More than 60 million cans of dog and cat food sold under dozens of brand names were recalled after being linked to the deaths of 10 animals.
The food was manufactured by Menu Foods, of Streetsville, Ontario, which makes wet food sold as store brands for companies like Wal-Mart, Kroger and Safeway.
The company also makes food on behalf of many brand-name pet food makers. Menu Foods said it had recalled some food made for the Iams unit of Procter & Gamble. Eukanuba food is also on the recall list. Two other pet food companies – Nestle Purina PetCare and Hills Pet Nutrition, the unit of Colgate-Palmolive that makes the Science Diet brand – recalled some of their products that were made by Menu Foods.
Menu Foods is recalling only certain gravy-style pet food in cans and pouches it made from Dec. 3 to March 6.
The company said in a statement that tests of its food had “failed to identify any issues with the products in question.” But it did associate the timing of the reported deaths with its use of a new supplier for wheat gluten, a source of protein. Sarah Tuite, a spokeswoman for Menu Foods, declined to name the supplier.
Menu Foods is providing information on what packages are being recalled at (866) 463-6738 and at www.menufoods.com/recall.
The reported deaths of cats and dogs have been from kidney disease, Tuite said. Symptoms vary but can include lethargy, jaundice and vomiting, she said.
Kurt Weingand, a veterinarian and the associate director of external relations for Procter & Gamble’s pet care business, said that the company had been told of 20 cats that had developed kidney failure in the last two weeks. Of those, two have died. He said that the company did not know of any dogs that had been affected, but it recalled dog food that was made in the same Menu Foods plants as the suspect cat food.
Kidney failure is common in older cats; in younger animals it is associated with accidental poisoning, typically by antifreeze, Weingand said. The condition can be treated through hydration.
Tuite added that Menu Foods would compensate owners of pets that died, although she declined to say what the compensation would be.
Pet owners who want to make a claim must mail documentation of their use of the affected products to the address on the company’s Web site, she said.
Menu Foods says it produces 1 billion cans and bags of wet food a year. Shares of the company’s stock fell by 26 percent on Friday, after it announced that the recall could cost it between $30 million and $40 million.
Full list of products recalled
The recall is limited to “cuts and gravy” style cat and dog food in cans and pouches manufactured by Menu Foods between December 3, 2006 and March 6, 2007. The list of affected brands is posted at
This posting gives a detailed listing of the code dates and product names which the company has asked that you do not use.
Please send any inquiries to Pet Food Institute at 202-367-1120 or info@petfoodinstitue.org
Remember ONLY wet “chunks in gravy” foods are involved in this recall.
Recalled Cat Product Information Recall Information 1-866-895-2708
1. Americas Choice, Preferred Pets 2. Authority 3. Best Choice 4. Companion 5. Compliments 6. Demoulas Market Basket 7. Eukanuba 8. Fine Feline Cat, Shep Dog 9. Food Lion 10. Foodtown 11. Giant Companion 12. Hannaford 13. Hill Country Fare 14. Hy-Vee 15. Iams 16. Laura Lynn 17. Li’l Red 18. Loving Meals 19. Meijer’s Main Choice 20. Nutriplan 21. Nutro Max Gourmet Classics 22. Nutro Natural Choice 23. Paws 24. Pet Pride 25. Presidents Choice 26. Price Chopper 27. Priority 28. Save-A-Lot 29. Schnucks 30. Science Diet Feline Savory Cuts Cans, 31. Sophistacat 32. Special Kitty Canada, 33 Special Kitty US 34. Springfield Prize 35. Sprout 36. Wegmans 37. Weis Total Pet 38. Western Family US 39. White Rose 40. Winn Dixie
Recalled Dog Product Information Recall Information 1-866-895-2708
1. Americas Choice, Preferred Pets 2. Authority 3. Award 4. Best Choice 5. Big Bet 6. Big Red 7. Bloom 8. Wegman’s Bruiser 9. Cadillac 10. Companion 11. Demoulas Market Basket 12. Eukanuba 13. Food Lion 14. Giant Companion 15. Great Choice 16. Hannaford 17. Hill Country Fare 18. Hy-Vee 19. Iams 20. Laura Lynn 21. Loving Meals 22. Meijers Main Choice 23. Mighty Dog Pouch 24. Mixables 25. Nutriplan 26. Nutro Max 27. Nutro Natural Choice 28. Nutro Ultra 29. Nutra 30. Ol’Roy Canada 31. Ol’Roy US 32. Paws 33. Pet Essentials 34. Pet Pride – Good and Meaty 35. Presidents Choice 38. Priority US 39. Publix 40. Roche Bros 41. Save-A-Lot 42. Schnucks 43. Shep Dog 44. Springfield Prize 45. Sprout 46. Stater Bros (Wegman’s Bruiser – see #8, above.) 47. Weis Total Pet, 48. Western Family 49. White Rose 50. Winn Dixie 51. Your Pet
