The FDA has recently issued a warning letter to Hardy Animal Nutrition for using illegal industrial grade, pesticide contaminated and sludge oil fats – specifically stated not to feed to animals – into its dairy feeds. This company openly admitted to use of illegal ingredients.
At the August AAFCO meeting, Dr. Cathy Alinovi addressed the Ingredient Definitions Committee to the concerns of grocery waste including the plastic packaging included in livestock feed. She shared that her child could be drinking the milk from a cow that ate plastic – and chemicals from that plastic are in the milk. The crowd – mostly industry – booed her. It was one of the most shocking things I’ve ever seen take place at an AAFCO meeting.
Industry can boo a veterinarian speaking to the risks of animal feed…I wonder if industry booed this…
On February 4, 2016 the FDA sent Hardy Animal Nutrition a warning letter stating inspection found “significant violations of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act”. The warning letter states “On August 17, 2015, you received a shipment of Brown Grease from (redacted). The Bill of Lading describes the product as Industrial Grade and contains warning statement DO NOT FEED TO ANIMALS. You stated in a signed affidavit this product was off-loaded into your facility and you processed this into Energy Booster 100, a dried dairy feed ingredient, lot #082015-34 that you subsequently sold as animal feed…” Regardless to the Do Not Feed to Animals warning, Hardy Animal Nutrition used the ingredient anyway.
Hardy Animal Nutrition was also cited for adding ‘Vegetable Fatty Acid with Pesticides’ into dairy feed. Again, the invoice for this material specifically stated not intended or suitable for human or animal consumption. Again, the company ignored the ‘not suitable for animal consumption warning.
And FDA stated that Hardy Animal Nutrition used “Sludge Oil” labeled as ‘non-edible’ in animal feed. And again, the company ignored the non-edible warning.
It does not appear that Hardy Animal Nutrition manufactures any type of pet food.
This company admitted in signed affidavits they used illegal ingredients. They got a warning from FDA. Just a warning. What about all of the children and adults consuming products from cows that ate that feed? Will anyone warn them?
This is the perfect example that the animal feed/pet food industry does not always play by the rules. This company got caught, but how many others don’t get caught? The system of regulating animal food is very flawed. It is based on industry following law – clearly they don’t always do that. Animal feed/pet food is the very last concern of regulatory authorities – it should be of high priority. We (humans and pets who depend on meat products) – are what those animals eat. We deserve better than this.
Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,
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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Nina Wolf
February 24, 2016 at 4:24 pm
And that feed goes into the animals used for…yes..food. So the residue is still in the tissues, and we all consume it.
Why are more people not enraged by this?
Mollie Morrissette
February 24, 2016 at 4:38 pm
Yes, I thought about Cathy when I read the warning letter. All that sh*t going straight into dairy products.
Even though this incident was related to dairy feed (poor cows), they have some big name clients in the feed industry – some of whom provide ingredients to other animal feed ingredients suppliers (Cargill, P&G, Purina, ADM, Land O’ Lakes, etc.) who in turn may sell it to pet food manufacturers.
See their client roster here: http://www.magnusig.com/our-partners/
It is truly revolting and disgraceful way of treating the poor animals, who are given no choice but to eat and drink that toxic swill.
Heather
February 24, 2016 at 5:00 pm
I’ve been vegan most my life (for ethical reasons) so news like this is further validation for my decision not to consume animals or their ‘byproducts.’ It’s a relief for sure knowing I’m not ingesting toxic plastics or oil sludge via dairy cows for example. (Or mad cow, pink slime, etc, etc, the list goes on.)
However when it comes to my carnivorous animals, they do eat other animals. Human grade raw ingredients have been the safety-net for me, but it appears there are holes in that safety-net because authorities are “not playing by the rules.” Outraging for sure.
My hearts breaks just as much if not more so for the factory farmed animals who are forced to consume toxic garbage – because the hands that feed them KNOW it’s toxic garbage and really only care about their bottom line. Hence the factory farm animals have no chance for a better way to eat (unlike consumers’ pets, because the hands that feed them have emotional care, concern, and choice).
If the FDA lets them off with only a warning, they should AT LEAST insist Hardy Animal *cough* Nutrition provide and release – to the public – confirmation of the downstream trail of all their feeds. Name the names of the factory farms and related corporations who use and have used their feeds cited in the warning. ALL the way down the line, from HAN facility to the end-consumers’ plates. Accountability and publicity.
