• Follow us on Twitter @buckeyeplanet and @bp_recruiting, like us on Facebook! Enjoy a post or article, recommend it to others! BP is only as strong as its community, and we only promote by word of mouth, so share away!
  • Consider registering! Fewer and higher quality ads, no emails you don't want, access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Even if you just want to lurk, there are a lot of good reasons to register!

Rat poison found in tainted pet food

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Sort by date Sort by votes
Shouldn't we be essentially self-sufficient in wheat gluten (or cornstarch, or arrowroot) and not need to import tainted products from mainland China?
Full disclosure .. I ask the same type of question at work many times. The answer of course, is because their raw materials are so cost effective. On a dollars per pound basis perhaps, but not when you consider the hidden cost of ensuring that you get what you paid for, that and nothing more - or less.

I know this because I work in an industry that uses a variety of different chemicals to make products. Some of those raw materials will come from China. We have found that the only means to trust their lots is to test each and every one. You cannot trust their COA's, nor can you trust that a pre-ship sample is representative of the delivered material. Some of their suppliers also have a distinct disregard for the meaning and intent of right-to-know laws. Thus, if such suppliers send along a meaningful MSDS it is a minor miracle. All too often samples are shipped with something akin to a "Don't Worry Be Happy" sticker, reading "Contents, Harmless Powder." Then these same suppliers vex (by e-mail) because their samples get held up either by us for testing, or on rarer occasion, by the ports and couriers for insufficient documentation.

The ratio between port hold-ups caught by Customs and our testing hold-ups, caught for testing is roughly 1 to 20. The number of times the Chinese sample or lot shows some discrepancy between claimed purity and actual delivered quality is roughly 18 of those 20.

If Menu Foods insists on buying wheat gluten, at a likely 15% discount from China, they will be the ones who will have to assume the burden of being their own raw material testing agency - on every incoming lot.
 
Upvote 0
This story is growing. There may be thousands of pets effected.
My cat had diarrhea so I stopped feeding her canned food.
Interestingly enough the pet food industry is "self regulating". :shake:

The FDA has nothing to do with pet food. The FDA has it's own food poisoning issues! The FDA is funded by the food and drug companies.
(Another self regulating agency).
Does anyone else see a problem with this? :smash:
 
Upvote 0
Taosman;792944; said:
This story is growing. There may be thousands of pets effected.
My cat had diarrhea so I stopped feeding her canned food.
Interestingly enough the pet food industry is "self regulating". :shake:

The FDA has nothing to do with pet food. The FDA has it's own food poisoning issues! The FDA is funded by the food and drug companies.
(Another self regulating agency).
Does anyone else see a problem with this? :smash:
Click to expand...

Isn't it better to give your cat dry food than wet food anyways?
 
Upvote 0
Taosman;792944; said:
This story is growing. There may be thousands of pets effected.
My cat had diarrhea so I stopped feeding her canned food.
Interestingly enough the pet food industry is "self regulating". :shake:

The FDA has nothing to do with pet food. The FDA has it's own food poisoning issues! The FDA is funded by the food and drug companies.
(Another self regulating agency).
Does anyone else see a problem with this? :smash:
Click to expand...
Please explain.
 
Upvote 0
I hadn't heard that. But it makes sense from a teeth cleaning perspective.
My cat eats mostly dry Science Diet. But loves a bit of can in the morning.
And canned food seems to give her a better looking coat!
 
Upvote 0
Taosman;792944; said:
This story is growing. There may be thousands of pets effected.
My cat had diarrhea so I stopped feeding her canned food.
Interestingly enough the pet food industry is "self regulating". :shake:

The FDA has nothing to do with pet food. The FDA has it's own food poisoning issues! The FDA is funded by the food and drug companies.
(Another self regulating agency).
Does anyone else see a problem with this? :smash:
Click to expand...
Sounds okay to me. We have an incredibly safe food supply (and pet food supply) as it is without pouring tons of cash into regulation for minimal additional return. Life is not without risk, but risk in this area has been minimized to a very reasonable level IMO.
 
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top