2007 pet food recalls
Beginning in March 2007, there was a widespread recall of many brands of cat and dog foods due to contamination with melamine and cyanuric acid. The recalls in North America, Europe, and South Africa came in response to reports of kidney failure in pets. Initially, the recalls were associated with the consumption of mostly wet pet foods made with wheat gluten from a single Chinese company.
After more than three weeks of complaints from consumers, the recall began voluntarily with the Canadian company Menu Foods on 16 March 2007, when a company test showed sickness and death in some of the test animals. In the following weeks, several other companies that had received the contaminated wheat gluten also voluntarily recalled dozens of pet food brands. One month after the initial recall, contaminated rice protein from a different source in China was also identified as being associated with kidney failure in pets in the United States, while contaminated corn gluten was associated with kidney failure with pets in South Africa. As a result of investigating the 2007 pet food recalls, a broader Chinese protein export contamination investigation unfolded, raising concerns about the safety of the human food supply.
By the end of March, veterinary organizations reported more than 100 pet deaths among nearly 500 cases of kidney failure.[1] However, many sources speculate that the actual number of affected pets may never be known, and experts think that the actual death toll could potentially reach into the thousands.[2][3] In the United States there was extensive media coverage of the recall, with calls for greater government regulation. Reports of widespread and possibly intentional adulteration of Chinese animal feed with melamine raised the issue of melamine contamination in the human food supply, both in China and abroad.
Research has focused on the combination of melamine and cyanuric acid in causing kidney failure. Reports that cyanuric acid may be an independently and potentially widely used adulterant in China have heightened concerns for both pet and human health.[4] In 2008 baby foods contaminated with melamine in China affected an estimated 300,000 children, with hospitalisations and deaths.
The majority of recalled foods have come from a single company, Menu Foods of Streetsville, Ontario. Menu Foods' recalled products alone represent nearly 100 brands of cat and dog food, and as of 11 April, are the only brands known to have caused sickness in animals. Below is an overview of affected brands, as provided by the FDA and the companies:
The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) maintains a combined list of all recalled pet food varieties.[29]
Impact on pets[edit]
Numbers of affected animals[edit]
By the end of March, veterinary organizations reported more than 100 pet deaths amongst nearly 500 cases of kidney failure,[1] and experts expected the death toll to number in the thousands, with one online database already self-reporting as many as 3,600 deaths as of 11 April.[30][31][3] The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received reports of approximately 8500 animal deaths, including at least 1950 cats and 2200 dogs who have died after eating contaminated food, but have only confirmed 14 cases, in part because there is no centralized government database of animal sickness or death in the United States as there are with humans (such as the Centers for Disease Control).[6][32][33] For this reason, many sources speculate the full extent of the pet deaths and sicknesses caused by the contamination may never be known.[2] In October, the results of the "AAVLD survey of pet food-induced nephrotoxicity in North America, April to June 2007," were reported, indicating 347 of 486 cases voluntarily reported by 6 June 2007 had met the diagnostic criteria, with most of the cases reported from the United States, but also including cases of 20 dogs and 7 cats reported from Canada.The cases involved 235 cats and 112 dogs, with 61 percent of the cats and 74 percent of the dogs having died. Dr. Barbara Powers, AAVLD president and director of the Colorado State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, said the survey probably found only a percentage of the actual cases. She also said the mortality rate is not likely to be representative of all cases, because survey respondents had more information to submit for animals that had died. A number of dogs were also reported affected in Australia, with four in Melbourne and a few more in Sydney. No legal action or repercussions have as yet occurred regarding these cases.[34][35][36][37] Dr. Powers elaborated further: “But there absolutely could be more deaths from the tainted pet food.... This survey didn’t catch all the deaths that happened. In order to be counted in our survey, you had to meet certain criteria.... If someone had a pet that died and they buried it in their back[yard], they weren’t eligible for our survey. We had to have confirmed exposure to the recalled pet food, proof of toxicity, and clinical signs of kidney failure. So this is only a percentage of the deaths that are out there. There’s no way to guess how many pets were affected.”
