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New recall: Company pulls food for humans and pets both
By Gina Spadafori
July 21, 2007
Here’s a new one, and it underscores the point I made earlier, that the media shouldn’t downplay pet food recalls because they don’t put people at risk. In fact, ingredients are shared throughout the food supply system for both people and pets. Canaries in the coal mine, remember?
In a news release earlier today (Saturday? That’s new, too.) the FDA said:
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expanding its July 18 warning to consumers. This expansion is for consumers and pet owners regarding canned food products and dog food produced by Castleberry Food Company of Augusta, Ga., due to the risk of botulinum toxin. Castleberry is expanding the recall to include all of the following canned products with all “best by” and code dates, and FDA is warning consumers not to purchase or eat any of the canned products listed in the table below.
Here’s the list of Natural Balance Eatables pet food varieties under recall. Lots of food for people, too.
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I heard about the recall of the human food a couple of days ago … I don’t recall the report mentioning anything about the pet food.
Among the disturbing information (imo) provided in the FDA’s press release—symptoms can start up to 2 weeks after ingestion of the toxin??
” … Symptoms of botulism poisoning in humans can begin from 6 hours to 2 weeks after eating food that contains the toxin. …
The disease has only been seen occasionally in dogs and has not been reported in cats. Ferrets are highly susceptible to botulinum toxin. The incubation period can be 2 hours to 2 weeks; in most cases, the symptoms appear after 12 to 24 hours…”
Comment by sandy — July 21, 2007 @ 9:44 pm
Here we go again, getting all hot under the collar over a little poisoned human and pet food. Life is full of risks and we have become too dependent on government to protect us. What we need are more tax breaks and subsidies for the private sector, and less regulation, so that they will make more profit. With more profit the food industry can invest in equipment and operating procedures that will help ensure that our food and our pet’s food is safe.
(I’m lobbying for a high level Administration, FDA, or PFI-affiliated company position $$$ :) )
Comment by MFEMFEM — July 22, 2007 @ 6:28 am
My human told me today that Greenies have a new formula that contains wheat isolate instead of wheat gluten. I barked with joy cause I haven’t had one since sometime last year before my human wised up. Before we get Greenies again, can someone explain why wheat isolate is better and how my body can digest it?
Woof,
Zak
Comment by Zak — July 22, 2007 @ 6:29 am
“Natural Balance Eatables” by Dick Van Patten
Well, botulism is a “natural” poison. It might even be “organic”, but not nutritious, balanced, or healthy.
Comment by MFEMFEM — July 22, 2007 @ 7:13 am
So where is all this stuff canned?
Comment by The OTHER Pat — July 22, 2007 @ 7:38 am
Thanks for this information. I signed up for USDA (and I thought, FDA too) automatic updates, but received this one yesterday, which I don’t believe mentions pet food products. And I’m not sure that the FDA release that you cite here mentions the breadth of products recalled due to potential e-coli. Do I need to register separately to the FDA recall information?
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/News_...../index.asp
Comment by Maureen — July 22, 2007 @ 7:41 am
From today’s NY Times (registration free), introducing Dr. Steven Nissen from the Cleveland Clinic. Seems like the kind of doctor that is needed to begin to fix the FDA.
”(…)But Dr. Nissen also has critics, who say he seeks the spotlight as much as the safety of medicine. Others see a conflict of interest in his self-appointed role as the drug industry watchdog while he also presides over industry-financed research worth millions of dollars. “I’m an insider and an outsider at the same time,” Dr. Nissen says in an official Cleveland Clinic biography.
His crusading for drug safety, and his recent informal advisory role to members of Congress on legislation to strengthen drug safety enforcement, have fostered speculation that Dr. Nissen, a Democrat who has worked with members from both parties, covets an official public platform. Some see him angling to be the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, an agency whose decision-making he has frequently questioned.
Although Dr. Nissen denies that he is campaigning for the job, or even that he is really interested in it, he refuses to rule it out. “I want to fix the F.D.A.,” Dr. Nissen said in a recent interview.
