Dog food contaminated
2007-02-22 18:50
Johannesburg - A contaminant that forced the withdrawal of dog food from supermarket shelves had been traced to an ingredient in five product lines, said manufacturer AquaNutro on Thursday.
"The supplier of that specific ingredient was immediately notified of the contaminated raw material and our company cancelled all orders from the supplier," said AquaNutro managing director Dirk van der Linde.
The affected products were Omega Premium, Platinum Maintenance, DogSense Adult, K9 Generations and Export Product.
The presence of ethylene glycol was found after claims by dog owners and a veterinary surgeon in late 2006 and early 2007 that some AquaNutro products caused renal or kidney failure in dogs.
Extensive tests were initially negative until a detailed analysis tested positive for the contaminant, said Van der Linde.
Using different supplier
The contaminant tested positive in a "limited number of batches" of some lines of dog food.
The raw material had originated in Europe, but was obtained through a local supplier.
New orders of the ingredient were placed with a different European supplier, he said.
Van der Linde said production of the five lines was on hold, and would resume once the ingredient arrived from the new supplier.
The factory was still producing other pet food products, he said.
"Customers can be assured that all our products comply with all health, hygiene and nutritional standards."
Van der Linde said distributors and interested parties were informed that tests were being conducted and warned before ethylene glycol was found.
- SAPA