Thread: Pet Food Recall -> Diamond Expands Voluntary Recall

May 4, 2012
Diamond Pet Foods Expands Voluntary Recall of Dry Pet Food Due to Potential Salmonella Contamination

Batches of the brands manufactured between December 9, 2011 and April 7, 2012 are affected

Consumer Contact: 866-918-8756 Media Contact: 816-255-1974

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – May 4, 2012

Diamond Pet Foods today announced that it is expanding a voluntary recall to include batches of nine brands of dry pet food formulas manufactured between December 9, 2011 and April 7, 2012 due to potential Salmonella contamination.



In April 2012, Diamond Pet Foods initiated three voluntary recalls of Diamond manufactured dry dog food. Although none of the additional products being recalled have tested positive for Salmonella, the company is pulling them from store shelves as a precaution. Diamond Pet Foods is coordinating efforts with federal and state health and regulatory agencies and decided to independently expand the recall to ensure the safety and well-being of customers and their pets.

The company stated: “We have taken corrective actions at our Gaston, S.C., facility and voluntarily expanded the recall out of concern for our customers and their pets.”

Brands included in the recall include:
•Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul
•Country Value
•Diamond
•Diamond Naturals
•Premium Edge
•Professional
•4Health
•Taste of the Wild

To determine if their pet food is recalled, consumers should check the production codes on the back of bags that have a number “2” or a “3” in the 9th or 10th digit and an “X” in the 11th digit. The best-before dates for the recalled brands listed above are December 9, 2012 through April 7, 2013.

The following graphic illustrates how to read the production code and best-before date:


The recall affects only products distributed in the following U.S. states and Canada. Further distribution through other pet food channels may have occurred.
•Alabama
•Florida
•Georgia
•Indiana
•Kentucky
•Massachusetts
•Maryland
•Michigan
•Mississippi
•New York
•North Carolina
•Ohio
•Pennsylvania
•South Carolina
•Tennessee
•Virginia
•Canada

The Kirkland Signature products included in the recall include:

•Kirkland Signature Super Premium Adult Dog Lamb, Rice & Vegetable Formula (Best Before December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013)

•Kirkland Signature Super Premium Adult Dog Chicken, Rice & Vegetable Formula (Best Before December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013)

•Kirkland Signature Super Premium Mature Dog Chicken, Rice & Egg Formula (Best Before December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013)

•Kirkland Signature Super Premium Healthy Weight Dog Formulated with Chicken & Vegetables (Best Before December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013)

•Kirkland Signature Super Premium Maintenance Cat Chicken & Rice Formula (Best Before December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013)

•Kirkland Signature Super Premium Healthy Weight Cat Formula (December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013)

•Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain Salmon Meal & Sweet Potato Formula for Dogs (December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013)

To determine if their pet food is recalled, consumers should check the production codes on the back of bags must have both a number “3” in the 10th digit and an “X” in the 11th digit. The best-before dates for the recalled brands listed are December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013.

The following illustrates how to read the production code and best-before date:





The recall affects only products distributed in the following U.S. states, Puerto Rico and Canada.
•Alabama
•Connecticut
•Delaware
•Florida
•Georgia
•Maryland
•Massachusetts
•New Hampshire
•New Jersey
•New York
•North Carolina
•Pennsylvania
•South Carolina
•Tennessee
•Vermont
•Virginia
•Canada
•Puerto Rico

Diamond Pet Foods apologizes for any issues this may cause consumers and their pets. Pet owners who are unsure if the product they purchased is included in the recall, or who would like replacement product or a refund, may contact Diamond Pet Foods via a toll free call at 1-866-918-8756, Monday through Sunday, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. EST. Consumers may also go to a special website, www.diamondpetrecall.com, for more information. The company is working with distributors and retailers to ensure all affected product is removed from shelves.

