Harriet writes
>I have read that corn should not be in the first 3 ingredients of ferret
>food.  Why is this?  And when the ingredients are listed on the bag for
>ferret food is there a agency that checks the companies to make sure that
>the specified ingredients are in ratio with the portion of being listed as
>the first ingredient being the most of the percentages with the second
>ingredient lesser and so forth and how often are they checked.
 
Corn is often used in pet food because it is relatively high in protein
for a grain.  However ferrets cannot digest the corn sufficiently to get
the protein out of it.  As obligate carnivores, ferrets need meat-based
protein.
 
As to anyone checking the ingredients, the answer is apparently no.  Each
state has it own regulations about pet food labelling.  The AAFCO
(Association of American Feed Control Officials, http://www.aafco.org/)
issues recommendations and guidelines, but has no regulatory force.  With
few states having the resources to monitor, compliance is voluntery.
 
The topic of pet food labelling, and what it does and doesn't tell you,
will be addressed by Dr Bill Sadler of Purina Mills/Mazuri at the
International Ferret Symposium, aka Ferrets 2002, in Las Vegas, Feb 1-3,
2002.
 
For more information, visit the symposium web site at
http://ferretsymposium.mdex.ca/
 
Linda Iroff
Oberlin OH
[Posted in FML issue 3598]