The latest on the Menu Food's pet food related fatalities and the outcome of this week's laboratory tests and investigations...
At 1:00 p.m. EST today, press conference reports that wheat gluten containing rat poison is the culprit behind the cat food recall. This is responsible for killing a confirmed 16 pets, though cases are pouring in from veterinarians reporting fatalities, and reports of a phone call to Menu Foods is alleged to have said that thousands of pets were affected.
Eating the tainted food has killed about 50% of pets that consumed it. Not all pets have been harmed by eating the rat-poison laced food. Of the 16 confirmed deaths, 15 were cats. The animals died from acute kidney failure. The poison that was found in the wheat gluten was from China and is illegal for use in the United States.
Menu Foods set up a call center for concerned pet owners over the weekend, and they received 47,000 phone calls. They say the delay in the recall was because they wanted to make sure their foods were the real cause of the deaths. This is the biggest pet food recall we’ve ever seen. Menu Foods makes pet food for 95 companies, making you wonder if any pet foods are really that different from each other after all.
The FDA is investigating Menu Food’s plants. Many are questioning the FDA’s policies on pet food standards and practices.
Source: MSNBC - Press Release on Pet Food Recall