[38]
In a potentially related incident in China, on 22 February 2006, Xinhua reported at least 38 cats dying shortly after being fed with Xiduoyu, a brand of a "Tianjin-based cat food manufacturer". A veterinarian referred to in the story said "test results from Beijing Animal Hospital showed the dead cats had suffered from kidney exhaustion and that the sick ones have kidney damage." Suspicions at that time focused on lead poisoning though Gu Junhua, a chief engineer from China's "national feedstuff quality check centre under the Ministry of Agriculture", was reported as saying: "But at present, he said it was difficult to draw any conclusions because the country has not drafted any food safety criteria for pets in terms of the quality and quantity of each element of the ingredients." No mention of melamine was made.[39]
Symptoms[edit]
Pet owners were advised to monitor their animals for the following signs of possible kidney failure that may be associated with the unknown toxicant: loss of appetite, lethargy, depression, vomiting, diarrhea, sudden changes in water consumption, and changes in the frequency or amount of urination. It was advised that pets exhibiting these symptoms should be taken for veterinary care as soon as possible, even if the animal did not eat any of the recalled pet food, as these signs may be indicative of other illnesses.[40][41] Ultrasounds of animals who have eaten the contaminated food in most cases show cortical echogenicity, perirenal fluid and pyelectasia.[42]
One of the largest veterinary hospital chains in the U.S., Banfield, has released statistics on the recent rates of pet kidney failure. Banfield's veterinarians treat an estimated 6 percent of the nation's cats and dogs, and their findings provide "the most authoritative picture of the harm done by the tainted cat and dog food," according to the FDA. Based on analysis of data collected by more than 600 hospitals and clinics in 43 states, out of every 10,000 cats and dogs seen in Banfield clinics, three developed kidney failure during the time pet food contaminated with melamine was on the market. They reported 284 more cases of kidney failure in cats than the expected "background rate," corresponding to a 30 percent increase. During that period, the Banfield vets saw 100,000 cats. According to Hugh Lewis, who analyzed the results for Banfield, extrapolating to the United States cat population may mean "several hundred cats a week across the country" were affected. No similar statistically significant increase was seen among dogs, suggesting the contamination was more toxic to cats.[43][44]
Prevention of illness in pets[edit]
As of 4 May, the FDA advised: "If your pet food is not listed [as recalled on its website], the pet food is not affected by the recall and you can continue to feed it to your pets; however, if your pet exhibits a sudden onset of symptoms including loss of appetite, lethargy, vomiting, stop feeding the pet food and contact your veterinarian."[32]
The growing number of recalls has motivated at least one well-known animal protection organization, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) to recommend "until this crisis is resolved ... pets be fed products containing U. S.-sourced protein supplements only."[45]
Food shortages in pet shelters[edit]
Many nonprofit pet shelters rely on donated foods to feed the animals and remain financially stable, but due to the wide use of wheat gluten and other contaminated ingredients in many wet pet foods and the large portion of foods represented in the recall, many pet shelters have had to discard foods despite the financial burden of doing so.[46][47]
Alternative pet food sources[edit]
Some pet owners have become concerned over the safety of all processed pet foods, and have chosen to forgo store-bought prepared pet foods in favor of preparing food from ingredients at home. The popularity of books on home preparation of pet foods has rocketed on Amazon.com. Some veterinarians have pointed out that animal diets are difficult to maintain in terms of nutritional appropriateness and safety, and are best served by store-bought preparations, an assertion disputed by some practitioners of home-made animal foods.[75]
Litigation[edit]
Many owners of pets stricken after consuming Menu Foods' product have considered filing lawsuits against the company, but are encountering difficulties with the valuation of the deceased pets. While many pet owners consider their pets to be a "part of the family," lost pets have traditionally been treated as property, with the potential liability limited to the retail value of the animal. Some states define the monetary value of a pet for litigation or insurance purposes. Other states have allowed suits for punitive damages and emotional distress suffered in the loss of a pet.
After word of the recall and reports of animal deaths began to spread, Menu Foods was served with several individual lawsuits over the deaths of affected pets. On 20 March 2007 after the death of her cat, a woman in Chicago, Illinois sued Menu Foods for negligence in delaying the recall.[80] The same day, lawyers for a Knoxville, Tennessee woman filed suit in Federal Court against Menu Foods for $25 million and hoping to attain class action status, citing negligence in testing the food prior to distribution.[81]
As individual lawsuits were filed across the nation, an Ontario, Oregon family filed a class-action lawsuit against Menu Foods, citing emotional damage and economic loss. The lawyers filing the federal lawsuit noted Washington state, which has jurisdiction, had a history of favorable consumer protection precedents in prior pet-related lawsuits, but finding a set value for the lost pets may be difficult.[82]
On 23 March 2007, Menu Foods said they will reimburse pet owners who can trace their pets' illnesses to the company's products.[83] One estimate is that the cost to owners of treating sickened pets is between $2 million and $20 million.[84]
By 5 April 2007 the 20 March Chicago lawsuit expanded to federal class-action status, with over 200 plaintiffs seeking punitive damages for emotional distress. The plaintiffs have specifically accused Menu Foods of fraud, claiming the company may have known of a problem as early as December.[85]
Menu Foods faces 90 class-action lawsuits as a result of the contamination.[86] U.S. District Court Judge Hillman has ordered Menu Foods to have no contact with plaintiffs unless their attorneys are involved in the discussion, after lawyers from six firms representing pet owners claimed the company illegally attempted to contact their clients directly. Hillman has said "It seems to me that Menu Foods is out to do whatever Menu Foods wants to do in a way that could adversely impact the rights" of the plaintiffs.[87]
[edit]
A 2004 outbreak involving pet foods sickened more than 6,000 dogs and a lesser number of cats in Asia. Kidney failure in the animals was linked to foods manufactured in Thailand by Mars, Inc. Veterinarians in Asia initially blamed the 2004 problems on fungal toxins, but pathology tests conducted in 2007 found melamine and cyanuric acid present in renal tissue from both outbreaks. According to pathologists: "These results indicate that the pet food–associated kidney failure outbreaks in 2004 and 2007 share identical clinical, histologic, and toxicologic findings, providing compelling evidence that they share the same causation."[88][89]