Pets with Salmonella infections may have decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, pets may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

Individuals handling dry pet food can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with surfaces exposed to this product. People who believe they may have been exposed to Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. According to the Centers for Disease Control, people who are more likely to be affected by Salmonella include infants, children younger than 5 years old, organ transplant patients, people with HIV/AIDS and people receiving treatment for cancer. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have received a limited number of reports of salmonellosis, the illness caused by Salmonella. We are working with the CDC, but due to patient confidentiality, we cannot comment further.

http://diamondpetrecall.com/diamond-...untary-recall/

Salmonella in dog food sickens 14 people in US
By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH and JEFFREY COLLINS | Associated Press – 1 hr 8 mins ago

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Fourteen people in at least nine states have been sickened by salmonella after handling tainted dog food from a South Carolina plant that a few years ago produced food contaminated by toxic mold that killed dozens of dogs, federal officials said Friday.

At least five people were hospitalized because of the dog food, which was made by Diamond Pet Foods at its plant in Gaston, S.C., the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. No pets were sickened, according to the Meta, Mo.-based company.

"People who became ill, the thing that was common among them was that they had fed their pets Diamond Pet Foods," said CDC spokeswoman Lola Russell.

Three people each were infected in Missouri and North Carolina; two people in Ohio; and one person each in Alabama, Connecticut, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia, the CDC said.

"Our folks are really wanting people to be aware of it. They want to be aware that this is causing people to get sick because they may have product in their homes. For every one that is reported, there may be 29 others," Russell said.

People can get salmonella by handling infected dog food, then not washing their hands before eating or handling their own food, health officials said.

The South Carolina plant temporarily was shut down April 8. Diamond Pet Foods has issued four rounds of recalls for food made at the plant, located outside of Columbia, S.C., between Dec. 9 and April 7. The latest recalls were announced Friday.

"We took corrective actions at the plant, and today the plant is up and running. Our mission is to produce safe pet foods for our customers and their pets in all Diamond facilities," the company said in a written statement Friday.

In 2005, a toxic mold called aflatoxin ended up in food made at the same Diamond Pet Foods plant in South Carolina and dozens of dogs died. The company offered a $3.1 million settlement. The Food and Drug Administration determined the deadly fungus likely got into the plant when it failed to test 12 shipments of corn.

FDA officials were not immediately available for comment Friday on the most recent problems with the plant.

Agriculture officials in Michigan found the strain of salmonella during routine testing of dog food on April 2 and health investigators noticed there was a possible link to the food made by Diamond Pet Foods. An ill person still had some of the food, and authorities were able to link the cases to the food, the CDC said.

The recall covers a number of pet food brands made at the Gaston plant, including Canidae, Natural Balance, Apex, Kirkland, Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul, Country Value, Diamond, Diamond Naturals, Premium Edge, Professional, 4Health and Taste of the Wild.

___

Hollingsworth reported from Kansas City, Mo.

Online: http://diamondpetrecall.com/ http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com

http://news.yahoo.com/salmonella-dog...012725663.html

Dog food salmonella recall expanded in U.S., Canada
Reuters – 1 hr 1 min ago

(Reuters) - Diamond Pet Foods has expanded a recall of its dry dog food, taking precautionary steps after several of its brands were linked to an outbreak of a rare strain of salmonella poisoning that infected at least 14 people in nine states.

The company said it was now pulling a total of nine brands of its dry dog food from the shelves. In April, it began the recall by pulling three brands.

The salmonella cases were found in humans who may have had contact with dogs or dog foods prior to their illness.

The additional brands have been recalled as a precaution and none had tested positive for salmonella, according to a statement issued by the company on Saturday.

The products were distributed in 16 states, mostly along the U.S. East Coast, and Canada.

Another dog food company, WellPet LLC, also said it was recalling one of its brands as a precaution.

Diamond first started pulling some brands of dog food produced at a South Carolina plant after salmonella infections were reported from October 8, 2011, to April 22, and five people were hospitalized.

Cases were reported in Alabama, Connecticut, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

Seven of 10 sick people said they had contact with a dog in the week before becoming sick.

And five of sickened people recalled the type of dog food with which they had contact, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention previously said in a statement.

http://news.yahoo.com/dog-food-salmo...GlvbnM-;_ylv=3