Pet Food Safety: Page 88

Pet Food Safety

AIB International plans petfood manufacturers safety course in November

AIB International will hold a Food Safety and Sanitation for Petfood Manufacturers course, November 8-10, at the company's Manhattan, Kansas, USA, facilities. The petfood safety course allows participants to gain an understanding of legal requirements as a result of the Food Safety Modernization Act and Reportable Food Registry; recognize prerequisites necessary to comply with Good Manufacturing Practice guidelines; develop and implement HACCP food safety programs; identify and evaluate control methods for pests; recognize types of foreign material contamination, and equipment and methods for control of such contaminants; and identify microbiological issues relevant to a petfood facility.

Market Trends and Reports

Preview: Virtual Petfood Forum 2011

If you need to know more about petfood safety, especially how the new Food Safety Modernization Act will affect petfood regulations, be sure to sign up for Virtual Petfood Forum 2011, taking place live online, Wednesday, October 26, 2011. Under the new FSMA law, petfood will fall under much of the same regulations and scrutiny as human foods.

Pet Food Ingredients

Controversy threatens GRAS process for petfood ingredients

A single thread of controversy entangled nearly every committee discussion during the annual Association of American Feed Control Officials meeting in August 2011. That thread was the impending change in the way the US Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine will oversee the safety of ingredients in petfoods and other animal feeds from now on—and how that change could severely inhibit the industry’s ability to demonstrate the acceptability of its ingredients to state regulators.

A thread of controversy centers on the impending change in the way the Food and Drug Administrationâ€™s Center for Veterinary Medicine will oversee the safety of ingredients in petfoods and other animal feeds from now on.

Pet Food Safety

At Walmart, petfood safety equals behavior

Food safety is no small enterprise. As Frank Yiannas, VP of food safety for Walmart, describes, thousands of professionals around the world have been trained, millions are spent on research, countless inspections are done at home and abroad—and yet, food safety remains a significant global health challenge.

Frank Yiannas, VP of food safety for Walmart (with Tippy), believes that enhancing food safety benefits all petfood manufacturers, retailers, customers and, most importantly, pets.

Contaminated petfood may sicken pets, humans, veterinarian warns

In the last few years, an increasing number of petfoods and pet treats have been recalled due to Salmonella contamination concerns, showing it is not just human food that is subject to food poisoning. In a New York Times article, a veterinarian at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that petfood contaminated with Salmonella can sicken not only pets that consume it but also humans that handle the petfood.

Pet Food Safety

The science and safety of petfood palatability enhancers

Palatability enhancers, as the name indicates, are used to affect taste, smell and texture of petfoods to increase their desirability to companion animals. Palatability is critical for manufacturers to consider when formulating a nutritionally balanced petfood.

Many palatability enhancers are tested for efficacy through controlled feeding studies that measure data such as first-bite preference and total consumption.

Merrick recalls Doggie Wishbone treats due to Salmonella

Merrick Pet Care is recalling 248 cases of its Doggie Wishbone pet treats because of potential Salmonella contamination. The affected treats are marked as follows: ITEM # 29050, UPC code 2280829050, Lot 11031 and a "Best By" date of January 30, 2012.

US FDA launches PETNet petfood incident tracking

The Partnership for Food Protection and the US Food and Drug Administration launched the Pet Event Tracking Network, PETNet, which is a secure, Web-based information exchange system for petfood-related incidents. PETNet’s voluntary information exchange, surveillance and alert system provides real-time information sharing about emerging petfood-related illnesses and product defects among FDA, and other federal and state agencies.

Market Trends and Reports

Nestle Purina recalls adult cat food for Salmonella contamination

Nestle Purina is voluntarily recalling bags of its Purina One Vibrant Maturity 7+ dry cat food due to concerns the petfood could be tainted with Salmonella, according to the company. Purina is recalling select 3.5- and 7-pound bags of the petfood, marked with a "Best by" date of May 2012. Recalled 3.5-pound cat food bags have production codes of 03341084 and 03351084, with UPC codes of 17800 01885.

'Business Day' petfood safety segment to re-air in August

The petfood safety segment on "Business Day with Terry Bradshaw" will air again in select US regional markets in August. In the Huntsville, Decatur and Florence, Alabama, USA markets, the petfood safety segment will re-air on Saturday, August 6, 13, 20 and 27, at 8 a.m. on the Fox WZDX-TV channel.

Pet insurance company offers petfood and nutrition tips for consumers

Pet insurance company Petplan's online blog offers consumer guidelines on selecting a petfood, as cases of petfood contamination and recalls have become more frequent. A report from Packaged Facts predicted the sales of natural and organic petfoods to grow three times faster than regular petfoods through 2015, though the pet insurance company warns consumers that the two terms are not the same.

Pet Food Safety

Target petfood safety with process hardware

Petfood manufacturers are looking for innovative ways to modify existing facilities and processing lines to accommodate the safest petfood processes possible. But as the recent Nestlé Purina recall of dry cat food due to Salmonella contamination demonstrates, there are significant challenges in manufacturing, packaging and delivering these products in the supply chain.

Every aspect of the petfood facilityâ€”from product movement through the plant and contamination from outside sources to equipment designâ€”all require rethinking in light of recent FDA regulations, sanitary practices and GMPs.

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