Yourlawyer.com (Pet Treats Salmonella News)

Latest Salmonella Scare Permanently Closes Mars Petcare Factory in PA

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Mars Petcare, the company that has recalled salmonella-tainted pet food twice since 2007, is shutting down the Pennsylvania factory that was responsible for the contamination. According to a notice dated Sept. 18 that Mars Petcare sent to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, some of the Everson, PA plant's 53 workers will lose their jobs as early as Nov. 12. All employees will be out by Dec. 19.

Salmonella in pet food can cause serious infections in dogs and cats. But it can also cause illness in people if they come in contact with tainted food, or sick animals. Pet food manufactured at the Southwestern Pennsylvania Mars Petcare factory sickened 66 people nationwide in 2006 and 2007. About 40 percent of those infections involved infants, according to a report published in the May 16 issue of the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Of the 38 people for whom clinical information was available, 15 (39 percent) had bloody diarrhea. For the 45 persons whose hospitalization status was known, 11 (24 percent) had to be hospitalized. No deaths were reported, according to the report. While 25 cases of Salmonella poisoning were reported in Pennsylvania, the pet food also made people sick in Alabama, California, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Carolina and Virginia.

That outbreak prompted the company to recall its Red Flannel Large Breed Adult Formula and Krasdale Gravy Dry Dog Food in August 2007. After that recall, Mars Petcare closed the Pennsylvania plant for cleaning and inspection.

Then, just last month, Mars Petcare recalled more food made at the plant, again over Salmonella worries. Brand names of affected products include some items under the names of Country Acres, Retriever, Doggy Bag, Members Mark, Natural, Ol’ Roy, Special Kitty, Paws & Claws, Pedigree, Wegman’s, Pet Pride, PMI Nutrition, and Red Flannel. Two people had become ill with the same strain of Salmonella (Schwarzengrund) found at the plant, but no direct link was found between the recalled pet food and the illnesses.

As a result of the contamination problems, production at the Everson plant was again halted on July 29. But unlike the first recall, Mars Petcare has now decided to shutter the factory for good.

"Since we have not yet identified the source of the salmonella Schwarzengrund at the Everson facility, we do not plan to resume production out of a commitment to the safety of our pet owners and their pets, customers and associates," Debra Fair, public relations manager for Mars Petcare US, said in a statement.

Tainted Pet Food Lawsuits Settled

Mon, 07 Jan 2008 00:00:00 -0800

Diamond Pet Foods—the company that made contaminated pet food that killed dozens of dogs nationwide—will pay $3.1 million in a settlement with pet owners, an attorney said Friday. The company will set up a fund to reimburse pet owners for the loss of their dog; related veterinarian bills; and the cost of any unreturned, contaminated food, according to attorney Jim Andrews, who represented a Knoxville, Tennessee family who sued Diamond. The pet food, which contained a mold called aflatoxin, was produced at Diamond Pet Foods' South Carolina plant. Aflatoxin is a naturally occurring chemical that comes from a fungus sometimes found on corn and in other crops; the fungus can cause severe liver damage. The contaminated pet food was sold in 23 states and Diamond recalled about 20 varieties of dog and cat food when a New York veterinarian said in December 2005 that she had linked a dog's death to the company's food. According to the settlement, an estimated 350,000 bags of dog food were recalled.

Diamond Pet Foods, based in Meta, Montana, acknowledged that workers at its S.C., plant failed to follow internal testing procedures to ensure its products were safe. The company made the acknowledgment after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a report confirming the company has no record of test results for 12 shipments of corn in 2005, when grain tainted with the deadly fungus slipped into the plant. According to the settlement, Diamond contends it did nothing illegal; however, an attorney for the company said Diamond would cooperate with claimants. "Diamond's taken care of its customers since the very first day that they found out about this and I think the settlement that we've entered into continues to do that," said attorney Jeffrey Thompson. Both attorneys said Friday they did not know how many people were expected to file claims against the company; however, according to the settlement agreement, Diamond and its insurer have settled about 1,200 related claims for compensation ranging from the price of recalled food to veterinary bills and pet deaths.

