Petfood community reacts to recent consumer-funded testing

Recent consumer-funded petfood testing coordinated by the Association for Truth in Pet Food has drawn responses from the petfood industry, which is questioning the methods used and the relevance of the results.

The Pet Food Institute (PFI) released a statement outlining the testing each product undergoes before it reaches the shelves, and said that simple test results don't provide the complete safety picture. "Petfood ingredients and products undergo rigorous testing by petfood companies, FDA (Food and Drug Administration) and state regulators to ensure safety, quality and appropriate levels of nutrition," said PFI. "The test results by themselves do not provide sufficient information to appropriately draw conclusions. Additional information is needed, such as the sampling method and laboratory materials used, measures taken to prevent contamination of samples, analytical methods employed, and test controls in place."
According to PFI, the testing results actually reaffirm the record of safety in petfood:

• Mycotoxins detected were well below the levels set by FDA and were essentially at background levels.
• Nutrient levels overall were consistent with the AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) nutrient profiles. Variation from the AAFCO nutrient profiles can be validated by conducting a feeding protocol using a particular cat or dog food product. Therapeutic products are fed under the direction and oversight of a veterinarian and may be designed to vary from the AAFCO nutrient profiles as part of the approach to addressing a particular health condition.
• The findings reported do not identify any bacterial species associated with foodborne illness or food spoilage.
• The most common foodborne pathogens were not detected in the test results, again validating the safety of the products tested.
Phyllis Entis, MSc., SM(NRCM), an author and food safety microbiologist, said the consumer-funded testing focused on all the wrong things. "What I find 'shocking and sad' is the waste of consumers' money in a wild goose chase after low-level pathogens of minimal risk to either humans or their pets," she said, in a post on FoodSafetyNews.com. Entis asked why the petfood samples weren't tested for known animal and human pathogens such as Salmonella and Campylobacter, and said that without providing species-level identification of bacteria, the results were useless.
"I acknowledge the good intentions of Susan Thixton and the Association for Truth in Pet Food, but I am appalled at the way in which this study was designed and carried out," said Entis. "The portions of the study relating to bacterial analysis and presentation of the mycotoxin results are the epitome of junk science. The pet-loving consumers who funded this study—and their dogs and cats—deserved far better."
In response, Thixton said the study is in no way "junk science," listing the scientists who oversaw the project and providing a bio of INTI Service Corp., the company the scientists work for. She also defended the pathogens tested and the information in the report. "The information provided in the full report was quoted from FDA, the Centers for Disease Control and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations," said Thixton. "I am by no means a scientist, so I relied on information from these well-known organizations to provide risk information to consumers."

Thermo Fisher Scientific offers product screening in new California facility

A new Thermo Fisher Scientific facility in Sunnyvale, Calif., is available to assist in addressing food, beverage and pharmaceutical manufacturers' safety and quality concerns.

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Product Assurance Services and Solutions (PASS) from Thermo Fisher offers rapid response for companies requiring off-site packaged product evaluation to address possible foreign object contamination concerns, according to the company. Additionally, the PASS facility can inspect products for processing anomalies (such as clumps), as well as broken or missing components (empty pharmaceutical blisters, partially-filled candy trays, etc.). "We are here to help customers get accurate and reliable results so that they are able to make informed decisions affecting the safety of the public," said Darren Eaton, global manager, PASS, Thermo Fisher. "By locating this facility in close proximity to this high production area, we help reduce the turnaround time and expense associated with urgent product contamination inspection issues."
The new Northern California facility is the company's third global PASS location. The other two facilities are located in Barrington, Ill. and Rugby, Warwickshire, England. In 2013, the PASS facilities collectively evaluated more than 8 million packages.

Food testing lab group Silliker increases mycotoxin testing services

Silliker, an international network of accredited food testing laboratories and a Merieux NutriSciences company, now offers expert testing for mycotoxins at its Illinois Analytical Laboratory. The Crete-based facility serves as the organization's Chemistry Testing Center of Excellence in North America.

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"We have a made a significant investment to bring the latest technologies and approved methods for the analysis of mycotoxins to our Crete-based operation," said Randall Fleener, director of the Silliker Illinois Analytical Laboratory. "Employing HPLC with fluorometric and UV detection, we offer expert testing for a wide range of food and feed ingredients. Our skilled scientists possess particular expertise with petfood products."
The ISO 17025-accredited laboratory provides results-at limits of detection (LOD) below US Food and Drug Administration guidance-for the following mycotoxins:

• Aflatoxins B1/B2, G1/G2 
• Aflatoxins M1
• Fumonisin B1, B2 
• Ochratoxin A
• Vomitoxin/Deoxynivalenol 
• Zearalenone
Silliker (#626) will be exhibiting at the 2014 Petfood Forum, March 31-April 2, 2014, in Schaumburg, Ill., USA. Experts will be on hand to discuss the laboratory's enhanced mycotoxin testing capabilities, as well as other technical and consulting services for the petfood industry.

