Evanger's Dog Food Recall

An Illinois-based dog food company has expanded its recall due to concerns of possible contamination by a drug that is used for euthanasia. Evanger’s Dog & Cat Food Company had first issued a recall of its 12-ounce cans of Hunk of Beef Au Jus last month, after five dogs fell ill and one died.

I have never heard of or seen this brand of dog food before and we don't feed our dogs canned food but can anyone explain how contamination with this drug would be possible at a dog food factory?
The cans say "hand packed"...I am wondering if this is a deliberate poisoning of some kind.

www.foxnews.com...

a reply to: RazorV66

That sounds troublesome. I would flip out.

I got stopped at the Cashier a few months back for a recall of my brand, Ceasar. I called when I got home and they had a batch that some of the foil/paper packaging got into the food, and they recalled it for "choking hazard".

Nothing like this. This is terrible.

a reply to: RazorV66

I wonder if they make cat food?

Off hand where does that chemical come from when it has to do with being in pet foods? Due to the ill history of some pet food company production, the meat used in the product is from euthanized shelter animals. In this case would assume a said better pet food product that it's not euthanized shelter animals that have been used/are still used by some of the commercial brands, but may be from cattle, horses,(insert animals they use for meat meals), etc.

One update from the initial release earlier this year:

Consumer complaints continue as the FDA digs deeper into operations at Evanger’s pet food after discovering evidence that none of the company’s meat suppliers are registered with USDA. Evanger’s owners blamed their suppliers and the FDA in the wake of findings that their dog food contains a barbiturate used to euthanize animals.

"The guilty party has turned out to be one of our most trusted meat suppliers. A USDA-APHIS inspected supplier who we had done business with for over 40 years, and whose plant we had visited numerous times over the years,” said Evanger’s owners Holly and Joel Sher in an online statement posted Sunday.

Since a trusted supplier failed to come through for them, they seem to be stuck in a hard place if the FDA doesn't feel the supplier is responsible.

“We have taken it upon ourselves to lead the campaign to force the FDA to put an end to allowing drugs like pentobarbital to enter the raw material stream and contaminate our pets’ food and endanger their lives.”

Officials with the Food and Drug Administration do not agree with the company’s contention that the agency is responsible for the pet food being contaminated.

“The detection of pentobarbital in pet food renders the product adulterated in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Therefore, it is not acceptable to use animals euthanized with a chemical substance in pet or animal foods,” an FDA spokesperson said Tuesday.

Source
Possible they'll have to find a more trusted company and have tests done periodically to make sure the meat they buy from a supplier is safe.