Ceredigion, Wales, U.K.-based pet food company Homeland By Products Ltd. has recalled three batches of its frozen raw pet food in 500-gram package sizes, all with the best before date May 2020, after Salmonella was found in the products: frozen raw beef (batch code 1510), frozen raw turkey (batch code 1513) and frozen raw tripe (batch code 1518).
The risks of Salmonella in pet food
The Salmonella bacterium is a risk to pet owners as well as the animals themselves, and the fact that infected pets may not show signs of illness means it’s even more important for consumers to understand the symptoms caused by Salmonella, which the U.K. Food Standards Agency describes as including “fever, diarrhea and abdominal cramps.” There’s a risk of indirect contact (from touching any utensils or bowls that have come into contact with infected food or the animal’s feces) as well as direct contact from handling the infected food.
Recent research into raw meat diets and Salmonella
Research published in March 2019 studied 60 raw dog food samples from 10 manufacturers in Europe (Sweden, Norway, Finland, Germany and England). They discovered that more than 50% of the samples contained levels of bacteria that exceeded the European Union’s accepted maximum threshold of 5,000 bacteria per gram, with 7% of the samples containing Salmonella.
The researchers concluded that, in part because of the nature of raw pet foods (which aren’t processed in a way that would eliminate bacteria), it’s essential for pet owners feeding raw diets to maintain good hygiene around the storage and handling of the food in order to limit the potential risks to animal and human health.
Previous raw pet food recalls in the U.K. due to potential Salmonella contamination include a range of products from The Raw Factory Ltd. in November 2018 and a batch of Just Natural Chicken & Tripe from Avonvale Pet Foods Ltd. in January 2019.