MOCON establishes permeation petfood testing laboratory network

MOCON Inc. has established a global network of MOCON-certified permeation testing laboratories to provide independent material and package performance verification, regardless of location, for pet food products.
Currently, the company has certified seven laboratories in North America, Europe and Asia, at which the company aims to offer affordable permeation testing services.
“MOCON certification assures that companies using any one of these facilities will get the same level of service and quality they would find at any other MOCON-certified location anywhere in the world,” said Alan Shema, product manager for consulting and testing services, MOCON. “This is ideal for multinational companies which can now be assured that their materials or packages are tested using identical standards and protocols on three different continents.”
In conjunction with the certified laboratory network the company is also introducing the MOCON Data Check 4 program which offers periodic permeation testing services for an annual flat rate.
“This program offers a third-party quality control measure ideal for either small or large companies. The Data Check 4 provides a simple, affordable way for the material or package end user to verify supplier or internally-generated test data, as well as package performance parameters via an independent third party,” Shema said.

CDC explains food pathogen database, PulseNet

At the recent annual meeting of the Association of Public Health Laboratories in Seattle, Washington, USA, officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention explained how its foodborne pathogen database, PulseNet, aids in outbreak detection as well as future challenges CDC anticipates. 
PulseNet, launched in 1996, identifies the DNA information for foodborne pathogens, including those in petfood, using pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. The pathogen DNA information is then stored in a central database, which can then link cases in different states to the same outbreak. Because PulseNet uses DNA information to link illnesses to pathogens from human food, petfood or environmental samples, the contamination source is more likely to be identified. 
However, a future challenge for the PulseNet database is the variable amount of funding it is expected to receive over the years. Congress gave CDC US$4 million for PulseNet for fiscal year 2012, but has not yet received its funding allotment from Congress for 2013.  
According to Dale Morse, senior advisor at CDC's Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, & Environmental Diseases, some state labs receive supplemental funding from CDC's FoodNet and FoodCORE programs, which boosts lab capacity, but also means that many states lacking funding are behind in processing samples as soon as they come in.
"By focusing on certain activities they've seen dramatic improvements, but the amount of money has still been fairly small in those states," Morse said.
Additionally, PulseNet is challenged by the development of new pathogen tests that do not depend on cultures and use different a different pathogen characterization from that recognized by PulseNet. The new pathogen tests are fast, but do not isolate or grow bacteria or viruses before analyzing them, making them less accurate than current pathogen tests, Morse said. 
"One thing we can say for sure is that these tests provide different types of data than the ones we're used to," said Morse. "We know how to interpret culture; we don't necessarily know how to interpret some of the data that is going to be coming our way." 
John Besser, deputy chief of CDC's Enteric Diseases Laboratory Branch, said several committees are working to better understand the performance of the new pathogen tests and adapt case definitions to use these new tests, which could speed up the current testing process and provide a better understanding of how closely pathogens are related.
"As we all know, culture takes time. The whole process is very lengthy and depending on how we do this we can chop days or weeks off of the whole process," Besser said. "The technology that will replace PFGE is not yet clear, but a change of technology to one that is not dependent on culture-derived isolates is essential for the continued existence of PulseNet."  

SGS offers pathogen testing services to pet food manufacturers following recent recalls

Due to recent dry dog food recalls in the US and Canada for Salmonella contamination, many petfood manufacturers may be looking to more-thoroughly test their petfood products to avoid causing illness to pet owners and their pets. 
SGS in Brookings, South Dakota, USA, offers the petfood industry a complete range of pathogen testing services, including Salmonella, E. Coli and Listeria. 
“Salmonella outbreaks from petfood sicken not only pets, but their owners and owners’ family members. Children under the age of two and people who are immunocompromised are at an even higher risk,” said SGS microbiology laboratory supervisor, Sonja Van Holland.
Testing for yeast and molds from SGS may also assist petfood companies in monitoring their processes to help prevent risk of contamination or illness. For more information on petfood testing services, contact SGS at +1.877.692.7611, extension 5, or email analytical.brookings@sgs.com. 

FDA says petfood Salmonella testing is 'routine'

A spokeswoman for the US Food and Drug Administration says media coverage of a recent FDA announcement that it will sample pet food, pet treats and supplements for possible Salmonella contamination has been misleading to pet owners.

