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According to Benjamin England, founder and CEO of FDAImports.com, food importers and foreign manufacturers are in for a surprise starting October 1, when a provision of the Food Safety Modernization Act becomes effective requiring the US Food and Drug Administration collect a fee for costs associated with re-inspection of imported food shipments. England is currently launching a coalition of interested manufacturers and food importers to challenge FDA’s broad interpretation of this FSMA provision. England says the re-inspection fees will cripple the food industry, leaving no other choice but to pass the costs on to consumers. In its Federal Register notice issued August 1, FDA invited comments about the re-inspection fees, which will be accepted until October 31. England points out that the fees, however, will go into effect 30 days before the comment period has closed. Through his coalition, England is working with pet food manufacturers to officially comment on and rally against these new fees.
England, a former 17-year FDA member, will speak about the Food Safety Modernization Act and the FDA re-inspection fees at the upcoming Virtual Petfood Forum 2011 on October 6. Those interested in attending Virtual Petfood Forum can register online to learn more about the Food Safety Modernization Act and other issues affecting the petfood industry.
"Our new packaging was designed to provide the consumer with a great shopping experience, easy access to key product information and a representation of the true quality of our recipe," said Doug Sapp, vice president of marketing.
In addition to the new packaging, Blackwood introduced a series of new pet food recipes. The grain-free recipes include salmon meal and potato, and chicken meal and potato. The sensitive skin and stomach recipes include lamb meal and rice, and chicken meal and rice.
K9Cakery.com, a dog bakery product supplier, recently introduced it Cake Shoppe, which was awarded second place in the Pet Product News Editor's Choice Awards 2011 competition. Rated on features such as innovative concept, design and pet acceptance, Cake Shoppe will be featured in Pet Product News International’s November 2011 issue for the second-place win.
K9Cakery.com’s Cake Shoppe kit is an all-inclusive kit that comes with a dog bone shaped cake pan, Fido’s Frosting (yogurt) and a cake mix.
Ward says there is no official definition for the term "natural," which could mean anything that is not synthetic but does not guarantee the product's quality or nutritional value. Another term often found on petfood labels is "organic." This refers to how plants were grown or animals were raised. The US Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program provides standards for human organic foods, which require at least 95% of ingredients be in compliance to have the USDA seal on the package; this applies to pet foods, too. Pet food consumers may also look for this seal on the labels of organic petfoods. The label "grain-free" on pet food packages means that they do not contain grain, wheat, corn or animal by-products.
Consumers must also understand how pet food is regulated, Ward says. The Association of American Feed Control Officials establishes nutritional standards for pet food, while the US Food and Drug Administration regulates petfood and its labeling.
Ward says pet owners should look for pet foods that contain the highest amount of protein that is minimally processed. When pet food ingredients are heated, Ward explains, much of the food's nutritional value is lost, and pet foods with a high amount of carbohydrates do not offer much nutritional value, either.
While many consumers believe that organic, "green" pet foods often cost more per ounce, Mazeffa says these petfoods also tend to have higher concentrations of nutrients, meaning pets may not need to be fed as large of a quantity of the food. Mazeffa recommends that consumers check ingredient labels of pet foods in supermarkets so as to avoid harmful food preservatives. He also advises pet owners to stay away from pet foods that have the ingredient "meat and bone meal" listed on the label, because he believes this is the lowest quality protein.
To ensure the petfood is organic, Mazeffa suggests looking for food that is marked as certified organic and meets US Department of Agriculture standards for being free of pesticides, hormones, antibiotics and artificial preservatives.
Greenopia.com rates petfood brands based on sustainable and humane production, packaging, food grade and ingredients, recycled materials, building logistics and overall supply chain. Greenopia also considers how well the company reports the petfood ingredients and the petfood manufacturer's environmental goals and practices. Greenopia gave the highest ratings to Best Organic and Natural Dog Foods, Honest Kitchen Dehydrated Dog Food, Karma Organic Dog Food, Best Organic and Natural Cat Foods, Honest Kitchen Dehydrated Cat Food, and Natural Planet Organics Cat Food.
A US$405,000 grant through Ontario, Canada's Rural Economic Development program will allow a petfood ingredient supplier to turn egg "waste" into high-protein pet food products, The Beacon Herald reported. Perth County Ingredients, a subsidiary of Vanderpol's Eggs, began producing pet food ingredients at the plant, previously used for egg processing, in May 2011. The plant currently employs nine people and the company uses only about half of the factory space, so it has plenty of room for expansion, according to plant manager, Murray Walz.
Walz explained that the company processes whole-egg waste from egg-grading plants and turns it into a powdered pet food ingredient, which contains up to 50% protein. He said the plant also extracts egg whites from discarded shells, which the company uses to produce a liquid egg white that acts as a binding agent in pet food.
A recent eNewsChannels article aims to clarify three myths for pet owners about prescription diet pet foods.
The first myth is that commercially prepared prescription diets are the only option for pets that require a special diet. Pets that are fed prescription diet petfoods usually must manage a specific health condition. The article says, however, that so long as the health guidelines or restrictions of the pet's veterinarian are followed, homemade food can be prepared or used in combination with a prescription commercial pet food.
Another myth addressed in the article is that some pet owners believe it is OK to feed all pets a prescription diet food that is required only to be fed to one other pet. This is not true, the article says, because the other pets that do not have the same health condition may not receive the proper nutrients from the restricted-ingredient, prescription food.
The last myth is whether a commercially prepared prescription diet food will address all of the nutritional needs of a pet with multiple health problems. Again, it is not necessarily true that a prescription diet food will solve all health problems, the article says. In this case, it is recommended that the pet owner feed a custom-tailored diet that is designed by a veterinarian or nutritionist to address the multiple health concerns.
