COUNTERFEIT
DOG FOOD = DEAD DOGS
First
melamine, now counterfeit dog food enters the USA under familiar-sounding names
like Diamond and Optima. Knock-off pet food products hurt USA businesses and
put us at risk.
Nel Liquorman,
Health
Editor
-
TheDogPlace
April 2009
- In early January 2009, there were
reports that dogs were getting sick and dying across China. The culprit was
believed to be
Optima dog food,
allegedly imported from Australia. We decided it was worth investigating.
The original manufacturer of Optima was
Doane Pet Care Enterprises, which was bought by Mars, Inc. in 2006. The
company is in Nashville, Tennessee. The Pet Food Industry Association of
Australia stated that Optima had not been manufactured in Australia since
2006, and confirmed that it was never exported to China.
The People’s Republic of China’s office of Inspection and Quarantine
investigated. It determined that Optima was not approved for import into
China nor was it ever imported from Australia. In fact, Natural Pet
Corporation, located in Taiwan, is widely reported as the distributor of
the tainted pet food.
The
Optima website in the USA is not the only site for Optima. There is a
site in Taiwan which may be counterfeiting under the name
Naturalpet.com. At that website, you will find their Taiwan address
and phone number for the distributor, which is Natural Pet Corporation. Go
to the products section and you will see Optima, Diamond, Super
Saver, Holistic Recipe Solution, Devine, and Feed Rite as the brands
they have available.
There is a web address above the pictures of Optima pet food products. It
looks like a web address for the USA brand of Optima but with a slight
difference. There is a hyphen between optima and pet care (optima-petcare).
The address www.optima-petcare.com
will take you to a site that says the domain name is for sale. It also
appears to be just a parking place for paid ads from many businesses, from
insurance to dating services.
National Pet Corporation may be a legitimate distributor for
Diamond’s Nutra Nuggets, which appears to have been exported in the past.
While the Taiwan distributor may be selling some legitimate products, it
appears there is some funny business going on as well!
The
China Daily Reported that the dog food packing producer for the Optima
sold across China was Doane International Pet Products Australasia. Note:
The Mars company has not indicated that it has a manufacturer by that name
or that it’s products are distributed in Taiwan.
Australasia
Probably not a misspelling. It may
represent a common trick used by counterfeiters. They use a spelling that is close
that of the actual brand. You should beware of this subterfuge. With
watches, it is often Rollex instead of the brand name Rolex. At first
glance, it looks like the seller was an Australian company but the spelling is not quite Australia, and curiously, it adds on
“Asia.”
Although Taiwan claims to be a republic, China maintains that it is part of
their territory. Since products from China have proven to be more than
problematic, should we not be watchful when it comes to products from what
is, or once was their territory? Many Chinese imports have proven harmful,
even deadly, not just in the USA, but around the globe. Here are just a few
problems with Chinese goods to jog your memory:
Melamine
Arrived in 2007 in wheat gluten. Many pets died when pet
food companies added it to their foods.
Lead
A problem in many goods, lead was found in imported
toys. Children are particularly at risk from this poison.
Sulfur
It has been found in drywall. It has caused many health
problems for people in newly constructed or remodeled homes, including some
that were damaged by Hurricane Katrina. It has been found to corrode copper
wiring, pipes, and air conditioning coils, particularly in homes in warm,
humid climates.
Formaldehyde
It's found in children’s clothing, it is believed to have
sickened children in New Zealand. A couple of children died because it was
flammable and their PJ’s caught fire. It is likely to be in any clothing,
bedding product, or upholstery product imported from China.
From automobile tires to toothpaste, bad products from China have been
recalled but only after damage brought it to the attention of our government
agencies. Our country openly admits it can not inspect even a fraction of
containerized shipments arriving at our ports every day. When we stop to
consider that the people of Taiwan and China are infamous for counterfeit
goods, how can we, as a sane nation, let anything from that part of the
world into the USA?
 If a pet food can be counterfeited, just imagine what could be looming in
what has become a global economy. Since our government is powerless to
protect us from contaminated pet food and human products, what can we do?
The answer is economic! As consumers, we must vow to stop buying goods that
are made in China, Taiwan, or other questionable countries. Buying goods
with labels that state Product of USA, Made in USA, or
Manufactured in USA may be our best chance of staying alive or keeping
our pets from being poisoned.
Evidence uncovered in this column led to
Dishing Out
Recalled
and Recycled Dog Food,
a June 1st Special Edition.
10121
http://www.thedogplace.org/Nutrition/PetFood-Counterfeit-09041-Liquorman.asp
NEL LIQUORMAN, TheDogPress Health Editor
For the net's most complete and candid
Canine Nutrition Section
More Health & Nutrition information by one of the net's top authorities,
Nel
Liquorman:
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