The settlement states owners of a dog who died as a result of eating contaminated food could receive as much as $1,000, compensated as much as additional $1,000 for testing and treatment, receive payment for up to two bags of food. Claimants’ attorneys will receive $465,000, to be paid out from the $3.1 million.

The 2005 recall is unrelated to recalls of over 100 pet food brands in early 2007. In that case, investigators traced pet deaths to a toxic chemical—melamine—added during manufacturing in China. Melamine is a nitrogen-rich chemical used to make plastic and sometimes used as fertilizer and may have been deliberately added to an ingredient in pet food that has sickened and killed cats and dogs across the country. The prevailing theory is that melamine was added to fake higher protein levels. Melamine was found in wheat gluten; rice protein concentrate; and—in South Africa—corn gluten, all imported from China for use in pet food.

Raw Pet Food Recall Issued Over Salmonella, Listeria Concerns

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0700

Yet another pet food has been recalled over concerns that it could be tainted with Salmonella and Listeria bacteria.   Bravo!, a company based in Vernon, Connecticut, is recalling some tubes of its raw poultry products for cats and dogs.    The action comes only a month after another company recalled bags of dry dog food thought to be responsible for an outbreak of Salmonella poisoning that sickened dozens of people in Pennsylvania and around the country.

So far, no illnesses have been reported due to the Bravo! recall. The company issued the recall after an inspection by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) found Salmonella and Listeria bacteria at the company’s manufacturing facility. The recalled pet food can be identified by a Batch ID code on the hang tag attached to the pet food tubes. Included in the recall are:   Bravo Original Formula Chicken Blend frozen raw Food, Product Numbers: 21-102, 21-105, 21-110, in 2, 5 and 10 pound tubes with Batch ID code 236; Bravo Original Formula Turkey Blend frozen raw food, Product numbers 31-102, 31-105, 31-110 in 2, 5 and 10 pound tubes with Batch ID code 236; and Bravo Basic Formula Finely Ground Chicken frozen raw food, Product Number 21-212, in a 2 pound tube with batch ID code 226. The products are sold nationwide in retail stores and through the Internet.

Pet owners should return unopened frozen tubes of food to the store where they were purchased for a refund. Open tubes should be disposed of in a securely covered trash can, and the batch ID tag washed and returned to the store for a refund. Anyone who handles the contaminated pet food should be sure to wash their hands thoroughly in hot soapy water, and they should do the same with any utensils that came in contact with the pet food.

Both Salmonella and Listeria bacteria produce potentially deadly food borne illnesses. Salmonella symptoms in humans include vomiting, diarrhea and fever. In some instances, Salmonella poisoning can lead to a disorder known as Reiter’s Syndrome, a difficult- to- treat condition that causes severe joint pain, irritation of the eyes, and painful urination. Reiter’s Syndrome can plague its victims for months or years, and can lead to chronic arthritis. Listeria can cause fever and muscle aches, and sometimes nausea and diarrhea.   The infection can also spread to the nervous system, causing headaches, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance or convulsions.

The Bravo! recall comes nearly a month after Mars Petcare USA recalled bags of its Krasdale Gravy Dry Dog Food after it was implicated in an outbreak of Salmonella poisoning in Pennsylvania and other states. That tainted dog food sickened 66 people around the country, but Pennsylvania, which reported 25 cases of Salmonella poisoning, was by far the hardest hit.

Food Poisoning Scandals Erode Consumer Confidence and Food Industry Profits

Wed, 05 Sep 2007 00:00:00 -0700

Food poisoning scares have made most Americans far less trusting of the US food supply. According to two recent surveys of American attitudes on food safety, recent outbreaks of Salmonella, E. coli and other food borne illnesses tied to peanut butter, snack foods, meat and fresh spinach have raised concerns among consumers that the food they eat might be dangerous. And now, those fears are being reflected in the bottom lines of the country’s largest food producers.

