Take A Moment to Remember The Pets

Nineteen years ago today was the first public announcement of what became the deadliest pet food recall in history.

Publicly it began with this recall notice:

This one notice led to “more than 5300 pet food products“ being recalled.

“About 53,373,600 cans or pouches of dog and cat food across the USA and Canada were involved in this recall.”

On March 16, 2007 it began:
(Recall date – Manufacturer – Style of pet food – Cause)

3/16/07 – Menu Foods – can – melamine.
3/16/07 – Hill’s Pet Nutrition – can – melamine.
3/16/07 – P&G Pet Care – can/pouch – melamine.
3/16/07 – Purina Petcare – pouch – melamine.
3/17/07 – Hill’s Pet Nutrition – can – melamine.

And then more recalls, one after another after another…

3/24/07 – Menu Foods – can – melamine.
3/30/07 – Hill’s Pet Nutrition – dry – melamine.
3/30/07 – Purina Petcare – can – melamine.
3/31/07 – DelMonte Pet Products – treats – melamine.
4/03/07 – ChemNutra (ingredient supplier) – ingredient – melamine.
4/05/07 – Menu Foods – can – melamine.
4/05/07 – Sunshine Mills – treats – melamine.
4/06/07 – DelMonte Pet Products – treats – melamine.
4/10/07 – Menu Foods – can/pouch – melamine.
4/17/07 – Natural Balance – dry/treats – melamine.
4/17/07 – Menu Foods – can – melamine.
4/18/07 – Wilbur Ellis (ingredient supplier) – ingredient – melamine.
4/19/07 – Blue Buffalo – dry – melamine.
4/19/07 – Royal Canin – dry – melamine.
4/20/07 – SmartPak – dry – melamine.
4/25/07 – Wilbur Ellis (ingredient supplier) – ingredient – melamine.
4/26/07 – Diamond Pet Food – can – melamine.
4/26/07 – American Nutrition – can/treats – melamine.
4/26/07 – Chenango Valley Pet Foods – dry – melamine.
4/26/07 – Blue Buffalo – can/treats – melamine.
4/27/07 – Blue Buffalo – can – melamine.
4/27/07 – Sierra Pet Products – can – melamine.
4/27/07 – Natural Balance – can – melamine.
5/02/07 – Menu Foods (added products) – can – melamine.
5/03/07 – SmartPak Canine – dry – melamine.
5/04/07 – Cereal ByProducts Company (supplier) – ingredient – melamine.
5/11/07 – Royal Canin – dry – melamine.
5/23/07 – Diamond Pet Foods – dry – melamine.

Wikipedia reports the FDA “received reports of approximately 8500 animal deaths” at the time, with thousands more pets surviving but suffering from permanent kidney damage due to the poisoned pet food.

The importer of the tainted vegetable protein ingredients – ChemNutra – pled guilty to importing the melamine contaminated ingredients. ChemNutra and the company owners were charged with 13 misdemeanor counts of introduction of adulterated food into interstate commerce, 13 misdemeanor counts of introduction of misbranded food into interstate commerce and one felony count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

They were given probation and fined $35,000.00.

A class action lawsuit was filed against Menu Foods, settling for $24 million, with only $12.4 million going to pet owners.

In 2007, just after the recalls, Congress developed the “Ensuring the Safety of Pet Food” laws – added to the Food and Drug Administration Amendments Act. The laws were developed to prevent another deadly disaster.

Unfortunately, year after year the FDA ignored these pet food safety requirements – NEVER completing what Congress required. In 2018, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky introduced an addendum to an unrelated bill that permanently eliminated the pet food safety laws Congress promised us.

Take a moment today to remember the pets that died in 2007, and all the pets that have died since due to a failed pet food regulatory system.

Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Pet Food

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