More Shoes Hitting the Floor in Pet Food Crisis. American Nutrition Inc. now implicated in creating foods with hidden rice protein.

And some are beginning to fly sideways in blame at pet food wholesale manufacturers.

You may remember a few days ago that we learned that 5 companies received Wilber-Ellis rice protein, but only 2 so far had revealed that the food they were making had been tainted, and the FDA told us they wouldn't unilaterally out the other three.

According to an AP report in today's Salt Lake Tribune, a third was outed, Friday, as the FDA apparently pushed the company, American Nutrition, Inc., into voluntarily recalling the pet food products it produced for other companies .  ANI asserts that none of their own products had

Unfortunately for American Nutrition Inc. some of the companies whose pet food was involved say they never knew they were receiving food with concentrated rice protein in them instead of higher priced proteins let alone tainted rice proteins.  According to the SLT, the affected pet food companies are Harmony Farms as welll as:

The Blue Buffalo Co., Natural Balance, Canine Caviar, Diamond Pet Foods and Mulligan Stew Pet Food.

Needless to say,  some pretty serious manure just found a large fan.

ANI is based in Ogden, Utah (hence the intense SLT interest, I assume) which also reports that Utah hogs were fed

contaminated food scraps from ANI.

An AP report published two days ago in the Houston Chronicle "Utah: Hogs Tested for Harmful Chemical " describes the hog feed as:

"scraps and sweepings" from American Nutrition.

It also notes that state tests of American Nutrition Inc food did not find melamine in their products, but that federal tests would be made.  I assume the positive result from the Feds was what prompted the ANI recall.  Was the company hoping the state would protect them?  

It sounds like there are two more organizations still to be outed, if Wilber-Ellis told the FDA there were five involved with receiving the tainted protein. And, you'd think they'd know.

In Nation in Brief the Washington Post reports that importers may be held liable for importing the tainted vegetable proteins even if they didn't know the product was adulterated .  It also says that feds inspected facilities of both Chem-Nutra which imported the original tainted wheat gluten and a Menu Foods plant in Kansas.  Menu Foods says it has been notified by two federal prosecutors that they are being investigated for misdemeanor selling of adulterated or contaminated food.  Heck, those loyal US attorneys have to do something while it will be too dangerous to try to get voters thrown off rolls and concoct scandals against Democratic officials and candidates.

 I also hope that premeditated sale of bad food calls for more than a misdemeanor.  This apparently is not the case this time, but next it might be if there isn't a strong deterrent. 

tags: pet food crisis  melamine  fda  us attorneys  

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