory authority allows condemned poultry and livestock animals, as well as non-slaughtered animals (that died prior to slaughter) to be processed into pet food with no warning or disclosure to pet owners. In April of 2019, the FDA CVM stated: “we do not believe that the use of diseased animals or animals that died otherwise than by slaughter to make animal food poses a safety concern and we intend to continue to exercise enforcement discretion.”
Besides not requiring disclosure of pet food’s use of condemned or non-slaughtered decomposing animal material on pet food labels, FDA does not disclose how much of this material is used in pet food. But the USDA gives us clues – four times a year.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal agency responsible for the safety of meat in the US. USDA inspectors are on-site at every slaughter facility to assure the meat produced abides by federal food safety laws. The USDA provides the public – every quarter – with details to the number of animals that passed inspection, and the number of animals that failed inspection (were condemned).
The most recent data released by USDA – for the time frame October 2023 through December 2023:
The USDA disclosed that during this three month time frame 53,605 livestock animals (cattle, hogs) were condemned, and 1,474,140 turkey and chicken carcasses were condemned.
If we average the weight of the livestock animals at a conservative 300 pounds each – 300 lbs X 53,605 condemned animals = 16,081,500 lbs of condemned animal material that pet food regulatory authorities allow to be disposed of into pet food.
If we average the weight of the poultry animals at a conservative 8 pounds each – 8 lbs X 1,474,140 condemned animals = 11,793,120 lbs of condemned animal material that pet food regulatory authorities allow to be disposed of into pet food.
This totals to an estimated 27 million pounds of condemned slaughtered animals…in just three months time. (This total does not include the estimated millions of pounds of animals that died on farms – ‘died otherwise than by slaughter’ – also allowed into pet food without disclosure.)
Fact: more than 27 million pounds of condemned animal material has to be disposed of every three months. And even though these 27 million pounds has been classified as unfit for consumption by one regulatory authority (USDA), it is classified as ‘suitable for use in animal food’ by another regulatory authority (FDA)…without disclosure to pet owners.
Ask your pet food manufacturer if meats are sourced from USDA inspected and passed animals. Please know that some manufacturers will state ‘Our meats are sourced from USDA inspected facilities’. Condemned animal material is ‘sourced from USDA inspected facilities’. Make sure the manufacturer directly answers your question (or find another pet food that will fully respond to your questions).
Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,
Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
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Lorraine
March 25, 2024 at 2:16 pm
I stopped feeding commercial dog food many years ago and I would never go back to buying it. I would get a hunting license and get my own meat rather than allow any dog of mine to eat the crap they put in dog food. You see stuff like this and then you have to wonder why anyone would not believe that dog food is making dogs sick.
Karin Yates
March 26, 2024 at 3:38 am
Dogs can easily be vegetarian.
But do people buying crap food like meow mix even read labels? Do these people even know or care what “by-products” are? How about “animal fat”, that is from rendering plants?
Lorraine
March 26, 2024 at 11:33 am
Dogs are not vegetarians, they are meat eaters by nature. Their digestive system, their teeth structure are meant to eat meat, not plant material. I strongly believe that forcing a dog to be a vegetarian, unless it’s purely for medical reasons, is animal abuse.
Kelley
March 25, 2024 at 2:38 pm
It would be interesting to know exactly the criteria for a meat to be condemned.
T Allen
March 27, 2024 at 11:05 am
Before slaughter- https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/fsis-directives/6100.1
After slaughter- https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/fsis-directives/6100.2
Before slaughter a generally healthy looking animal. During slaughter, visually obvious signs of disease / parasitic infection most commonly found in the eyes, gums andliver.
Hiker VA
March 25, 2024 at 5:30 pm
I stopped feeding my cat “cat food” years ago. I make her food from chicken, fish and veges.
Valerie Delorme
March 27, 2024 at 10:43 pm
how ?? I cant get my cat to eat stuff Ive made for him.. maybe cause he is 8 yrs old and use to his kibble ?? I really want him to switch over as I feed my dog mainly all raw diet … cats are so finicky
Lhasapso
March 26, 2024 at 5:35 am
This is sickening. What makes it even worse for me, is not being able to convince my friends with pets,that this is happening. They just keep feeding the putrid kibble. No way am I feeding that slop to my baby.
Thanks so much for your continued information on what a crooked bunch of hooligans work in our government and the money hungry companies producing pet FEED.
T Allen
March 27, 2024 at 11:14 am
Thanks for the confirmation of numbers/pounds Susan. The very sad part is the waste of all that protein nutrition for people who are starving world wide. Accidents happen to livestock but those numbers represent a tremendous loss for the farmers when those animals are rejected at slaughter.
Much of that protein would be suitable for pet food if it was handled correctly all the way through the food chain. The fact that it is not separated into a pet edible product and inedible by the pet food companies is the real issue. I’ve seen slaughter houses do it right and separate it. It’s the pet food industry that is the problem.
Kristine Ashton-Magnuson
March 27, 2024 at 2:25 pm
FYI: I contacted Dave’s Pet Food about their pet food ingredients and received an encouraging response. They said:
From: office davespetfood.com
Subject: RE: Pet Food Ingredient Question
Date: March 27, 2024 at 10:42:36 AM EDT
Thanks for reaching out, and thanks for your interest in Dave’s Pet Food.
Our co-packers have a very stringent quality control system in place that includes raw materials. New raw materials and vendors must go through thorough qualification processes that include plant audits etc.
Please see below:
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS:
¨ The material shall be free of canine or feline origin materials.
¨ Material shall be free of pesticide, antibiotic and hormone residues.
¨ The material shall be free of any dead, dying, disabled (3-D) or diseased (4-D) animals.
¨ The material shall be free of any poisonous or deleterious substances, and shall be in full compliance with US 21 CFR Part 109 and 509.
¨ The material shall be wholesome and safe for consumption by dogs and cats.
¨ Material shall not be manufactured at a facility where medicated feed is produced and shall not be stored in a facility that stores medicated feed
without actively enforced standard operation procedures for segregation.
¨ Supplier shall adhere to all local/state/federal laws.
¨ The Bill of Lading shall list each lot number that comprises the shipment.
¨ The Pet Food Co-Packer’s Ingredient Code shall be included on the Bill of Lading and be legibly printed on each individual bag, box, or unit.
¨ A Certificate of Analysis (CoA) is desired with every shipment covering all requirements indicated above.
¨ The name and address of the supplier must accompany each load. In the case of a material that is supplied by a third party the original supplier
must be identified in the documentation.
¨ A Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) if applicable shall be submitted to our Pet Food Co-Packer annually.
DONNA QUALLS
April 14, 2024 at 9:02 am
I emailed Wellness and asked if their dog kibble is USDA approved (not just FDA). I havent yet received a response. I noticed Dave’s, in the preceding email, sent a standard response, but I did not see USDA mentioned in there at all. I’m glad Dogs Naturally brought this to our attention, because I have not seen this mentioned in any other news.