Walk down the aisle of your favorite big box pet store and what do you see? Stack after stack of beautiful bags of dog food designed with colorful pictures of bright red beef, along with vegetables so fresh you feel you could reach out and pick up one. But pet food manufacturers lie!
Pick up the package and read the ingredients. Do they measure up to the pictures? Often, they do not.
Sometimes the ingredients labels don’t even match what is inside the package or can of dog food. You won’t get what you think you are buying.
That appealing package of a popular brand of dry kibble may contain lethal drugs, like Pentobarbital, and that kibble may also contain the remnants of someone else’s beloved cat or dog.
Yes, I know that sounds horrible and disgusting, but it is the truth. Of course, not all manufacturers in the pet food industry intentionally lie but knowing that their company’s bottom line is their main concern, a consumer must become knowledgeable about what goes on in the pet food industry.
The Agencies behind the Pet Food Industry
The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) defines pet food ingredients and establishes nutritional requirements of dog and cat food. They do not enforce regulations. The agency determines minimum and maximum standards of protein in pet food.
Look for the AAFCO seal of approval on every package or can of dog food you buy to be sure the product contains enough protein. But know that this seal of approval does not guarantee the quality of the protein or other ingredients in the food.
The FDA Really Calls the Shots
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sets regulations requiring pet food be safe to eat, is produced under sanitary conditions, is free of harmful substances and is properly labeled. The FDA is supposed to enforce the laws it sets. This agency should conduct frequent inspections of pet food manufacturing plants and those of suppliers to the pet food industry.
The FDA should work in conjunction with AAFCO to develop laws, define ingredients and establish guidelines for pet food. They should investigate complaints by consumers and veterinarians. The problem comes when the FDA doesn’t always enforce their own laws.
Has the Fox Been Turned Loose in the Hen House?
Though pet food consumers want to believe these agencies are working for us to protect our pets, incidents occur that make us wonder.
Susan Thixton wrote about the July and August, 2019, announcements by the FDA telling consumers not to buy pig ear dog treats. But the Center for Disease Control said it took 8 months and 135 human illnesses for the FDA to announce there might be a problem. Why were we not warned many months ago about the pig ear dog treats problem?
The issue of pentobarbital in pet food raises more questions. The hints of this violation of Federal law have been going around for years, yet nothing was done. This past year brought recalls of pet food when the drug was found in various brands of pet food.
12 Years of Problems Plaguing the Pet Food Industry
The last 12 years haven’t been kind to pet food manufacturers, beginning with the melamine catastrophe in 2007, when thousands of dogs and cats died, to the chicken jerky treat scandal in 2012. Add in the many recalls of various brands of pet food for possible Salmonella poisoning, Listeria contamination, foreign bodies in the food, mycotoxin reports, drugs in the food and more, and it’s clear that any sympathy belongs with the consumer.
The take-away from this is that decent oversight of the pet food industry is missing.
Horrors of the Pet Food Rendering Industry
“Hundreds of thousands of pets are being killed in shelters across the country despite proven methods of saving them. Not only are these animals killed, their lifeless and chemically laden bodies are further disgraced to the fullest degree. They are not buried with respect; they are ground alongside of horrid waste, cooked, and become sellable goods to numerous industries, including the pet industry….This is a crime beyond description.” – Susan Thixton
You know that expiration or “use by” date on the package of ground beef in your freezer? Have you ever thought about what supermarkets do with such meats and other perishables that don’t sell? It all goes into large containers to await the arrival of trucks from the pet food rendering industry.
The drivers take the spoiled contents of those containers to the rendering plant and dump the entire load into a huge vat. Everything goes in – the spoiled food, plastic wrap, Styrofoam packaging and all – to be ground into dog or cat food kibble.