Laura Alvey, a spokeswoman in FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine, said the focus on Salmonella in petfood was planned as a part of FDA's fiscal 2012 assignments.
“I'm afraid that what has been reported in the media on this topic has been a bit disingenuous,” Alvey said. “This is a routine surveillance sampling assignment that we have been doing since 2007.”
According to Alvey, the sampling surveys have been used every year, with the only change this year being the title of the survey, which she says may be a cause of the sudden media interest. The previous Salmonella surveys were entitled Nationwide Assignment to Collect and Analyze Samples of Direct-Human-Contact Feed from Interstate Commerce in the United States for Salmonella. “Direct-human-contact feed” includes petfoods, treats and supplements, as well as food for animals in petting zoos and agricultural fairs. The new Salmonella survey is titled Nationwide Assignment to Collect and Analyze Samples of Pet Foods, Pet Treats, and Supplements for Pets from Interstate Commerce in the United States for Salmonella. 
Alvey said the FDA sampling is not in response to previous Salmonella outbreaks or to previous journal articles.
“Our goal here is to get an idea of how common Salmonella is in dry pet food, and then to determine which serotypes are most common and whether they are disease-causing pathogens,” she said. “There is no reason to believe petfood is unsafe.”  
In this latest FDA survey, samples are being collected from nationwide outlets where pet food, treats or supplements are offered for sale or for consumption. Imported products and canned petfood are not included. The sampling was scheduled to begin in October 2011 and run through September 2012. The agency did not give a timetable for reporting results. 

RECALL: Hartz Naturals Real Beef Treats for Dogs

The Hartz Mountain Corp. is voluntarily recalling one specific lot of Hartz Naturals Real Beef Treats for Dogs due to Salmonella concerns.
the petfood company is recalling 74,700 8-oz bags of Hartz Naturals Real Beef Treats for Dogs, lot code BZ0969101E, UPC number 32700-11519, which were imported by Hartz from a Brazilian supplier, Bertin S.A., and which were distributed to a number of customers in the United States. While regular testing conducted by Bertin (prior to shipment to the US) did not detect the presence of Salmonella in any packages of this product, random sample testing conducted by FDA did indicate the presence of Salmonella.
Consumers can contact Hartz at 1-800-275-1414 at any time with any questions they may have and for information on how to obtain reimbursement for purchased product.

Government regulation in the petfood industry

Currently, natural petfoods and supplements are regulated at a federal level by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s Center for Veterinary Medicine, but many pet parents and manufacturers feel a need for tighter oversight of the petfood industry, according to an article from Natural Products Marketplace.
For greater regulation than the government provides, the National Animal Supplement Council (NASC) puts its seal on approved products. NASC is comprised of companies in the industry that have passed an on-site audit conducted every two years at random by NASC officials. Additionally, NASC performs independent product tests and reviews product claims for misleading statements, while maintaining an independent adverse event reporting (AER) system.
All NASC members are required to follow a written quality manual that meets good manufacturing practices (GMP) standards. This goes one step further than FDA, which requires natural human products to follow GMPs but not pet health products. Petfood GMPs are being developed by FDA's Animal Feed Safety System (AFSS) and the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).

Traceability for today

Consumer concerns over their pets' health are advancing the developments of petfood traceability standards. Read the full article in Petfood Industry.

Registration open for petfood safety symposium

Registration is still open for Kemin’s Food Safety in Petfoods and Petfood Ingredients, to be held Oct. 6-7 in St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
The different sessions at the symposium will cover regulatory issues, quality and testing and manufacturing techniques.
For more information, visit www.kemin.com.

Analytical methods for melamine, triazine analogs

The following methods for detection of melamine/cyanuric acid were developed bythe Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Office of Regulatory Affairs.

GC-MS Screen for the Presence of Melamine, Ammeline, Ammelide and Cyanuric Acid (Version 2.1), May 16, 2007

GC-MS Method for Screening and Confirmation of Melamine and Related Analogs (Version 2), May 7, 2007

The FDA Field laboratories are using LC-MS/MS methods that are capable of determining melamine and cyanuric acid at levels of 0.25 ppm in powdered infant formula and other dairy-containing food products or ingredients. These and a GC/MS method for melamine and its analogues are:

*Melamine Methodology
*Determination of Melamine and Cyanuric Acid Residues in Infant Formula using LC-MS/MS
*Interim Method for Determination of Melamine and Cyanuric Acid Residues in Foods using LC-MS/MS
*GC/MS method for melamine and analogues

For more information, contact:
Jonathan Litzau, Forensic Chemistry Center (FCC), US FDA, +1.513.679.2700, ext. 268
Greg Mercer, Pacific Regional Laboratory – Northwest (PRL-NW), US FDA, +1.425.483.4755
Kevin Mulligan, +1.513.679.2700, ext. 238

Mocon offers in-house package testing laboratories

Mocon Inc. has opened in-house package testing laboratories in the US, Germany and China to provide clients with a pre-purchase testing environment.
The labs have instrumentation to analyze package types, substrates and components, including flexible structures, rigid bottles, foil seals, pouches, aseptic boxes, trays and lidstock, according to the company.
Mocon is a provider of instrumentation and consulting and laboratory services to medical, pharmaceutical, food and other industries worldwide.