| |
PET FOOD RECALL BROADENED DUE TO CONFUSION ON DATE CODES
Menu Foods has added products to its massive pet food recall to ensure that confusion over date codes does not result in suspect product being left on store shelves.
The recall originally affected “cuts and gravy” products for dogs and cats manufactured under numerous brand names between December 3, 2006, and March 6, 2007. The new recall by the company includes the same products, but includes all date codes. This step did not expand the recall but provided retailers with an efficient means of withdrawing the recalled product.
The full recall list is available at the company’s website, www.menufoods.com.
Menu Foods took the extra step after recalled product was found still on shelves. The company has also said it will pay for veterinary bills if its food has caused an animal’s illness or death. It instructed pet owners to keep records, bills and receipts for pet food and call its hotline at 1-866-895-2708, although pet owners have said it has been difficult to get through at times.
No recalled product has been found on shelves in West Virginia, said Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass.
“Although recalled product was in West Virginia stores, our surveillance indicates no instances of recalled products left on store shelves,” said Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass. “It appears that our retailers received the recall notice and pulled all the appropriate products.”
West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) staff members visit grocery stores on a regular basis for a variety of food safety and consumer-protection checks. They test pet foods to ensure their nutrition labeling is accurate.
Commissioner Douglass added that the WVDA is not keeping any official tally of animals possibly sickened by the products – thought to be contaminated with a variety of rat poison – but he believes many West Virginia pets may have been put at risk due to the large number of products involved in the recall.
“These products were sold widely at major retailers throughout the country. Pet owners should check to make sure they don’t have any of those suspect products in their homes and report any pet illness to their local veterinarians,” Commissioner Douglass said.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. Currently, Commissioner Gus R. Douglass is the longest-serving agriculture commissioner in the nation. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org.
|