He also wants to influence health policy more generally. In one of his final acts this year as the president of the American College of Cardiology, a doctors’ group, Dr. Nissen gave a speech calling for universal health insurance.(…)”
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07.....en.html?hp
Comment by Maureen — July 22, 2007 @ 8:53 am
Maureen:
I signed up for the FDA separately and did get the latest recall on the dog food from Natural Balance—who used Castleberry products.
Castleberry is owned by Bumble Bee.
I have been getting all the FDA recalls all along. I think it is http://www.fda.gov but am not sure now.
Comment by Evelyn — July 22, 2007 @ 9:42 am
I HAVEN’T READ ALL OF THE ABOVE YET, I’m in a rush, but, I read it off of The PetsitUSA blog, and came on here to post my comment:
NOT ONLY AM I DISGUSTED THAT THIS ALL CONTINUES (having just read about the plastic strips in cat food, as well) BUT… WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD FEED A DOG SOMETHING CALLED “CHINESE TAKE OUT” TODAY? SPECIAL DEAL: BUY A CASE AND WE’LL THROW IN A FREE COFFIN!
No, it’s not funny, it’s ridiculous. My own plea to anyone feeding canned, pouched, or dry food to their animals to reconsider home-cooking. No, it’s not poison-proof, but, it’s better than this!
Blessed Be.
WOLFIN )O(
Comment by WOLFIN — July 22, 2007 @ 10:28 am
Just a reminder that any canned/jarred food that might harbour botulism, it will be send to spore heaven if boiled for 10 minutes.
It will be a forever mystery to me why most canned food has on it ” boil for 5 minutes” instead of 10 minutes.
Since we have no clue what corner of the world the stuff is coming from, I always go for the 10 minute boil especially on home canned stuff at markets,fairs etc.
Better safe than sorry.
Comment by Serijna — July 22, 2007 @ 3:14 pm
I just came back on here today, to read the comments that I missed yesterday. I see that I haven’t missed anything by not being signed up to the USDA updates! I’ve been signed up to the FDA updates for months now, which, though later than we want them to be, are still very complete. This is the link:
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/7alerts.html
At the right of the page, there’s a link to where you can sign up to get the automated e-mail alerts. Also a link to report a problem.
I never heard of this… One takes, say, a can of tuna, and dumps it in boiling water for ten minutes - and it’s safe from botulism?
As far as being an insider and an outsider at the same time… I work as a cashier at a supermarket. I’ve been written up and threatened with termination for daring to ask customers if they have all of the information that they want on the pet food recall, then issuing web site addresses (here and Itchmo), to those who want more. I’m astounded to hear them say that all of the food that they sell is SAFE! Where, then, if not off of the shelves, did all of the foods that killed and sickened thousands of animals originate??? How many days must lapse before the place actually mixing the stuff tells the company that owns the brand, who tells FDA, who tells the store’s corporate office, who e-mails the managers at local stores, who order the clerks to pull it off of the shelves??? (And then the bagger thinks that the items in the cart are go-backs and puts them back up again???)
TRUST NO ONE.
WOLFIN )O(
Comment by WOLFIN — July 24, 2007 @ 8:06 am
Canned Pet Food Products
Brand Product Can Size Label UPC Barcode
Natural Balance Eatables for Dogs Irish Stew With Beef,
Potatoes & Carrots 15oz 23633 59860
The Latest list of pet food recalls from Castleberry,Sunday Morning;
Natural Balance Eatables for Dogs Chinese Take Out With
Sauce With Vegetables and Chicken 15oz 23633 59861
Natural Balance Eatables for Dogs HOBO Chili with
Chicken & Pasta 15oz 23633 59863
Natural Balance Eatables for Dogs Southern Style Dumplings
With Chicken & Vegetables
Chinese ingredients again ?
Comment by William Kanitz — July 29, 2007 @ 6:40 am