National Pasteurized Eggs surveyed 2,500 Americans about their attitudes regarding food safety and found that 93-percent are more concerned about food borne illness this year than they have been in previous years. Ninety-six percent said that media reports of food poisoning outbreaks had influenced their perceptions of food safety issues. A second study by the Food Marketing Institute found that only 66-percent of American shoppers are confident that the food they buy is safe. Thirty-eight percent of those surveyed said they had stopped buying items that had been linked to food poisoning outbreaks.

These findings are not surprising, considering the number of food poisoning scandals US consumers have endured in the last year. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there are 76 million cases of food borne illnesses every year in the US, 5,000 of which result in fatalities. In the past year, large scale food poisoning outbreaks have been in the news almost constantly. Last summer, E. coli-tainted fresh spinach sickened more than 200 people and killed three. In February, Con Agra’s Peter Pan and Great Value Peanut Butters left more than 600 people ill with Salmonella poisoning. An outbreak of botulism this summer was traced to contaminated hot dog chili sauces produced by the Castleberry's Food Company. Other outbreaks of both E. coli and Salmonella have been linked to meats, snack mixes, pet food, tomatoes and lettuce. In this light, it’s easy to see why consumers are feeling a little queasy when it comes to their food.

And that lack of confidence is hurting profits at some of the nation’s biggest food producers. ConAgra saw its profits drop substantially after the peanut butter Salmonella debacle. Last week, Proctor & Gamble blamed recalls of its pet foods for low quarterly profits posted by its snacks, coffee and pet care unit. Even companies not implicated in a food poisoning outbreak still suffer because of them. Chiquita Brands, Inc. has said that sales of its Fresh Express bagged salads have yet to recover from last year’s spinach E. coli outbreak because consumers are now less trusting of any bagged greens.

Now, the food industry is scrambling to restore consumer confidence, but it could be a tough sell, as reports of tainted foods make it into the news every day. Just last week, more bagged fresh spinach was recalled after it was found to be contaminated with Salmonella. And an outbreak of E. coli in the Pacific Northwest resulted in the recall of tons of ground beef distributed by Interstate Meats of Oregon. Companies have increased inspections and added to their food safety research budgets, but until the recalls and outbreak stops, these steps will have little effect on consumer confidence.

Wal-Mart Says Pet Treats Were Contaminated with Melamine

Wed, 22 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700

Melamine has once again been found in pet food made in China. This time, dog treats sold by Wal-Mart have tested positive for the dangerous chemical. The retailing giant announced last night that Chicken Jerky Strips from the Import Pingyang Pet Product Co and Chicken Jerky made by Shanghai Bestro Trading were both tainted with melamine. Wal-Mart also revealed that it has suspected the problem for some time, but waited to warn consumers. At least one of the companies involved in the Wal-Mart melamine incident has had a sketchy history with its pet food imports to the US. In 2005, the Food & Drug Administration blocked imports of some Pingyang products because of Salmonella contamination.

The Wal-Mart incident is similar to a pet food recall last March that involved 150 brands of melamine-laced pet food. The chemical, a by product of pesticides, was found in wheat gluten used in the food.   At least 14,000 animals became ill and 16 died in US as a result of the poisonous pet food.

Wal-Mart said that it had been receiving complaints from customers about the pet treats since July.   At that time, the retailer quietly removed the jerky snacks from Wal-Mart stores around the country. The company also placed a block on its computers so store cashiers would not be able to ring up the tainted pet food.   Wal-Mart said that it did not alert consumers to the problem in order to avoid worrying customers unnecessarily.   The company said that it wanted to wait until tests confirmed the presence of melamine before it raised the alarm.

