That's Fit

The pet food recall of the last few months has been scary enough for pet owners. But apparently now some of the tainted pet food has been fed to pigs in five states and to chickens in Missouri. The animals, who have now been quarantined, were tested and the substance that's causing all the trouble, melamine, was detected in their urine. It's unknown whether any of the tainted meat entered the food chain, officials say.

Melamine is a chemical used to make plastics and fertilizers, so what was it doing in pet food? Overseas manufacturers (wrongly) used it to boost the apparent protein content of their products, and the chemical killed pets across the country. Now the FDA is investigating whether products intended for humans that use imported protein supplements may be at risk of carrying the chemical as well. Under investigation are: wheat gluten, rice protein concentrate, corn gluten, corn meal, soy protein and rice bran. These products are found in many types of processed goods, like breads, pastas, cereals, as well as energy bars and protein shakes.

The FDA cautions that there's no evidence to suggest human products have been tainted, but it's a scary revelation nonetheless.

Over this past weekend, the massive pet food recall has started almost every pet owner into a frenzy of overreaction. After all, most pet owners love their pets dearly -- me included.

Although this is a little off-topic for That's Fit, I felt it necessary to post something nonetheless due to the emotional stress that could occur (and is happening most likely) over this situation. After digging into the details, only wet foods (not dry) are affected, and the recalled list of actual products (UPC code list here -- PDF File) should give pet owners some guide into the media madness that is going on right now.

It's important to understand exactly which foods (brands and products) and exactly what the issue is here. As this situation develops further (into more brands and products, possibly), rest assured we'll cover it here. Until then, be watchful of the specifics and make sure Fido or Kitty is okay with the food you've chosen for each.