Do you like this story?
Pet-food recall: Shame on those bloggers! They should write what we tell them to!
By Gina Spadafori
May 17, 2007
- If you have a sick pet or a question on your pet’s health, call your veterinarian.
- If you’re new to the site, please check out our general information page (includes information on recalled foods).
PR Week offers an overview of the pet-food industry’s response to the recall. It will not surprise you that “bloggers” were hard to keep “on message”:
[Michael] Bush [PR Week]: What surprised you most?
Alice Nathanson (chair of the public affairs committee for the PFI and external affairs/PR director for Iams and Eukanuba manufacturer Masterfoods US): As an industry, I think we – representatives from pet food companies, all of whom are competitors – did a good job of coming together, but we have been working together very regularly to develop solutions and programs to get through this.
Bush: What’s your opinion of the media’s handling of the situation?
[Duane] Ekedahl [president of the Pet Food Institute]: There were specific articles that were troublesome and bloggers who were off the charts. But in total, I came away with a respect for the probing nature and overall honesty of the questions.
The media were very helpful in our getting the message out in terms of the nature and dimension of the problem and the fact that it’s being addressed. The questioning was impressively penetrating on technical subjects, but there were also erroneous reports that were misleading to consumers.
[Gene] Grabowski [Levick Strategic Communications, which represents the PFI]: I really don’t have an opinion on the way the media handles things, having been a reporter myself for 12 years. I know the difficulties they’re under. I’ve learned over the years to become patient with the oversimplifications of the media and [writers'] urgency to create dramatic stories. So I take that as an occupational fact of life. I don’t get frustrated; I deal with it.
Here’s the piece, emphasis mine. The difference here being that from the point of view of a public relations trade publication, the “crisis” was bad PR. For us “off-the-charts” bloggers and pet owners, it was thousands of sick and dead pets and rolling recalls dropped late on Friday nights so we had a difficult time figuring out which products should be off the shelves. We constantly wrote that the majority of food was not recalled, but we asked for — and largely didn’t get — help in figuring out what foods people needed to avoid.
Not to mention: We refused to behave as if a recall list of more than 5,600 products and thousands of sick and dead pets was a matter of a few little kitties with tummy aches and a lot of hysterical pet owners. We’ve already been criticized, after all, for allowing “unfiltered information” to get out.
Us bad.
[Continues after the jump]
Again, we’re not saying that the pet-food industry set out to make this happen. We don’t believe this, and we want to get the situation fixed. But blaming the messenger — and praising a mostly complacent mainstream media that continues to this day to report “at least 16 dead pets” — is insulting to those of us who want to buy commercial foods with confidence for all of our family members, two- and four-legged alike.
Ekedahl’s continued emphasis on “reassurance” not “reform” is not at all helpful, either to the industry he represents –most members of which are trying to do the right thing — or to consumers who deserve honesty, and the ability to make decisions based on a fair representation of what they’re buying.
Regular reader Mike, who sent this link along, wants us to hammer Ekedahl with e-mail. i dunno. I think you’re better off writing to pet-food companies, retailers and … CONGRESS! Let them know you want honest labeling, and that you are willing to pay more for food for inspected, higher-quality ingredients.
Update: Sen. Durbin also suggests you also write the head of the FDA. And his office has already provided you with an easy form to do so.
It is not fair to demand the cheapest products and then expect the best for that price. Such pressures truly do put manufacturers in a bind. It’s a two-way street folks. Tell them what you want, tell them how you want to be able to evaluate it on the label and then be willing to pay a little more.
Sure, no matter what you buy it should not be contaminated. But I constantly read in the comments about “low-quality” ingredients and worse, above and beyond the contamination issue. Be an active consumer, but do be a reasonable one. And put your money where your — and your pets’ — mouth is.
And realize that this is not — we repeat, not – “just” a pet issue. From CNN’s David S. Martin:
Spurred by deadly outbreaks of E. coli and other food-borne pathogens, a group of U.S. lawmakers is pushing to put all food safety oversight under a single federal agency.
“I believe the food safety system is broken. It’s collapsing,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Connecticut, told CNN “We’re unable to protect the public health. We’re unable to protect public confidence in the food supply.”
DeLauro has introduced the Food Safety Act of 2007, which would create a Food Safety Administration responsible for ensuring the security of the food supply from all forms of contamination. (Watch Dr. Sanjay Gupta explain how spinach can become contaminated )
Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, and Chuck Schumer, D-New York, introduced a companion bill in the Senate.
The proposed legislation comes on the heels of a number of widespread outbreaks of food-borne illness. An E. coli outbreak in spinach last year killed three people and sickened more than 200. The FDA has confirmed 22 outbreaks of E. coli O157 linked to fresh leafy greens (20 lettuce, 2 spinach) since 1995. Half of those were linked to bagged salads.
Further fueling public concern, more than 400 people fell ill between last fall and this spring after eating peanut butter contaminated by salmonella spread by a sprinkler system.
In March, growing reports of sick and dying cats and dogs led to a recall of pet food whose maker had used melamine-laced food additives from China. Chickens and hogs that had consumed pet food remnants were withheld from slaughter for a time out of concerns about human melamine consumption.
Currently, 12 federal agencies and 35 laws govern food safety, often with overlapping jurisdictions and different priorities.
