The Kansas City Star has compiled an information sheet about the Menu Foods recall that includes this interesting tidbit (as far as I can tell, this information is exclusive to the Star):
Menu Foods, according to one veterinary toxicologist, was working on some experimental products when it did some testing and found that the food sickened or killed some animals. The company reportedly traced the problem back several weeks to when it started using a new wheat component. The company immediately stopped using that new wheat source, which it used in high concentration in the experimental food. To be safe it recalled every other brand that might contain the new wheat gluten, even in tiny quantities.
This would seem to contradict earlier FDA reports that the problem was revealed during routine quarterly taste tests of Menu’s foods. If the Star’s information is correct (catmanager would like to know: who is the toxicologist? how does s/he have knowledge of the situation? is s/he just speculating?) and the high death rate from the food trial was related to the higher than normal concentration of wheat gluten in an experimental food, then it might be reasonable to extrapolate from that and conclude that we won’t be seeing a 14–20 percent mortality rate among pets who’ve eaten the contaminated food that doesn’t contain such high levels.
That won’t be any consolation for those pet owners whose pets have died or become ill. But it offers at least a thin ray of hope.
21 March 2007 at 3:15 pm
Wow. That’s all I can say. Wow.
21 March 2007 at 3:17 pm
On the other hand, though, as you say, hopefully the mortality rates won’t be as high as first suggested. Menu Foods really needs to do a news conference or something. The PR article is correct, they have mishandled this situation royally.
21 March 2007 at 9:02 pm
The 1-800 # doesn’t answer and I feel sorry for the ones who don’t use or have access to the internet for the info. Is anyone answering that #. I for one can get online at work but there are elderly who can’t and made need that phone assistance!
21 March 2007 at 11:22 pm
I feel betrayed to pay high prices for supposedly premium cat food when it seems to be coming out of the same vat as the cheapo crap that they sell.
22 March 2007 at 1:04 am
The factory may be the same, but the food is ultimately different. Menu Foods will manufacture food according to Iams or other company’s recipe. Hence the higher priced/quality food that they make is not at all the same as the “cheap” stuff you can buy.
What is common are some of the basic ingredients that do not define the quality of the food. For example, salt is salt…and in this case wheat gluten is wheat gluten, which is still suspect in the investigation.
More will unfold.
Many areas of the country have a local Freecycle Group, http://www.freecycle.org which circulates unused/unneeded items to others in your community, including pet foods.
If you belong to this organization, please write to the moderators of the group, urging them to place a notice to all the members about the pet food recall.
I did just this after I heard about the recall and my cat became ill. The moderators posted a notice to all members of my local group.
If pet connections has a Public Service Announcement to offer please contact our radio station.
Thank you,
Dominick
Electric Candle Radio Program
Saturday 3 to 6PM
WMUC 88.1 FM http://www.wmucradio.com
23 March 2007 at 6:20 am
I having lost 2 dog and have 2 sick all ate several of the recall foods and I also suspect the dry food is bad to I have talked to several others that only used dry food and have lost or had sudden renal failure. wheat is used in dry food in some form and wheat gluten is used in some dog treats. Our vet has taken the remaining dogs off all wet or dry foods.