Yesterday, Wal-Mart announced that 17 tests done on the product had found melamine.   The company could not say if the treats contained enough melamine to harm an animal. But Wal-mart did say that customers should not use the pet treats. Rather, they should be returned to the nearest Wal-Mart store for a refund. All of the products bear the UPC code 0087784900006.

Wal-Mart said that it did not know how many of its stores sold the treats. But a spokesperson for the company told the Associated Press that Wal-Mart only issues pull-and-hold orders when most stores are affected.

Though melamine is banned from food products in the US, use of the chemical in animal feeds is common in China. In fact, many animal feed producers in China advertise for the chemical over the internet. They mix a powdered form of melamine into the feed to inflate the product’s protein levels.   Following the March recalls, China banned the use of melamine in products made for export.

Since the recall of melamine-tainted pet food in March, many other Chinese-made products have come under scrutiny. This year, tires, lead-painted toys, toothpaste and other Chinese imports have been recalled for defects. Over the last few decades, many US companies have moved production to China in a quest for cheaper goods and higher profits. The pressure placed on Chinese manufacturers to make inexpensive products often leads them to use low-quality components and shoddy manufacturing techniques

Salmonella Contamination Sparks Dog Food Recall

Wed, 22 Aug 2007 00:00:00 -0700

Salmonella-tainted dog food is being recalled in several states. Mars Petcare US, Inc. of Tennessee announced the recall Tuesday.   The company said that it is recalling 5 lb bags of Krasdale Gravy Dry Dog Food because the Salmonella contamination has the potential to make both pets and people sick.

The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) said the dog food was sold in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. The dog food bears the UPC code 753062596 and a “best buy” date of July 16, 2008 and July 17, 2008. FDA tests on a sample of the food found Salmonella bacteria. Anyone who purchased the dog food should throw it away and return the bags for a refund.

Salmonella is a potentially deadly type of food poisoning, symptoms of which include fever, abdominal pain, nausea, gas and bloody diarrhea. Symptoms appear within 36 hours of exposure, and usually last four to seven days. In very severe cases, Salmonella can lead to kidney failure and other complications. Salmonella can be particularly dangerous for children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems. Some victims of Salmonella will develop a disease called Reiter’s Syndrome, a difficult- to- treat condition that causes severe joint pain, irritation of the eyes, and painful urination. Reiter’s Syndrome can plague its victims for months or years, and can lead to chronic arthritis.

Pets can become ill with Salmonella poisoning if they eat the tainted Krasdale Gravy Dry Dog Food. But people can become sick as well, through cross-contamination. To avoid cross-contamination, anyone handling pet food should wash their hands with hot, soapy water when they are done. Likewise, pet food bowls, dishes and scooping utensils should also be washed after use. Dry food should be stored in a cool (under 80-degrees) dry place in its original bag or a container with a lid. Unused wet food should be refrigerated, and the thermostat should be no higher than 40-degrees.   Any stale or spoiled food should be thrown away. Pet food also should not be stored or handled anywhere human food is stored or prepared.

The recall comes just ten days after the Pennsylvania Department of Health warned consumers in that state of the potential for Salmonella-contaminated pet food.   Since January of 2006, at least 25 people in Pennsylvania have become ill with a rare strain of Salmonella called Schwarzengrund. Several of the victims have been children and infants, and nearly all of the cases have occurred in families where people have close contact with pets. State health officials were investigating the possibility that the Salmonella outbreak was linked to tainted pet food. There has been no word yet if any of those cases were caused by Krasdale Gravy Dry Dog Food.

Pet treats blamed for nine salmonella illnesses

Sat, 01 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0700

Nine persons in the United States and Canada were infected with salmonella in 2004 and 2005 after handling pet treats made with beef or seafood, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"This is the third published report of an outbreak of human illness associated with pet treats in North America and the first to describe such an outbreak in the United States," researchers wrote in the report published in the June 30 issue of the CDC's Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR). Canada was the site of the two previous reported outbreaks.