Go to the latest blog post | Go to the PetConnection home page
|Technorati Tags: pet food recall, dogs, cats,veterinarian, veterinary
Share & Enjoy
|
Facebook
|
Twitter
|
Google Buzz
|
Digg
|
|
Technorati
|
StumbleUpon
|
Delicious
|
Email
|
Home
I suppose off-the-chart bloggers are people who do not trust manufactured pet food - and what does off-the-chart mean exactly? Skeptical of anything with “gluten” attached to it? Questioning the commonplace usage of melamine to spike up the protein count - which seems to be an acceptable industry-wide practice - known to most if not all the pet food companies, including friends of the PFI. Oh, shame on all the nasty bloggers for creating such a fuss. Tsk Tsk!
Comment by Linda — May 17, 2007 @ 9:16 am
This is a proud day for me!
I hope I annoyed the daylights out of the esteemed weasel, Duane, and there is plenty more heading his way!
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 9:25 am
Off the chart responses by bloggers, huh? Consumers “mislead” by dramatic stories?
Listen up, DO-Wayne - here is my response to yours. I wouldn’t buy a bag of chips from someone with an attitude like yours. You haven’t really been listening at all, likely in your zeal to ensure a future position for yourself in something called “the pet food industry”.
I am DONE buying commercial pet food, other than for my remaining cat, who is older. I admit to wanting what I now consider the lazy way to feed for the cat (I have no issues at the moment with her food; however, this crisis has taught me that I won’t know for sure until the first signs of illness. NICE WAY TO LIVE). When she is gone, I will switch to being solely a dog person, which means I won’t have to rely on your industry.
I am currently home cooking for my dogs, who are NO LONGER SICK from eating pet food industry kibble that is sorely lacking in nutrients, produced with little or no CLUE as proper composition, and not a care in the world for the deliberate addition of contaminants. In fact, the difference in my dogs is so illuminating, that I could not go back in good conscience to a commercial product.
Imagine that - your stupid blogger consumer knows her way around a kitchen. I am hoping for a sales slump so big that a knowledgable person is hired for your current position.
Comment by TC — May 17, 2007 @ 9:29 am
Just saw the added pic of the spinach.
*snicker*
Comment by Ally — May 17, 2007 @ 9:33 am
Off the charts bloggers, freedom, thanks to our the Forefathers of the United States of America.
Found this today…. oh uh!
http://www.rueters.com/artiicl.....1252007051
Headline reads:
China food scare threatens exports costs to soar
thur. May 17, 2007 9:03 a.m. EDT
Suddenly it’s becoming cheaper to buy USA, sounds off the charts right on the money.
Comment by Maudigan — May 17, 2007 @ 9:43 am
“Currently, 12 federal agencies and 35 laws govern food safety, often with overlapping jurisdictions and different priorities.”
now why would food safety agencies have different priorities? that makes no sense to me . . .
Comment by straybaby — May 17, 2007 @ 9:48 am
It may have been “cheap” for the pet food companies , it was not cheap for me.
I bought what we call “second mortgage cat food”, it killed my cats and cost a vacations worth of cash in vet bills.
And I paid for that food with the funds I had left AFTER paying taxes upfront for the FDA salaries of the liars, and the PFI uses MY money, and yours, to pay that unspeakable weasel, Duane, to insult us.
What is wrong with that picture?
If the pet food industry has less of our money then they are forced to pay attention and have less to pay the weasel.
Right now, the pet food industry is looking less and less like something whose survival matters to me. The survival of my pets, my trust, none of that mattered to them, did it?
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 9:52 am
Comment by Maudigan — May 17, 2007 @ 9:43 am
“Suddenly it’s becoming cheaper to buy USA…”
Except apperently in L.A. (my neck of the woods):
Food prices eat deeper into wallets Grocery costs in Southern California are up 5.7%, outpacing the U.S., and rising at their highest rate in years.
By Jerry Hirsch, Times Staff Writer
May 16, 2007
“Southland residents already pay among the highest grocery prices in the nation, and the forecast is for even higher costs. Federal statistics released Tuesday for April show that food prices in Southern California rose 5.7% from a year earlier.”
“Food prices in 2007 are increasing at their highest rate in years.
“We are going to see grocery store prices show one of the most rapid increases in the last 15 years or so,” said Patrick Jackman, an economist at the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.”
But as Gina said, we need to be willing to pay more if we want food with COOL & nutritional sources. I have no problem doing that if I feel my food is safe. Therein lies the buggaboo in this ongoing fiasco. In the meantime, I’ll continue hanging with my pals and homies in “Troublesome Bloggerland”. Strength in numbers and a continued fight that we can and will get our voices heard.
Comment by Ally — May 17, 2007 @ 9:58 am
http:/www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/05/17/foodsafety.law/index.html
Headline reads:
Lawmakers push for change in food safety oversight
by David S. Martin
CNN
posted: 12:32 EDT May 17, 2007
Comment by Maudigan — May 17, 2007 @ 10:01 am
My personal opinion is that consumers also discovered with dismay the “quality” they were feeding their pets. We believed the ads, we trusted the brands, we trusted whoever made it and we trusted the AAFCO seal on them to mean it was nutritious.
I think that virtually anyone who could upgrade pet foods, actually *HAS* paid more for their pet foods or for the ingredients for homemade since this began because a)health concern b)nutrition c)quality.
Discussing low quality has been educational. Bad PR for the PFI, toooooo bad.
We’ve got months to go to find out the impact on our pets health and lifespan from this tragedy.
I was using Science Diet & Eukanuba consistently,I will never again use them.
