Melamine in pet food may not be accidental – USATODAY.com
A nitrogen-rich chemical used to make plastic and sometimes as a fertilizer may have been deliberately added to an ingredient in pet food that has sickened and killed cats and dogs across the country, public and private officials say. A leading theory is that it was added to fake higher protein levels.
Melamine has been found in wheat gluten, rice protein concentrate and, in South Africa, corn gluten, all imported from China, and all meant for use in pet food, the Food and Drug Administration confirmed Thursday.
“It adds to the theory when you see other products that are labeled as protein supplements, in this case rice protein, and in South Africa corn gluten and in the previous case wheat gluten,” said Stephen Sundlof, FDA chief veterinarian. “That melamine was found in all three of those, it would certainly lend credibility to the theory that this was intentional.”
Interesting, apparently, melamine was added to increase the nitrogen content of the food so it would show up as protein in the most common protein test, which only looks for nitrogen. When I am not working, I guess I will look up the test details.
I wonder if this is only the tip of the iceberg? What other techniques do food manufacturers use to fake it? Growing up, food adulteraion was a serious problem in India, and still continues to be an issue in the third world.
More on this story to come, I am sure.
One more thing that needs to be said is that the FDA has been very reactive, as opposed to proactive. This is partly because the FDA does not issue recalls, it first “strongly suggests” that the company involved recall whatver product it is that may be having issues. Only if this issue is not addressed can the FDA start seizure proceedings, which could take months. The FDa regulates and monitors on a company level, not at a product level.
For example, when Japan had one sample of U.S beef test positive for mad cow disease, that was the end of beef imports from the U.S. This is an extreme case because you’re dealing with an infectious disease, but the point is that when you are finding huge levels of pesticide in food from a country, the first thing you need to do is stop everything, troubleshoot, then turn things back on again. Yes, this gets expensive, but so does 1000s of sick pets. The difference is, who pays. In the U.S, it’s always the consumer!
Vote for anyone but for the Conservatives!
Harper is ignorant, arrogant and hypocritical when it comes to addressing the needs of the Canadian people.
Perhaps what Canada needs is a new political system, until then Canadians should ensure that there is never going to be a majority government of any kind. Voting for change appears to be voting for the same corrupt, ignorant and arrogant people to run our country, except that the name on the paycheck is different.
Reform is needed:
Tax Reform – Abolish or clean up the corrupt Canada Revenue Agency.
Judicial Reform – Abolish the appointment of corrupt judges, and elect judges as we elect MP’s, by voting who we think is not corrupt, although that may be difficult in both cases.
Pension Reform – Unify the provincial and federal Pension Benefit Standards Act. Present protection differs between the provincially registered plans versus the federally registered plans, which is discriminatory.
Energy Reform – Canadians rely on their automobiles for transportation since the country does not have a transportation infrastructure. Take the perverse profits the Oil companies brag about, over $400Billion, and equalize the prize of gasoline at the pumps. Canadians are being taken hostage by these companies and politically motivated events, over which the Canadian people have no control. It is criminal to make the Canadian people suffer at the hands of corrupt operators and corrupt politicians.