If not for Susan’s article, how would any of us know this?! If the public at large knew about this, there’d be more outrage for sure.
Lori
February 24, 2016 at 5:24 pm
Greedy people who care nothing for animals or their children. We need to bring these people down for the planet to survive and be a fit place for our children and grandchildren. Our government is as corrupt as any in the world and maybe even the worst as far as greediness among its people
Gitta
February 24, 2016 at 5:29 pm
Why change anything? A warning tap on the wrist vs profits. What’s to think about?
What I do expect from bureaucrats paid by tax dollars is a criminal investigation and permanent closure of a criminal enterprise. Icing on the cake: civil law suits by those who bought this fraudulent product.
But, this is crony capitalism at work and a tap on the wrist it is.
But let’s go ahead and do some more investigation into the dangers of raw pet food. 🙁
Carole
February 24, 2016 at 6:42 pm
Want to do something? Let it be KNOWN. Email your gov. reps and state the FDA should do more then just warn and that this type of practice is what caused mad cow to spread. They ate things not intended for grazing animals, IE in mad cow, other animals. Email your different lists and warn about this company and its practices.
Get the word out and in the public eye.
I will start myself right now.
Dianne
February 24, 2016 at 11:03 pm
I wonder if any of their partners were made aware of this. I wonder how the FDA even became aware of this. Perhaps going to the partners’ facebook pages and asking if they were aware of this, what products they got from Hardy, where they might have ended up and if they were prepared to recall all possibly affected products. It is Hardy’s direct customers who will have the greatest impact.
Bonnie
February 25, 2016 at 9:13 am
What companies buy their feed from this company……..that is the question….where is this stuff in the food chain……
Charles
March 1, 2016 at 7:48 am
Hardy Animal Nutrition makes dairy and hog feed NOT companion animal feed. The Purina that buys from them is Purina Mills a division of Land-O-Lakes. Nestle’s Purina that makes dog and cat food does not buy from Hardy. The other major buyer from Hardy is Cargill. Some purchases have been made by Milk Specialties Group. Pets do not eat anything that comes from Hardy. Humans do instead.
Heather
March 1, 2016 at 11:37 am
@Charles
Do you happen to know if HAN also supplies to horse feed? Purina Mills does horse feed…and a LOT of people use it to feed their horses. This is a very important issue to me. Thanks!
charles
March 1, 2016 at 12:17 pm
Hardy only supplies raw materials for Purina Propel Plus Nuggets for dairy cows.
Hardy’s brand for Purina Mills as noted in the letter as Dairy Feed 165. Hardy also supplies by-pass fat for dairy cows to Cargill and Milk Specialties Group. The EB-100 noted in the FDA letter is a Milk Specialties brand. HLDL noted in the FDA letter goes to Cargill for poultry feed.
Heather
March 1, 2016 at 2:52 pm
Charles, thank you for this detailed info!
Bonnie
March 2, 2016 at 9:30 am
Do I understand you correct Charles…that Hardy’s is supplying the human food chain system…so it’s not pet food. Whew….I thought we were killing our pets….instead we are killing ourselves !!! LOL !
charles
March 3, 2016 at 3:31 pm
This stuff is being fed to chickens and dairy cows and the USDA who did the inspection for the FDA has not shut them down and demanded a recall. Plus, no one is suing the buyers for continuing to use this kind of material even after the FDA letter.
Must be that the USDA/FDA do not want to shut down a business and vacate 50-jobs in an election year. After all what’s a little trap grease from a restaurant toilet in our milk going to matter anyway.
One of the owners was charged as a 5th degree felon for putting hazardous waste in as non-hazardous application. Hazardous waste to dairy feed contamination…consistency is a good thing. This same felon also just paid AFIA (American Feed Industry Association) $50,000. (Better join now so we can get away with this)
Want to cause a change? Boycott milk derived from herds that buy dairy feed from Cargill, Purina Mills or Milk Specialties Group. Ask your grocer who supplies milk and call the supplier to see who supplies its herds dry
fat. If it is from one of the above suppliers then think first before consuming their product. May be then the USDA/FDA will fix this even in an election year