Yes, my pet foods bill is high now. Yes, I’ve thrown out alot they wouldn’t eat. If they have an amino radar, then I’m not pushing the issue. Can I afford it? Not really, I gave up stuff out of my budget for them & for vet care. I will keep doing that.
Consumers aren’t blissfully ignorant anymore and yest, we know it costs more.
It hurts more to feel responsible for giving poison food to your little furkid than does to move around your budget for higher “super premium” foods or human grade.
Comment by Ann H. — May 17, 2007 @ 10:03 am
Cheaper to buy USA grown, then the cost to test anything grown and exported from China. Sorry China we just can’t afford to test your crap, we’re buying American.
Comment by Maudigan — May 17, 2007 @ 10:12 am
Comment by Ann H. — May 17, 2007 @ 10:03 am
Until even a super premium pet food gets a shiny face on TV saying the truth or states , in writing, that it will refuse to join the PFI they will NEVER get a dime from me.
No pet food company that pays Duane to insult me with MY money is gonna get the funds to do that from me.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 10:15 am
ally, what’s driving up food costs at the moment has nothing to do with cool, or indeed safety of any kind. it’s the fact that the energy industry is turning foodstuffs into biofuel, making feed prices soar… funny how the government has no problem with *that*, but talks about food safety as being too expensive.
what i want to know is why we aren’t eating and feeding the good amercian foodstuffs and importing the cr*p food for biofuel?
Comment by pat — May 17, 2007 @ 10:15 am
I, for one, feel soooooooo terrible.
I actually thought that I should expect the pet food I buy should be as good for my pet as the label describes.
I actually thought that I should not expect my cat to nearly die just for eating a few servings of wet food as a special treat.
I even thought that I should not expect hundreds of dollars in vet bills to be a direct result of buying some pet food…
I am soooooo sorry to the industry for having such high expectations…
What a terrible overreaction I have been contributing to over the last couple months, what shame I feel for having been victim of their greed and carelessness…
Well, that makes me feel better. Glad to have a place to get this off my chest… ;)
Again, I’ll buy the torches, anyone willing to spring for the pitchforks? ;)
Comment by steve a — May 17, 2007 @ 10:15 am
Comment by pat — May 17, 2007 @ 10:15 am
pat - yeah, I’m aware of that. It’s the corn for the ethynol (sp?) fuel that’s driving the prices up. My point is that my area’s prices are going up - period. But when the prices increase for untainted food and eventually food with COOL, then I’ll gladly find places in my budget to cut to be able to afford said food stuffs.
Comment by Ally — May 17, 2007 @ 10:25 am
This fiasco is not a “Perfect Storm”… the pet food industry simply got caught with its pants around its ankles. Several pet food companies failed to do due diligence in inspecting their ingredients. They failed to perform even the most basic Quality Control.
One more time: here is a link to a page with photos comparing real wheat gluten with the Chinese impostor.
http://www.labservices.uoguelph.ca/urgent.cfm
Note the dramatic difference in color and texture. It wouldn’t have taken sophisticated chemical analyses to spot the bad ingredient. Yes, the photos are magnified, but the difference would still be easily noticed with the naked eye… if anyone had bothered to look closely.
No fewer than 12 separate pet food factories used tainted “wheat gluten” and “RCP” without noticing that it didn’t look right (and some of these plants had six months to notice the problem).
That’s 12 plants that seem to lack even the most basic QC. How could anyone running even the most basic test on this stuff fail to notice that something was wrong? All you have to do is look at it.
That’s 12 plants where the workers handling the gluten or RCP apparently failed to notice that the stuff didn’t look right.
And who knows how many dozens of pet food marketing companies that claim to watch their “co-manufacturers” like a hawk also failed to catch this?
Pull up your pants, PFI, and quit whining.
Comment by David — May 17, 2007 @ 10:28 am
By steve a at 10:15 am:
“what shame I feel for having been victim of their greed and carelessness…”
I feel it too. Every time I notice a new way in which my cats are still continuing to improve. Guilt, shame and deep sorrow.
Their bad food is still being sold, even now. It’s killing me…
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 10:28 am
Where’s a barf bag when you need one?
Comment by Terri — May 17, 2007 @ 10:31 am
If WE have to watch the food and do the research and get the word out and pull poisoned food off the store shelves then WHAT ON EARTH DO WE NEED THE FDA FOR?
Senators who can be lied to with no consequence are useless and we have no reason to pay them for that.
An FDA that lies and spins and will not even count the dead canaries that alerted them to the poison they were too busy doing deals with drug companies to notice was poisoning the country for years, what do we need with them?
What have they DONE for you?
I am all too aware of what they have done TO us, but ask yourself, what have they done FOR you?
Do the lies and the spin and the cover up HELP you or HURT you?
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 10:33 am
Public Meetings? Comments?
I’m sure we can oblige.
Codex News & Comments Requested
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regul...../index.asp
“U.S. Delegates have Scheduled Meetings
Public meetings have been scheduled prior to the Codex Committees on Food Labelling, General Principles, Contaminants in Food, and Food Additives. (See Public Meetings for details.) “
Comment by Ann H. — May 17, 2007 @ 10:35 am
Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 10:28 am
“Their bad food is still being sold, even now. It’s killing me…”
Peggy, agreed. Sadly, it’s also still killing pets too…
Comment by Ally — May 17, 2007 @ 10:35 am
I’ll send the PF industy a list of all the expenses I have incurred over the last year and a half to keep my cat with chronic renal failure alive. That should prove to them I’m willing to spend whatever it takes for quality food and anything else it takes to keep her healthy. She may not have become sick as a result of this recall, but it proves how much most of us are willing to do. Too many people assume we aren’t willing to spend a lot of money to keep our pets alive. I’ve spent a lot but I’d gladly do it over again and I’ll continue to do it for as long as she is with us. My cats’ and my health is worth a lot more than whatever extra it will cost to have a safe food supply.
