Pet Food Ingredients

Tylenol and Pet Food

Furthermore, the lesson provided by the Tylenol recall should send Consumers screaming at the FDA to stop allowing adulterated (Federal Law defined) pet foods to be sold right next to your food at your local grocery.

Susan Thixton

Published

February 16, 2010

I’m guessing you’ve heard about the Tylenol recall, but you might not have read the fine print as to why some Tylenol products were recalled. This particular recall speaks volumes, should speak volumes to FDA. Furthermore, the lesson provided by the Tylenol recall should send Consumers screaming at the FDA to stop allowing adulterated (Federal Law defined) pet foods to be sold right next to your food at your local grocery.

McNeil Consumer Healthcare voluntarily recalled certain lots of Tylenol on January 14, 2010. The company learned from consumer complaints of “unusual moldy, musty, or mildew-like odor that, in a small number of cases, was associated with temporary and non-serious gastrointestinal events.” Upon investigation, McNeil Consumer Healthcare discovered “that the reported uncharacteristic smell is caused by the presence of trace amounts of a chemical called 2,4,6-tribromoanisole (TBA). This can result from the breakdown of a chemical that is sometimes applied to wood that is used to build wood pallets that transport and store product packaging materials.” http://www.mcneilproductrecall.com/page.jhtml?id=/include/press.inc

In other words, a chemical in wood pallets the Tylenol packaging was shipped on – contaminated the product. The contamination was initially spread to product packaging (long before any Tylenol was placed in each container and container in packaging); and in turn the contamination spread to the actual product. One small chemical so far detached from Tylenol itself, that prior to this valuable lesson was never even considered to possibly adulterate the final product.

But it did.

Understanding that the impossible scenario of one tiny chemical in the wood shipping pallets later contaminated the final product actually CAN happen (DID happen), consider this…

Four D animals; Dead, Dying, Diseased, and Disabled Animals. Cancer tumors, drug injection sites cut away from slaughtered meat producing animals. Maggots, parasites, feces, rodents. Expired grocery store meat, used restaurant grease, road kill. And then mix in the euthanized dogs and cats from hundreds of thousands of animal shelters and veterinary hospitals and the lethal drug used to kill them. Rendered…cooked then sold to pet food, cosmetics, and even crayon manufacturers. https://www.truthaboutpetfood.com/articles/who-will-take-the-first-step.html

Although Federal Law – specifically the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act – clearly states any food (human or animal) would be deemed adulterated (and thus prohibited) if it contains ANY part of a diseased animal or an animal that has died other than by slaughter…The FDA allows these horrendous ingredients to become pet food ingredients. “Pet food consisting of material from diseased animals or animals which have died otherwise than by slaughter, which is in violation of 402(a)(5) will not ordinarily be actionable, if it is not otherwise in violation of the law. It will be considered fit for animal consumption.” http://www.fda.gov/ICECI/ComplianceManuals/CompliancePolicyGuidanceManual/ucm074710.htm

So, again, understanding that the formerly believed to be impossible scenario of one tiny chemical in the wood shipping pallets later contaminating the final product actually DID happen, how do you feel about your food sitting on a wood pallet next to pet foods that contain rendered diseased animals, maggots, drugs, and cancerous tumors?

Right now, in hundreds of warehouses across the country, pet foods that contain rendered diseased animals are sitting on wood pallets right next to your breakfast cereal and dried pasta. Organic or not.

So how’s that make ya feel? Furious? Me too.

Is there a possibility that some contaminant from the rendered diseased animals, maggots, drugs, and cancerous tumors could contaminate your food? Well, let’s put it this way…prior to the Tylenol recall there could have been a good argument made against that happening (though I wouldn’t have believed it); now their (FDA’s) argument has been greatly discounted. (I wonder how Tylenol would answer that question.)

It is simply ignorant. For the FDA to continue to state their compliance policy that allows 4D animals to be processed into pet food is safe…is simply ignorant. If a tiny chemical in wood pallets can leach into the packaging and then into the product (Tylenol), it is simply ignorant to continue to believe diseased rendered animals in pet foods won’t do the same. Not even taking into consideration the quality of nutrition these ingredients provide to the pets that consume them; not even taking into consideration these pet foods violate Federal Law each and every time they are sold to an unknowing consumer.

Will the FDA learn anything from the Tylenol recall? My fingers are crossed, but I’m not counting on it.

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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