Crosspost
1. FW: Purina's statement re: Recall of Horse Feed - PURINA NOT ONLY FEED AFFECTED.
Posted by: "Marty Of Jondalar"
Tue May 6, 2008 6:07 am (PDT)

Here is more on the recall and numbers.

To: flhorse@yahoogroups.comSubject: Purina's statement re: Recall of Horse Feed - PURINA NOT ONLY FEED AFFECTED Mon, 5 May 2008 19:19:23 -0400Below is a copy of Purina's announcement regarding their voluntary recall, with the phone numbers to two of the plants for more info and a link to Cornell University for more info on Aflotoxins (which is a toxic byproduct of certain fungi).

NOTE THAT THE CONTAMINATED INGREDIENT & SUPPLIER THAT CAUSED THE RECALL IS USED BY NUMEROUS FEED COMPANIES - NOT JUST PURINA - AND REMEMBER THAT IT ISN'T JUST HORSE FEED AFFECTED - IT ALSO INCLUDES GOAT FEED AND PIG/SOW FEED AND POSSIBLY MORE FEEDS.

The contaminated ingredient isn't named in the recall, nor is the supplier of the affected ingredient named in the recall. You may have to call Purina's affected plants to find out more information. Purina reports it has stopped buying from this supplier, but that other companies also buy from this supplier. For those on AOL who may not be able to read the recall notice below, here are the Purina plant numbers to call:
For more information about specific products included in the retrieval, contact the Statesville, NC Feed Plant at (704) 924-5100 or the Harrisburg, PA Feed Plant at (717) 737-4581.

ALSO NOTE THAT SINCE MORE COMPANIES OTHER THAN PURINA BUY THIS INGREDIENT FROM THIS SUPPLIER, THEN IT MEANS OTHER FEEDS ARE ALSO AFFECTED AND IT MAY NOT JUST BE FEEDS DISTRIBUTED ON THE EAST COAST (as is the case with Purina) but also feeds which are distributed Nationally and possibly Internationally. You many want to call your feed dealer to see if they have more information on what other feeds may be affected.

Personally, I really wish they would give us a lot more info. We obviously cannot count on the FDA to protect our animals' health any more than we can count on them to protect human health by staying on top of contaminated food recalls and making the news public.

Request forwarding/cross-posting to make this info available to as many animal owners as possible who may be feeding their animals with the contaminated ingredient.

Susan
Micanopy, FL

Here's the Jurga Report weblink with the news:
http://special.equisearch.com/blog/horsehealth/

Here's the link to Cornell University's Dept. of Animal Science for more info on Aflotoxins, which is why the recall was initiated:
http://www.ansci.cornell.edu/plants/tox ... toxin.html

Here's a copy of the Jurga report which contains the Purina recall statement (hopefully it will come through Yahoo and AOL OK, but if it doesn't, just use the links provided above):

SUNDAY, MAY 4, 2008
Purina Recalls Horse Feed Products in Most Eastern USA States

Welcome to our nightmare: the possibility of contamination in horse feed. That's the bad news. The good news is that so far there are no reports of any adverse effects on horses.

People have been asking about an alleged recall of Purina products for horses, and I am posting their notice, in its entirety, for all to read (please see note at end). This has been going on for some time but emails circulating through the horse community have picked up steam in the past week, so people have questions:

Land O’Lakes Purina Feed LLC has implemented a voluntary product retrieval of certain feeds manufactured between November 3, 2007 and February 8, 2008 at our Statesville, N.C., feed plant; between January 1, 2008 and February 8, 2008 at our Harrisburg, Penn., feed plant; and between January 1, 2008 and March 10, 2008 at our Guilderland, N.Y. plant.

This voluntary retrieval was initiated due to the possible presence of aflatoxin contamination above acceptable levels.

To date, we have received no confirmed aflatoxin-related animal health complaints involving any of the retrieved products. Nevertheless, we have taken such precautionary action as our utmost priority continues to be our customers and the well-being of their animals.

All dealers who purchased any of the retrieved products directly from Land O’Lakes Purina Feed LLC have been notified. These dealers are located in the following states: Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia and West Virginia.

Our investigation and product testing identified one ingredient of concern, which originated from a single supplier. We have discontinued purchasing from this supplier. Other feed companies that purchased from this supplier are facing a similar situation.

For more information about specific products included in the retrieval, contact the Statesville, N.C., Feed Plant at 704-924-5100 or the Harrisburg, Penn., Feed Plant at 717-737-4581.

I think the most important piece of information in this, besides the fact that no animal health reports have been issued, is that other manufacturers bought the ingredient thought to be contaminated. That means that owners should be alert no matter what brand of feed they have purchased since the winter.

Check with your local feed dealer about any possible problem with feed you may have purchased, but it sounds like there was a quick action that prompted the possibly contaminated feed being removed from the retail supply side before it could be sold. Let's hope!

To learn more about aflatoxins, which are byproducts of mold contamination, check this page from Cornell University's Animal Science Department.

Labels: aflatoxin, horse feed, Purina, Purina Mills