Oh, one more rant - Duane has obviously never watched a beloved pet struggle for her life because of kidney failure. If he did he certainly wouldn’t think we “were off the charts.”
Comment by Brandi — May 17, 2007 @ 10:43 am
Aaargh, Duane’s back? Like a bad penny….not on my birthday of all days!!!! Duane, I could really care less if you “respect” a rock on the beach, it means nada.
Comment by Sandi K — May 17, 2007 @ 10:45 am
My poor dog is paying the price for my being mislead by the Eukanuba PR machine. No more.
And, shame on all of the PFI members. On one of the dog lists, a breeder is pushing for other breeders to call their puppy buyers about contaminated food. WHY??
She called all her puppy people when news of the HUGE recall came out. Warned them to discontinue feeding all recalled product.
Two days ago a puppy came to be boarded. What came along? A bag of recalled Royal Canin… Why? because FDA and PFI said everything was now safe! and melamine was not dangerous! and recalls have been removed from the front pages of the food sites and news is no longer covering the recall. So everything is safe!!
Thank goodness for the bloggers,Pet Connection and Itchmo. Who knows how many more sick and dead animals there would be.
How I feel about PFI, cannot be printed here.
Katie
Comment by Katie — May 17, 2007 @ 10:46 am
Duane gets paid with YOUR money.
Every bag or can of pet food that you buy from ANY member of the PFI pays for this weasel to lie and insult you.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 10:47 am
I know it’s been said before, but Duane really, really needs to step aside. Perhaps a move to a remote island would also be in order. Too many folks know what he looks like which could prove a might dangerous. Troublesome bloggers you know….
Comment by Ally — May 17, 2007 @ 10:48 am
Yup, that’s right Ally, and no one will ever know.
What do I do, who do I tell? I wrote letters; I got empty form letters back. Who cares? Really, who is out there that both cares and is in a position to do something?
All these groups and agencies, no one even caught on. There was no protein in the food!! How is it that no one had caught that, at any time, since last spring?
Were there no assays done on any of these foods since last spring? Are none of these foods ever tested for nutritional value on some sort of continuous basis?
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 10:49 am
ally, you’re right on with your observation. it just burns me that the energy industry uses the most expensive option available so they can jack up fuel prices even more than usual, and drive up food prices at the same time. then, when the economists morons talk about inflation and interest rates, they have the immortal rind to say, well, inflation’s flat if you strip out food and energy… as though those things don’t count! what they’re really saying is corporate america is healthy, so to heck with the people who can’t feed themselves or go anywhere… leave those interest rates alone so we can continue to get fat while the people struggle!
Comment by pat — May 17, 2007 @ 10:51 am
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 10:49 am
“Are none of these foods ever tested for nutritional value on some sort of continuous basis?”
I seriously doubt it. It’s too “complicated”.
Comment by Ally — May 17, 2007 @ 10:52 am
Ally, good thought, but let us go a step ahead, if the PFI can afford to pay Duane, then they can damned sure pay some vet bills and TV ads to help people know the signs and symptoms of the poison pet food.
And since they have all that money, which they got from US, and have not done a damned thing, then how much faith or trust are you needing to have with ANY company that is a member of the PFI?
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 10:52 am
Too many numbers…
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 10:52 am
Hey all you worthless imbeciles in
Washington… (includes everyone that thinks
trade with communists is possible?)
I’ve got a handle for you? ” The Empire of China” (simluaritys are astounding)
my dad was in the pacific, from day1 of that war,until 1945 ..
this is what he went thru? a war against an aggressor goverment , it wasn’t japans people
(or china’s people) it’s the rotten goverments.
and we’r headed the right dirrection to colide
with china’s communist goverment..anyone ready
for a war?
(sorry u.s. policy makers , and corportate enitys?) it’s up to you , END TRADE WITH CHINA
Comment by johnypaycut — May 17, 2007 @ 10:53 am
Ok, how much more could testing cost per batch? seriously, they don’t need to test it all and they aren’t. And couldn’t our government toss some money that way to off set the costs of trading with China? *We* did not negotiate these trade agreements. And PFI should cover the rest. Let OUR farmers grow the crops and OUR gluten factories go into full production. Before long, we may be able to eliminate some of the testing, you know the ones for chemicals, antibiotics and poisons that we don’t use here. Just make sure those crops aren’t GM.
Comment by straybaby — May 17, 2007 @ 10:54 am
FWIW: CVM, center Veterinary Medicine, FDA, names of department heads. http://www.fda.gov/cvm/Documents/cvm1.pdf
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 10:59 am
Math is simple, we have one , only one, problem to solve.
Do you want to pay money to ANY pet food company that hires someone to insult you and lie?
The PFI gets every dime of the money it pays to Duane from pet food companies, who get the money from YOU.
If you buy a pet food from ANY pet food company that belongs to the PFI not only do you risk killing your pets but you are paying to be lied to and insulted.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 10:59 am
We all know that the FDA is “planning to begin” - “beginning to plan” - “planning to put together a plan”, etc.
What’s wrong with implementing the food safety proceedures that have already been developed and are ready NOW???
