Insider information shared with TruthaboutPetFood.com tells us something significant; answers to our questions are not always honest. Did someone say “You can’t handle the truth!”
For setting the stage…the famous line by Jack Nicholson from the movie A Few Good Men…
An email received by TruthaboutPetFood.com – pet food name removed…
“I just want to let you know, in confidence, that (Pet Food Company) did everything they could to get you off their back when you inquired about their products. I know because I was one of the ones responsible for helping to “formulate” an answer.”
And this is not the first time I’ve heard stories like this. Big Pet Food is desperately holding on to antiquated methods of don’t tell – they can’t handle the truth.
For decades, pet food manufacturers have gotten away with anything and everything. They didn’t have to tell the petsumer what was in their food, they never had to admit the grade or quality of ingredients, and country of origin was never shared. But today, things are different. Educated petsumers ask the tough questions, and most of pet food can’t wrap their little minds around that.
I’m sorry I can’t tell you the name of this particular manufacturer – in protection of this employee the name cannot be stated. But in reality, the name of this manufacturer doesn’t matter. Because most of them do the same thing to all of us. They “formulate” their responses to our questions.
Are your meat and vegetable ingredients USDA inspected and approved?
‘All our meats are sourced from USDA inspected facilities.’
Formulated response – did not answer the question. Meats ingredients can be rejected ‘from a USDA inspected facility’.
What is the country of origin of all ingredients?
‘Most ingredients are sourced locally.’ or ‘Most ingredients are sourced in the US, lamb from New Zealand, all ingredients are thoroughly tested.’
Formulated response – did not answer the question. It is typical to never mention vitamins and minerals – many of which are sourced from China.
It boils down to this…because of FDA Compliance Policies that allow any waste to become pet food, because of AAFCO vague and misleading pet food ingredient definitions, the only way to know for certain what your pet food is actually made from is The Pledge or a signed promise from the CEO of the pet food company stating the country of origin of each ingredient, each additive within an ingredient (such as ‘natural flavoring’), and the signed promise of the CEO that each ingredient has been USDA inspected and approved.
Please don’t accept anything less for your pet. If they won’t sign the Pledge, then ask them to give you a written statement signed by the President or CEO of the company stating that all meat and vegetable ingredients are USDA inspected and approved, and stating country of origin of all ingredients. Again, accept nothing less.
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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joan
November 14, 2012 at 9:35 pm
Hellooooooo Pet Food Companies. We are not going away. There are more of us everyday. What part of “we love our pets like children” don’t you understand?
Annie
November 15, 2012 at 3:31 am
Joan;
Unfortunately, the only babies some of these people have are the ones they keep in their wallets.
joan
November 15, 2012 at 11:49 am
Annie,
I’m afraid you are right. Some (or most?) Pet Food Companies won’t change until it hurts them in the wallet.
darlene fox
November 15, 2012 at 6:13 am
just curious… we know that most pet food companies are not out in the open with us. they tend to be a bit dishonest. how can we know that just because they have signed the pledge means that they are being honest iin what they are pledging?
Susan Thixton
November 15, 2012 at 8:46 am
Truth is – there is no way to be 100% certain, even with the Pledge, that they are being honest with us. However – the Pledge holds their President or CEO accountable; not just a customer service rep. It’s still not fool-proof (or lie-proof), but it’s a step forward.
Peter
November 17, 2012 at 7:17 am
Not only is the approach of these businesses to consumer inquiries fundamentally dishonest (we now see “recalls” disseminated as “product pulls”/silent recalls through company Facebook pages and low-impact Friday night press releases!), the employees themselves assigned to field questions are generally under-trained and uninformed. I would never devote time to contacting the consumer affairs division of any pet food business, because those departments are generally incapable of providing accurate information.