Pet-food maker, ingredient supplier searched in federal investigation

[Purveyor]

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - Federal agents searched facilities of a pet food manufacturer and one of its suppliers as part of an investigation into the widening recall of products made with ingredients contaminated by an industrial chemical, the firms disclosed Friday.

Food and Drug Administration officials searched an Emporia, Kan., pet food plant operated by Menu Foods and the Las Vegas offices of ChemNutra Inc., the supplier of one of two ingredients suspected in the contamination of millions of cans of recalled dog and cat food, according to the companies.

Menu Foods also said the U.S. Attorney's offices in Kansas and the western district of Missouri have targeted the company as part of misdemeanor investigations into whether it violated the federal Food, Drug & Cosmetic Act. The sale of adulterated or contaminated food is a misdemeanor. A Justice Department spokeswoman had no immediate comment.

--
FDA spokeswoman Julie Zawisza would not confirm or deny that a search warrant was executed. "We have a strict policy of not discussing activities of our Office of Criminal Investigations," she said.

Read more: http://www.wmcstations.com/Global/story.asp?S=6436623

[Lance_Boyle]

1. Wow. A month and a half too late.

Heckuva job, FDA. :eyes:

[hang a left]

4. A month and a half???

The company knew since at least December.

[Shallah Kali]

20. Yep and the FDA has said this migh have been going on since last summer

food companies execs should have to eat their own product every day!!!

[NYC]

23. Last summer?

I hadn't read that yet. Thanks for the information.

I wonder what the consequences truly are. We'll never know.

[Shallah Kali]

24. Link to what I said above - FDA officials said Tuesday the contamination may go back as far as last

http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/160787.html

FDA officials said Tuesday the contamination may go back as far as last summer

Sorry I didn't post in my previous comment. The more people who know the truth - and have the facts to back it up - the better!!!

[Rhiannon12866]

7. I discussed this with my vet and he blames the FDA, too...

I just wish that this would be resolved. I've been cooking for my dogs for a month and a half, since I've been afraid to give them much of anything, never knowing what's going to be recalled next...:scared:

[Critters2]

2. What?!!

"The sale of adulterated or contaminated food is a misdemeanor."

What is a felony?!!

[StarryNite]

3. That line threw me too.

How in the hell can that just be a misdemeanor?

[The Backlash Cometh]

8. We are in the age of the machines.

The corporate machines, that is.

[Raine]

19. Me too

a misdemeaner(!!) a slap on the wrist, this just infuriates me! :mad: :grr:

[hang a left]

6. Well that would be pot possession in some states. nt

[xultar]

5. They better take dirt samples around the complex cuz the shit has been

dumped. Papers have been shredded.

Thanks for nothing fuckers.

[catgirl]

16. My thoughts exactly.

They gave them enough time to hide eveything. And the human
food affected isn't even beng publicized.

[Shallah Kali]

22. MenuFoods CEO used to be head of toxic waste disposal company & got sued - link

Menu Foods' Director was Director of Safety-Kleen Corp when it was sued for violations.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x496517

I am sure he found a way to incinerate anything incriminating with his experience in such matters.

[nicknameless]

9. Thanks for nothing, FDA

Seems to me they're an accessory to the crime.

K&R

[DawnIsis]

10. It makes me so angry they are sill maintaining only "16" pets have died

and the at the end of the article it says Menu Foods is facing over 50 lawsuits so far. So how can the press maintain only 16 pets are dead if there are 50 lawsuits? I am sure most of those are class action and have hundreds of plaintiffs. I want some investigative journalism done! I am so sick of the media.

I got another great story for our criminally lazy journalists: How about you "investigate" what all the top FDA officials feed their own family and pets! Seriously, all you have to do is ask their housekeepers for the shopping lists or follow them to the grocery store. Then confront the FDA officials with their grocery shopping: i.e. Why do you only purchase organic milk for your family when you claim there is nothing wrong with commercial milk? Why do you feed you pet specialty food if the commercial brands are safe? Did they stop buying chicken or pork recently? etc etc etc You could make a documentary out of it.

I think it is more likely the MSM will continue to bury their heads in the sand to avoid seeing the blood on their hands.

[StarryNite]

11. Good points

They take care of their own and the hell with the rest of us.

[formercia]

17. The elites buy organic and grass fed.

The difference in price means nothing to them. It's the poor and working class they are killing.

Perhaps that's the plan. If they can't ship us off to die on some godforsaken battlefield, they will poison us.

If they can't kill Social Security, they will make sure we don't live long enough to collect it.

[spooky3]

13. you're right and welcome to DU, DawnIsis.

:hi:

[Worst Username Ever]

14. Because one person can file many lawsuits.

If a pet dies, the owner could conceivably sue the store, the manufacturer, the broker, the importer, and every possible source of contaminated ingredients, to name a few.

Just addressing the "50 lawsuits" question. I am not making any claims as to how many pets have died, etc.

[DawnIsis]

15. If you read the article it says 50 lawsuits have been filed against Menu Foods alone

Your point about the people suing at all points in the contamination chain is correct but not relevent to the 50 lawsuits which are ONLY against Menu Foods.

[Betsy Ross]

18. You would like to thinkl they care about their families...

but we see no sign of it from much of the evil empire. Destruction of the environment which certainly will affect future generations doesn't seem to bother them.

[Shallah Kali]

21. What a wonderful idea of tracking what the FDA officials feed their own families!

I would pay to see such a documentary buy a copy and give it to the library!

[lovuian]

12. A wee bit too late my friends but hey after 2 months better

late than never

[Shallah Kali]

25. ChemNutra Imported Rice Protein, Sold to Unnamed Pet Co.s Only 1 Tested

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070427/ap_on_he_me/pet_food_recall

Import records obtained by The Associated Press show that since May 2006 alone ChemNutra also imported 440,000 pounds of the second suspect pet food ingredient, rice protein concentrate, from the same Chinese trading agent that handled exports of the tainted wheat gluten.

It's unknown if ChemNutra's rice protein concentrate was contaminated. Limited testing suggests it wasn't. However, another company's imports of that same ingredient, albeit from a different source, have been found to be tainted.

Ten of the 11 containers of rice protein concentrate imported by ChemNutra over the last year went to undisclosed pet food companies, spokesman Steve Stern said. The 11th is under quarantine and being tested. But just one of the other 10 is known to have been tested; results from those tests, done last week, showed it was not contaminated, Stern said.

The origin within China of the wheat gluten and rice protein concentrate remains murky. For example, ChemNutra's source for the two vegetable proteins, Suzhou Textile Import and Export Co., told The AP that food ingredients aren't part of its business — but that employees often take on side deals. Stern said ChemNutra dealt with the company's president.

I wonder if ChemNutra is the 2nd rice protein importer Sen Durbin was warned of that the FDA denied existed.