How could the safe handling of fresh produce possibly interfere/conflict so much with the handling of other types of foods, that it has to wait for a comprehensive plan from the new Food Czar? Or is the HHS rejection just another stalling tactic in this multi-partner crazy dance?
“HSS Rejects FDA’s Food Safety Plan”
http://tinyurl.com/ys5rn8
“Department of Health and Human Services officials have rejected an FDA food safety proposal that would tighten the regulations dealing with handling and processing of fresh produce.
It is being reported that officials with the Department of Health and Human Services have rejected a food safety plan proposed by the FDA that was aimed at strengthening regulations governing the handling and processing of fresh produce.
At a meeting in February, the FDA presented their proposal that they stated would help cut produce related outbreaks in half, due to their current approach being insufficient. According to HSS spokeswoman Christina Pearson the meeting in February was mainly a background session, with the FDA providing “a wide variety of options available
to us in our efforts to improve food safety.”
“The message to HHS, from the industry, from Congress, is there’s urgency for the administration to act,” says Tom Stenzel, president of the United Fresh Produce Association.
Dr. Acheson of the FDA is planning to put together a strategic plan to help improve food safety, and to meet with officials from the HSS to discuss a range of food safety related issues.
“We believe in the importance of a strong, science-based regulatory process and take our responsibility to ensure the safety of foods, drugs and other items FDA regulates very seriously,” Pearson concluded.”
Comment by Aunt Granny — May 17, 2007 @ 11:02 am
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 10:59 am
if you’re talkin’ ta me? they don’t get my money ;) and now, none of the corps involved in this will get any of my money on other products.
Comment by straybaby — May 17, 2007 @ 11:06 am
Comment by Terri — May 17, 2007 @ 10:31 am
Don’t bag it Terri, someone may try to use it in pet food…
Comment by steve a — May 17, 2007 @ 11:07 am
PFI gets no money from this household either. Fogeddaboudit.
Comment by Ally — May 17, 2007 @ 11:08 am
My bad Steve
I will find some other way to dispose of it so it doesn’t enter the pet or human food supply
Comment by Terri — May 17, 2007 @ 11:11 am
I will buy no product of any nature, from any company that is a member of the PFI and if you DO then please spare me your rants about Duane because you paid for him to do it.
Duane is off my tit and if he hangs on yours then maybe you need to be doing some weaning.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 11:23 am
“Regular reader Mike, who sent this link along, wants us to hammer Ekedahl with e-mail” Tell the PFI and North Amer. companies “I Will NO LONGER buy and pet-foods manufactured with cheap IMPORTED ingredients” The entire pet-food in So. Africa was vowed to not use cheap imports, as has Royal Canin. Tell the PFI.And tell all the pet-people in your address-book to also! (‘reader-mike’)
Comment by mike — May 17, 2007 @ 11:27 am
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 10:28 am
Honestly, I am sad my cat is sick, and angry at the Chinese for their scam, and at Menu for delaying the recall. Well, homocidal rage may be closer that ‘angry’ as an ajective…
But I don’t think you or I should feel any guilt over the situation.
I spent 6 weeks from early February wondering why my cat suddenly lost several pounds and was in, apparently, accute kidney failure. The cats in her line are not particularly predisposed to such problems, and there was nothing we knew of she would have eaten known to cause this problem.
It was a great relief to me when Menu finally announced a recall, and that the foods we treated our cats with were, indeed, on the recall list. We now knew what the likely cause of the problem was, and that someone was responsible, and it was not some random event…
But you should not feel guilty for wanting to take good care of your furry friends, I certainly do not.
We have been stricken with a terrible breach of trust. I am sad for what we all are going through, and angry (enraged, really) at those who contributed with deliberation to make it happen as it did. I am sad for all those who are sick, or dead, or have suffered a loss… unspeakably sad…
Don’t be ashamed of something over which you had no real control. There was no reason to expect anything like this.
Certainly such things are possible. Knowing such a thing is possible does not make it possible to predict or prevent.
If you can honestly say that you should really have known exactly what would happen when you gave food to your pet, then feel shame and guilt all you want.
You had no way of knowing when, what, where, why, who, or how… Neither did we. The best we can do is what we are: Doing what we can to make people aware, reevaluating our selections to keep our friends safe, pressing our government to take steps to prevent this from happening again, rewarding business that always had good practices, and turning away from those which have not lived up to reasonable expectations.
It takes a few people going over the top to protect the people who never try…
Comment by steve a — May 17, 2007 @ 11:31 am
Comment by mike — May 17, 2007 @ 11:27 am
I will no longer buy pet food. Full stop.
That is what it will take.
No pet food, not from any company.
Where were the companies that got fat and rich on OUR canaries backs when the pets were dying?
Pets are STILL dying, STILL suffering and have any of you seen a single shiny face on the TV?
Has the 16 dead pets lie stopped?
Have the symptoms of sudden kidney failure become know?
Has any pet parent with staggering vet bills been offered comfort and relief?
That is a big no.
Were you insulted today by Duane?
Were you insulted yesterday by Duane?
Did you pay for all that fun?
Yes, yes, yes.
I do not pay to be insulted, you make your choice.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 11:47 am
Treasonable activities from american corporations…
Another possibilty.. china’s agricultural production was drasticly changed when thru the introduction of pesticides,fertilizers, and
chemicals the ecology of that country was damaged , if not nearly destroyed.. what is the involvement of enities from my country in making a nations enviorment so toxic it’s foods
are dangerous? i am sure what we’r getting is
what was sold to them? i cannot under such circumstances blame China, but corportaions/individuals who’v caused this?
we simply don’t know the extent of dangerous activites in china.. we need to know who is responsible for this exchange of dangerous
products? i for 1 am suspicous?
