Katie, CVT, DN-CET, HABc, CPCN
Jan 28, 20214 min
Updated: Jan 4
This began on December 3o, 2020... Quite a way to end a hectic year, huh?!
"FDA is alerting pet owners and veterinary professionals about certain Sportmix pet food products manufactured by Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc. that may contain potentially fatal levels of aflatoxin."
"Aflatoxin is a toxin produced by the mold Aspergillus flavus, which can grow on corn and other grains used as ingredients in pet food. At high levels, aflatoxin can cause illness and death in pets."
FACT: corn is graded by quality, and human food can only contain the highest grade of corn, with a ZERO tolerance for ANY aflatoxin... However, that is not the case for pet food.
The FDA States:
“Pets with aflatoxin poisoning may experience symptoms such as sluggishness, loss of appetite, vomiting, jaundice (yellowish tint to the eyes, gums or skin due to liver damage), and/or diarrhea. In some cases, this toxicity can cause long-term liver issues and/or death. Some pets suffer liver damage without showing any symptoms. Pet owners whose pets have been eating the recalled products should contact their veterinarians, especially if they are showing signs of illness.”
If you feed this brand, please click this LINK and check the LOT NUMBER on your bag.
You can also report pet food complaints HERE.
Why this recall should concern you, even if you do not feed the recalled LOTS that are affected:
Let this be an example of a widespread issue in the pet food industry. Companies outsource cheap ingredients (such as grains), that are often contaminated. Remember the melamine crisis of 2007?!
If the company you buy from does not openly admit to where they source their ingredients and explain their safety/ testing procedures they have in place for incoming AND outgoing batches... stay away!
Even if your food was made by this manufacturer but is not affected by this particular recall... who's to say it won't be from cross-contamination on the production line.
You pet could still end up sick and you may not know until it's too late and the recall is expanded to further lots and lines of production.
It happens ALL the time!
"This is an ongoing investigation. Case counts and the scope of this recall may expand as new information becomes available."
-FDA
Midwestern Pet Foods was clearly:
Not testing their incoming ingredients
Not testing their outgoing product
As is required by Law.
If they were, I don't think this would've happened.
*I must mention, that there ARE reputable and trustworthy companies that test their products thoroughly.
Some even test of the presence of pesticides and heavy metals!
It's very important to research the company, research their safety practices, and find out their values and what they are truly transparent on in order to protect the health of your pets!
Over 1,000 lots now involved in deadly Aflatoxin contamination.
"As of January 11, 2021, FDA is aware of more than 70 pets that have died and more than 80 pets that are sick after eating Sportmix pet food."
Remember, this started out with about 9 lots being affected and 28 deaths.
❓ Should the manufacturer of this food face criminal charges for putting such a dangerous product out to market??
❌ Clearly, they lied about the testing process of their ingredients... As I mentioned above... this wouldn't have happened if they were.
Well, they have finally been hit with a lawsuit!
And rightfully so!
"FDA is aware of more than 110 deaths and 210 illnesses in pets that have eaten the affected products."
The products have been distributed to 35 countries.
Here's the LINK again to check the affected products and view the FDA warning.
Let's also be aware of the employees WORKING with mold contaminated food!!
If high levels of AFLATOXIN made it into the food?! How much made it into the air of the factory for everyone to breathe?!
The Truth About Pet Food does a great job at covering this issue!
Stop feeding this food! Even if your bag lot number was not directly involved with the recall.
As per good food storage practices that I explain to all my clients, it is HIGHLY important to keep the food in the original bag to retain the lot numbers in the case of a recall. I explain this more in depth in my Kibble Feeding How- To's post.
Want to sign up for recall alerts or report a pet food complaint?
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