Lonnie Posted about dated kibble:
>It should also be kept in mind that in the U.S. these days, pet
>foods have to be manufactured to at least minimum human food safety
>standards. That came about because it was discovered that a lot of
>pet food ends up being eaten by people.

NO, that is NOT correct! Pet food is usually clearly marked "NOT for
human consumption". Bagged dry kibbles, canned, individual serving
sizes and even treats - all the packages I've ever read,while they
may have pretty pictures of gourmet meals, that lull you into that
feel good feeling, the fine print reads: "NOT intended for human
consumption" or some similar phrase.

Pet food manufacturing plants may have to pass SOME USDA (United
States Department of Agriculture) regulations, but that does not
mean their product is fit for human consumption, it simply means
their manufacturing plant (when inspected) passed certain sanitation
requirements.Like having stainless steel prep surfaces, three
compartment sinks, specific temperatures for hot water and
refrigeration, washable non-porous surfaces (as opposed to plain
wood or other porous surfaces). Many home kitchens can easily pass
a USDA inspection.

There are some baseline FDA (Food and Drug Administration) regulations
that pet food manufacturers must meet, such as the food must be
considered safe to eat (for animals) - that does NOT equate to the
food being safe for human consumption! The FDA is currently attempting
to get the AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) to
establish actual regulations for pet foods, but the AAFCO has tabled
this action for another year. The FDA already keeps at least one FDA
official on the Board of the AAFCO but the FDA wants to get out of the
pet food regulation business. - Hmm, think about that - a FEDERAL level
department wants to put the reins of regulating the pet food industry
into the hands of a group of people that so far think that any food
that keeps an animal alive with only a 15% loss in body weight over 6
months is perfectly safe to feed! No Thank you!

Pet food manufacturers may have implemented some HAACP (Hazards Anaysis
And Critical Control Points) procedures, but that in no way affects the
end product since HAACP is designed to keep the workplace safe for the
employee.

U.S. pet food manufacturers are NOT under the same guidelines, nor
do they have to follow the same regulations as human grade food
manufacturers. Although it is common to find a pet food manufacturing
plant on the same premises as a human grade food manufacturer or within
close proximity, and owned by the same parent company - it is simply a
convenient way for the by products and waste products left over from
the human food manufacturing to be used. What started out as say a
chicken intended for a human dinner table has now been, plucked, bled,
decapitated, eviscerated, quartered and maybe deboned. All these items
that made up the live chicken but are no longer visible in that package
of say boneless chicken breast meat are what gets thrown into a bin to
get sent (when the bin is full) to the pet food manufacturer. Since
these waste products are not going to end up on a human dinner table,
there is no rules or regulations involved in storage temps or means.

So the chicken heads, brains, crops, guts, feathers and other things
make up a LOT of what so many kibble describe as "made with real
chicken". The pretty picture of a whole raw or cooked chicken on that
bag makes OUR brain think the "made with real chicken" means real
chicken meaty parts. This is marketing at its best!

Go ahead, read the labels - ALL the labeling on the pet food packages -
you'll see it clearly marked - NOT for human consumption". IF humans
eating dog food equated to pet food manufacturers now producing "fine
for your dinner table and Fido's too food", then feeding the dog steak
just turned your grill into a pet food cookery!

Pet food manufacturers most certainly do NOT fall under the same rules
and regulations as human food manufacturers.

Cheers,
Kim

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[Posted in FML 7374]