Comment by johnypaycut — May 17, 2007 @ 11:50 am
I am not mad at China, I understand China a lot better than the companies that “claim ” they got rooked by China.
I just do not need what China has to sell. They have nothing I need or want. That simple.
Just nothing.
I am furious at the FDA for the lies, I paid plenty, far more than I expected to pay, for the pet food, what I pay the FDA for is THE TRUTH and sad to say, I got defrauded there too.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 11:59 am
Now I know. If, God forbid, I do anything more to injure an animal, knowing what I know, I will be guilty. But my Rainbow Bridge guy, and my staggering brave hanging on guy, suffered because THE INDUSTRY LIED. THE INDUSTRY lied by implication and by inaction. I could have saved both of my pals if the truth had been told. THEY are guilty. And if it costs me more, to cook and feed only those things I feel are pure enough, simple enough and safe enough to feed myself and my friends, I have the cancelled checks to show that the lies of the petfood mafia cost more. (And as for reimbursement - a few pennies thrown here and there, like having the soldiers shoot up the house and kill the kids and handing out fifty bucks for the inconvenience - tainted, tainted, tainted - .)
Comment by Nancy Nielsen — May 17, 2007 @ 12:04 pm
the prweek article keeps talking about the pet food recall in the past tense—-guess what guys, it’s still ongoing—-there were recalls 6 days ago. ekedahl wants to “get the message out” and “reassure the public”; he doesn’t get (or ignores) that we want INFORMATION, cold hard facts. funny how menu foods notified pfi the first day of recall “to develop key talking points”. pfi is just a pr/spin firm, and a crappy one at that, because they then had to go hire another pr firm (levick)!
and does prweb not realize how stupid they sound implying that all info needs to be “filtered” before release to the public? i am sick and tired of all these groups (pfi, fda, usda, many media outlets) assuming i can’t and don’t want to think for myself, so they neatly package a tiny bit of info and top it off with a dollop of b.s.
what led me to pet connection, etc, was menu foods announcing the first huge recall, then i could find NOTHING in the news for the next several days to followup! thank goodness for bloggers-off-the-charts! (add an ‘H’ and you have BOTCH—-just what the pet food industry did! and fda. and pfi. etc)
Comment by nancy — May 17, 2007 @ 12:26 pm
Then just STOP all this useless foolish debate about what food is safe or pure or what company can be trusted. STOP.
I want easy open cans, I want a bag o food I can buy at the store while I do the rest of the shopping, I want that as much as any of you want it. BUT IT AINT GONNA HAPPEN.
Every bag of food, every can is at least another dead pet that they can safely write off as nothing because I am paying to be lied to!!
Every dime I pay a pet food company , pays Duane.
Every time you buy a can of pet food, it pays Duane.
That is not right.
Every time you call a pet food company and trust the lying bastids you give them permission to kill or maim your pets at will.
When the FDA quits lying, when the pet food companies start making this right, maybe there will something to talk about.
And NOTHING any company does will ever make up for what they did NOT do.
The right thing.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 12:27 pm
steve a, it’s the excuses I made: He’s 16, he’s just slowing down, this is how it goes for an older cat, he’s had a long life, he’s getting worn out, and on and on…
He looks at me, now. He doesn’t understand…He just knows he feels so much better…He is confused. He wants answers. He wants to know why he didn’t feel good; why did he have so much pain? He’s afraid, too, I think, that it may not last.
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 17, 2007 @ 12:45 pm
For information purposes…PFI members:
http://www.petfoodinstitute.or.....rch=Active
Comment by Sandy C — May 17, 2007 @ 12:52 pm
IMO the FDA is an underfunded more like an advisory-lobbying arm/damage control( by political design) to support big business.
I truly really feel sorry for the many conscientious employees working for this outfit.
The primary for big business is to make profit for their stockholders. Product is secondary. Having them self-regulate is obviously a conflict of interest in view of normal greedy human behavior.
The Dick Durbin et al sponsored legislation does not really change things that much. More like a false sense of security.
The FDA needs teeth and much more funding. The primary problem is not really in more informative labeling but federal inspections up front at the place of origin like China. Inspecting the paper work at the point of import does not really cut the mustard. Our pets and us donot eat the paperwork.
In China , a human life comes cheap and they unfortunately will do anything to make an extra buck,since so many are really poor. Not really that much different in the USA though , just more carefully spin controlled.
Some points on my wish list;
Mandatory enforced recalls and follow ups in the retail stores. Subsequent fines if in violation.
Public disclosure of retail outlets that received dangerous food stuff.
Product marked “new production” after a recall.
Controlled destruction (burn it) of offending product.
Manufacturing name/address and packaging name/address if different than manufacturer on all retail consumable products. This will not happen because consumers will find out that their cheaper store brand could be indentical than the manufacturers’ own brand.
Frankly I am not even that concerned about bacteria like E coli strains, salmonella, listeria, botulisms etc. At least you can cook or steam(not microwave) them out , it is the chemicals/weird damaged cells due to DNA manipulation/irridation/cloning that you cannot destroy by heat.
As far as I am concerned, each citizen is on their own to safeguard their food for their animals and other loved ones. You cannot rely on your public officials/government. They support their big contributors alias big business.
