Large Recoveries for Pet Owners Unlikely in Pet Food Suits

April 3, 2007

  • April 3, 2007 at 1:52 am
    Courtney says:
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    I don\’t think it matters if you are conservative or liberal, Rosie\’s comments were juvenial and assinine. I am a HUGE dog lover, spent my high school years working in an animal hospital. But I honestly think that if the President of the United States of America took time from his schedule to address THIS situation, I would be deeply disappointed that he couldn\’t find anything better to do with his time. What\’s next Rosie, a press conference every day for men and women who pass away from cancer, aids, etc….?

    If you meant it in jest, it was a very lame joke. Maybe we should have Bush say a few words for your lack of sense of humor.

  • April 3, 2007 at 1:59 am
    KLS says:
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    Egads, I stand corrected. She wasn\’t kidding.

    Ohhhhkay then.

    Y\’all have fun with that. -eek-

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:03 am
    lisa says:
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    Hmmm…you don\’t think this is a serious matter? It appears some of us need to use our brains. It\’s entirely likely this crap has made it into OUR food supply and also clearly illustrates how easy it WOULD be to contaminate our food supply in the FUTURE.

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:05 am
    Lisa says:
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    And I\’m wondering if you might be thinking with your little head….

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:06 am
    Dakota Kid says:
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    I think everyone is working way too hard. Don\’t take life so seriously and lighten up. I took Rosie\’s comments with a grain of salt and thought it was commical. I do feel sorry for the people that lost there pets but that is what there are is just pets. Life goes on.

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:09 am
    Courtney says:
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    You know what I find to be a shame? That Bill Clinton sleeping with another woman is not illegal, but LYING UNDER OATH is. It saddens me so many American\’s missed the boat on that one.

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:09 am
    Rosie says:
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    shame people with a red state mentality do not comprehend the gravitas of this situation. They would rather call people names. I bring up an issue and I am called a dope and a lesbian, among other things.

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:12 am
    lisa says:
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    It appears quite a few of us here are obsessed with Rosie. Maybe we should get past Rosie and actually read the news. I\’ll repeat…..this was FOOD GRADE gluten. It\’s not just about pets. It also clearly indicates our own food supply is NOT SAFE. Is there some part of this that\’s difficult to understand? Maybe if I post it in Spanish a few more of you will be able to understand this….

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:17 am
    Lisa says:
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    Maybe it\’s now time to pull your heads out???

    http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2007/04/03/was_human_food_tainted_too/

    Was human food tainted too?
    Suspect gluten went to plants that make products for people, FDA says
    By Diedtra Henderson, Globe Staff | April 3, 2007

    ROCKVILLE, Md. — Tainted wheat gluten that triggered a massive nationwide pet food recall also ended up in processing plants that prepare food consumed by people, the Food and Drug Administration said yesterday. While agency leaders offered assurances that the nation\’s food supply remains safe, they said they cannot yet completely rule out contamination of human food by the suspect wheat gluten, which contained melamine, a chemical found in plastics and pesticides.

    According to import records, the wheat gluten was shipped to the United States from Nov. 3, 2006 to Jan. 23 of this year and contained \”minimal labeling\” to indicate whether it was intended for humans or animals. The vast majority went to pet food manufacturers and distributors, according to the FDA. But some of the processing plants that remain under FDA scrutiny make both human and pet food.

    \”To date, we have nothing that indicates it\’s gone into human food,\” said Dorothy Miller , director of the FDA\’s Office of Emergency Operations . \”We have a bit more investigation to do.\”

    The food scare began early last month when cats involved in a routine Menu Foods Ltd. taste trial refused to eat. Within days, the Canadian company alerted a university lab that assists with its testing that the cat food could be toxic. On March 16 , Menu Foods recalled 60 million cans and pouches of wet pet food. In recent days, the recall has grown to nearly 100 brands, including food manufactured by Del Monte Foods Co.\’s pet products division, Hill\’s Pet Nutrition Inc. , and Nestle Purina Pet Care Co.

    Confused pet owners, reeling as the list of recalled products grows each day, will likely face more aftershocks. \”It\’s impossible for us to say, at this time, that there won\’t be additional recalls,\” said David Elder , director of the FDA\’s Office of Enforcement . \”We\’re continuing to follow the trail, and wherever the facts and the science lead us is where this investigation will be taken.\”

    The FDA has traced the pet food problem to a single exporter , Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. in Wangdien , China , and is now blocking the company\’s wheat gluten shipments. The agency also is tracing the route of nearly three months\’ supply of the gluten in the United States, where it is used as a thickener.

    Unlike a contaminant traced to the dirt in which food is grown or tainted water used for irrigation, the suspect ingredient in the pet food is unusual, said FDA commissioner Andrew von Eschenbach . Bread products, in general, have not been at risk for problems, and wheat gluten undergoes some processing, which can lessen the risk a contaminant could pose. In addition, the contaminant is chemical , not microbial , making it \”very unusual,\” von Eschenbach said.

    Underscoring America\’s love affair with cats and dogs, the agency said it has received 9,400 complaints about pet food since the controversy began — nearly double the number of complaints for all topics last year. In an \”unprecedented\” show of force, the FDA assigned 400 employees to track down the suspect shipments, field worried calls, and test 430 samples of potentially contaminated wet and dry food, said Michael Rogers , who directs FDA field investigations .

    Glenn Daley , 45, of the Assonet section of Freetown, Mass. , was among the callers. Chance, a cat he rescued from the pound, ate dry food on week days and, for six weeks, got Menu Foods as a special treat on weekends.

    \”He loved the food,\” said Daley .

    Shortly after a Jan. 12 veterinarian\’s visit that found the 10-year-old cat in good health, \”he started going down hill,\” Daley said. Blood work showed that Chance had lost 95 percent of kidney function. He was euthanized on Feb. 27 .

    Daley blames Menu Foods, saying the 10 pouches of Special Kitty food that he saved have product codes that match the recalled product.

    \”There is no doubt in my mind that was what it was,\” he said. \”If we had known sooner there was a problem, we might not have had to put him down. That irritates us a bit.\”

  • April 3, 2007 at 2:20 am
    Lisa says:
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    Here\’s a bit of additional news for a few of you brainiacs on here….

    When melamine is heated to a great enough temperature it produces a by-product. That by-product is cyanide. Gee…I sure hope that melamine infected wheat gluten didn\’t make it to any bread makers…



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