Pet food safety and other issues: a short roundup

As is my wont, I collect items about pet food.

Safety

The CDC’s web page on pet food safety makes three main points:

• Pet food and treats can sometimes be contaminated with germs that make people and pets sick.
• CDC does not recommend feeding raw pet food or treats to dogs and cats.
• Talk to a veterinarian for advice on how to maintain a safe and healthy diet for your pet.

The FDA’s webpage on pet food recalls lists 12 in 2026 so far.   Of these,

• 3 are due to foreign contaminants
• 5 are due to inappropriate levels of vitamin D or thiamine
• 4 are caused by listeria, salmonella, or other microbial contamination

Examples:

• APHA reveals Salmonella findings in animals and pet food: Reports of Salmonella in raw meat-based pet food in the United Kingdom have declined again from the record levels seen in 2022.The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) collected data on Salmonella from animals, feeding stuff and animal by-products (ABP) in England, Wales and Scotland. Read the full story
• Darwin’s pet food tests positive for Listeria and Salmonella: The FDA has again found bacterial contamination in Darwin’s Natural Pet Products dog food and the producing company, Arrow Reliance, is again refusing to recall its products. Read the full story

Other issues of interest

• Blog: Humanization vs. anthropomorphism in pet food marketing, formulation: Distinguishing between humanization and anthropomorphism has implications for pet food formulation and marketing. Read more
• Asia’s drug smugglers exploiting pet food as their Trojan Horse: Pet food seen as an innocuous vehicle for those looking to transport drugs over borders. Read more
• Cat owners on diets may be good market for insect-based pet foods: Certain factors may influence which pet owners are willing to give insects a chance as dog and cat food ingredients. Read more

Comment

Pet food, as I keep saying, is a category of the overall food system.  What happens with human foods also occurs in pet foods.  We have one, united food supply.

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