For Pete’s sake, educate yourself , the internet is at the tip of your fingers with so much information as it applies to safety.
Comment by Serijna — May 17, 2007 @ 12:56 pm
“The media were very helpful in our getting the message out”
“the nature and dimension of the problem”
“the fact that it’s being addressed”
And….here’s your answer, Oh Importers and Companies who hide behind messages like “Proprietary” to cover the @$*&^%@!! you sell.
You don’t HAVE to label a THING. Spend your profits bribing ‘our’ elected representatives. It matters NOTHING to me.
BECAUSE! I will NOT BUY ANYTHING that your lowest paid employee can’t give me SOURCE and PROCESSING LOCATIONS on.
Yes, that was me who called the other day. “Where was the grain grown? WHY do I have to wear gloves using this? What is in it? Is this USDA Organic? Was ANYTHING in this food originally grown OR processed in China?” Remember, if I don’t like the answer, I DON’T SPEND MY MONEY! Put that in your profit margin and smoke it.
Comment by skijor — May 17, 2007 @ 1:03 pm
Comment by Serijna: You cannot rely on your public officials/government.
I think that is true in every aspect of our lives : food, education, retirement, “news” as the media reports it, etc
Comment by lablover — May 17, 2007 @ 1:07 pm
Comment by Serijna — May 17, 2007 @ 12:56 pm
Why, if I have to do the research, does the FDA have the authority to lie to me?
What good are they?
I know they can take de facto bribes from the drug companies that they are supposed to “investigate” and that they can lie at will, even to the Senate, and get away with it.
What I want to know is , what is in it for me?
I do the research, where is the pay off?
If I buy the best pet food, or people food that I can find, after doing many hours of research, why the hell would I want to live longer if all it gets me is dead pets and being called an hysterical pet owner?
Who cares how many people die? The FDA is fine with it, and the years of suffering before the death and all the money paid for drugs, don’t forget that part!, sounds like business as usual.
And every bag of pet food or can of pet food you buy is in support of that plan.
A longer life is not all that attractive anymore.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 1:11 pm
Comment by lablover — May 17, 2007 @ 1:07 pm
There are 6, well make that 7 now, stories I have heard reported which I was close enough to so I knew the facts of the news…
Every single one report was blatantly wrong, some so wrong it is mind boggling. Nearly all because the reporter or editor changes a few words here and there, but that changes the whole meaning of a sentence…
I will grant that once I bothered to call the station and spoke with the news desk. On the next update the story was corrected, they responded quickly and wanted to report proper facts.
I suppose there are 2 problems in this. First is the reporters don’t know what they are talking about so they say things out of ignorance of fact. Second is that nobody bothers to correct the news desk when they are wrong. I’ll add an apparently poor command of the english language among people who do the reporting and editing, ignorance of how the words they change affect the meaning of the story.
I have no reason to believe, though, that ANY story in the news is any more accurate than the ones I have known the truth about.
So, when there is a murder in the news I can believe someone was killed, and the place they were found, perhaps the time, but any other details are possibly complete fiction.
This has been true for all media I have seen, even blogs, however blogs are subject to correction by the members who participate.
Call the station, talk to the news desk, point them to the VIN and FDA sites which post the numbers, and ask them if they are interested in reporting accurately, or just in being politically correct.
And, I’m glad you are still around, LL
Comment by steve a — May 17, 2007 @ 1:30 pm
I for one am rather proud of being “an over the top blogger”, and lets not forget Wysong’s “hysterical pet owner” I’m proud of all of us that we didn’t just roll over and take it. We have worked to get our message across, even if some of it never quite sinks in. Face it, there will always be people who don’t quite get the point. I’m just glad we made them squirm. It’s the least we could do for our pets, and ultimately, for ourselves.
Comment by Joyce — May 17, 2007 @ 1:30 pm
Oh, and LL, nice to see you, and I promise not to hit you with anything harder than one of thoe sponge noodles. Xanax is a wonderful drug :>)Just kidding………..
Comment by Joyce — May 17, 2007 @ 1:37 pm
Website that may provide helpful insight - Example of one of many:
http://www.flexnews.com/pages/.....rtner.html
Comment by Bee — May 17, 2007 @ 1:41 pm
I’d like to see a group of concerned citizens form their own agency to test pet food and certify it - including the cleanliness of the manufacturing plants - and just side step the PFI and the other organizations that work in consort with the pet food companies.
And even though the FDA may be doing their best now to protect our human food supply, I still don’t believe over the long term that we can depend upon “others” to protect our pets - and maybe a non-profit group of pet enthusiasts would do a better job of it - maybe we could devise a plan for an independent certification process - those not hired or paid for by pet food companies.
Comment by Linda — May 17, 2007 @ 1:49 pm
The FDA is part of the problem, not part of the answer, I oppose giving any more money or power to liars.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 2:07 pm
If it hadn’t been for bloggers we would only think 16 pets were dead (oh excuse me those were the test animals at menu foods, nobodies pet died; including mine).
And the media would still be classifying those of us who were upset about the death or severe (as in life threatening) illness of our pets as hysterical pet owners (oh wait we still are hysterical pet owners).
I doubt Senator Durbin would have gotten involved without the input of bloggers.
Comment by Alasandra — May 17, 2007 @ 3:54 pm
comments that “somehow ” did not get posted here can be seen at itchmo.
Comment by E. Hamilton — May 17, 2007 @ 4:44 pm
Comment by Serijna: You cannot rely on your public officials/government.