Six cases of salmonellosis a condition usually associated with handling or consuming contaminated food products, particularly foods of animal origin occurred among people who became ill after handling pet treats produced by manufacturing plants in Washington state or British Columbia.

Two other cases involved victims who handled pet dogs that were carriers of the salmonella bacteria. The ninth person could not be interviewed.

Three of the nine victims, including an 81-year-old woman, lived in Washington state. The elderly woman was hospitalized in March 2005 for diarrhea, fever and vomiting. She had purchased and fed beef pet treats to her dog before she became ill, the MMWR report said.

The manufacturing plants that produced the salmonella-tainted pet snacks received frozen, raw beef parts from slaughterhouses in the United States and Canada. The Washington plant also received frozen, raw salmon.

"Animal-derived pet treats are often contaminated with salmonellae, and the dehydration procedure used to make pet treats might not be effective" at eliminating the potentially deadly bacteria, wrote Dr. Larry Crowe of the Calgary Health Region in Alberta, the study's lead investigator. In these cases, the authors said, the dehydration temperatures were not high enough to destroy bacteria that were present.

Stool cultures from the nine victims all showed evidence of infection with the Thompson strain of salmonella, which exactly matched bacteria from pet treats, pets and the manufacturing plants.

Although most Americans have no idea that handling pet snacks made of meat or seafood can make them vulnerable to salmonellosis, the issue has concerned public health officials since 1999. In that year, contaminated pig ear pet treats were confirmed as the source of salmonella infections in several Canadian provinces.

The CDC and the Public Health Agency of Canada advise pet owners to wash their hands with soap and water after handling animal-derived pet treats. They encourage people at high risk for salmonella infection, such as the elderly, the very young and the immune-compromised, not to touch pet treats.

In addition, they say manufacturers of pet snacks should thoroughly treat animal products to kill bacteria and should add pertinent product information to their labels.

Pet Treats Salmonella Infection Humans Injury Lawyer

Sat, 01 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0700

Pet Treats Salmonella

Owners of pets may be placing themselves at risk of developing salmonella infections by handling beef or seafood snacks contaminated with the bacteria. On June 29, 2006 the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released results from a recent study. The CDC study identified nine cases of pet owners becoming sick with a specific type of infection, called Salmonella Thompson, in 2004 and 2005, after handling pet treats from two different manufacturers. One of the manufacturers was in Washington State and the other was located in British Columbia, Canada.

"This is the third outbreak in North America, the first in the United States, but we know these animal-derived pet treats are frequently contaminated with salmonella," said report co-author Fred Angulo, an epidemiologist at the CDC's Division of Food borne, Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases, part of the National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne, and Enteric Diseases. "There probably have been more cases," Angulo said. "There's certainly salmonella being brought into people's homes on pet treats. People are probably getting sick but not attributing it to contact with pet treats," he added.

Side Effects
The nine people who were in the CDC report all suffered diarrhea, one individual was hospitalized, and another experienced vomiting. In all of the cases, the illnesses were traced back to pet treats contaminated with salmonella, concluded experts, who detailed their findings in the CDC journal Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is also calling on pet store owners, health-care providers, veterinarians, and pet treat manufacturers to provide information to pet owners about the potential health risks of animal-derived pet treats and salmonellosis prevention. Additionally, the CDC is advising pet treat manufacturers to use heat-treatment or irradiation during processing to wipe out salmonella and other bacteria.

This crisis has been caused by the failure of manufacturers to abide by established guidelines for the preparation of pet treats, developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), according to one industry spokesperson. "The American Pet Products Manufacturers Association has worked with the FDA to develop voluntary guidelines for the preparation, manufacturing and handling of all pet treats," said the association's general council, Ed Rod.

Legal Help for Victims
If you or a loved one has been infected with salmonella as a result of giving your pets treats, please fill out the form at the right for a free case evaluation by a qualified pollutants attorney. Alternatively, call our toll free number: 1-800-LAW-INFO (1-800-529-4636).