I think that is true in every aspect of our lives : food, education, retirement, “news” as the media reports it, etc
Comment by lablover
*******************************
Yes, it is true in every aspect.
However, it has always been true, and it will always be true. There is no time or place or change in human nature in all of recorded history, where it was not so. At least not for very long at any given time.
Some of us are merely waking up to that idea, in our time. We can complain and letter write and vote, to gain some measure of superficial appearance of safety, heck, maybe even some real change in some areas. But that is no guarantee that the change will be sustained. You, and me, each of us, need to pay attention to what we eat. For good, for keeps, right up until our expiration dates.
I no longer believe this is going to blow over. I just have a clearer understanding of how it is now. I have always had a self sufficient bent, so this won’t be such a leap for me as for some.
Comment by TC — May 17, 2007 @ 4:51 pm
I have also been doing a lot of online research about our trade relations. I’d like to know why we are kow-towing to the unregulated chinese so dang much; I see plenty of other countries banning things that we are sucking up and onto our shelves still.
Comment by TC — May 17, 2007 @ 5:03 pm
Comment by TC — May 17, 2007 @ 5:03 pm
I think it translates to money. The Chinese have been bankrolling us and our large deficiet. So our administration is afraid to piss them off, basically. It’s like sleeping with the enemy, so to speak.
Comment by Joyce — May 17, 2007 @ 5:15 pm
Good, finally there is a Human Kidney Failure Watch. That is what is needed so that months or years down the road people dying from kidney failure won’t have false or incomplete autopsy reports and no lawsuits.
Unfortunately and very sadly, this may become the only way we will know how extensively these sloppy imports have reached the human food supply.
These companies need to be sued sued sued to force good behavior.
The honor system, obviously doesn’t work. And, probably the only reason companies VOLUNTARILY RECALLED is to avoid lawsuits.
Perhaps Sen. Durbin could also impose criminal penalties on “Pass The Buck’ companies which have falsely labeled the actual protein content in the pet food followed by penalties for whatever has leached into the human food supply.
I say ‘Pass athe Buck’ companies because I believe they knew it was a false protein read but as long as nobody knew - so what - more profits. The Chinese are not the ONLY guilty parties. There is complicity.
Comment by nunyabus — May 17, 2007 @ 6:04 pm
Respectfully…
I believe that it is Mr. Ekedahl who is off the charts.
He is “biting the very hand that feeds him,” the pet lovers of America.
I wish him luck. He’s gonna need it after this.
Comment by Marcy — May 17, 2007 @ 8:38 pm
Shame, Shame, on us. We didn’t swallow (pun intended, and not as humor) what Big Brother was telling us to think, do, buy, and..well, swallow. We didn’t accept the spin and easy answers. Our “over the top” scenarios, while criticized, were honest feelings, thoughts, and questions also that deserved honest answers in return. This, as is self evident, is just another attack on consumers for the shameful act of demanding safety and transparency which the industry still will NOT address. Ah, heck! The bag of pet food will start to cost more! Oh, whine, whine, how terrible! The real threat here from the PFI. If you want safety, we’ll have to charge you more is the open threat. Well, if a bag of pet food is safe, I wouldn’t have had to spend hundreds of dollars in vet bills…so it seems the increased cost is pretty cheap insurance. A fact these PFI idiots seem to disregard. They still don’t get it. Shame, shame on THEM!
Comment by Cheryl Hansen — May 17, 2007 @ 8:45 pm
Thank God for “unfiltered” (uncensored) information!
Comment by Kathy Thompson — May 17, 2007 @ 10:13 pm
Quote:
Alice Nathanson (chair of the public affairs committee for the PFI and external affairs/PR director for Iams and Eukanuba manufacturer Masterfoods US): As an industry, I think we - representatives from pet food companies, all of whom are competitors - did a good job of coming together, but we have been working together very regularly to develop solutions and programs to get through this.
Oh, yes: you did a good job of coming together, banding together and trying to keep us pet owners in the dark. You did a good job of convincing our paid employees (the FDA) that all is fine, move on, nothing to see here.
Before my cat almost died and I have been forced to learn more about the pet food industry than I ever wanted to learn, I paid good money for a ‘top of the line’ product, or so I thought.
Turns out that it is the cheapest possible ingredients, carelessly thrown together, produced by someone else and laced with non-healthy supplements.
So what did I pay for? A PR campaign that lets me to believe that only Iams is professional enough to care for my pets: I am too stupid, lazy or unconcerned to provide for my animals.
My trust in the (pet) food industry and the governmental watchdog agencies is irreversably compromised, like the kidneys of my cats.
I want COOL; I want clear and honest labelling without the PR schmu; and I want the pet food industry to be hit hard by economical response of the pet owners.
If I calculate the $ cost of the commercial pet food and combine it with the directly related expenses for vets then I have to admit that home cooking is a lot (*a LOT*) cheaper. And that is without counting in the time spent (cooking vs waiting at the vet, hand-feeding a desperately sick cat…)
Comment by MaKo — May 18, 2007 @ 6:20 am
If you’re looking for homemade diets, go to balanceit.com. Thay have recipes that are created by board certified veterinary nutririonists. You can get a free recipe by entering the promom code “homemade” at the checkout.
Comment by alicia — May 18, 2007 @ 9:22 am
Naughty, naughty bloggers!!
(Keep up the good work!)
Comment by Pamela J. Betz-Baron — May 23, 2007 @ 9:17 am