MDA Issues Consumer Advisory for Two Brands of Raw Pet Food

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is alerting consumers to avoid feeding or handling two separate brands of poultry-based raw pet food after the MDA laboratory found Salmonella bacteria in routine sample tests. The brand varieties include:

Bravo! Raw Food Diet 2 lb. Chicken Blend for Dogs and Cats manufactured by Bravo!, LLC, of Manchester, Connecticut. This is a frozen pet food product with the production code of 06/14/12, which is located on the white tag on the end of the package. This advisory is for the 2 lb. size of Bravo! Chicken Blend with the “best used by date” of 6/12/14 only. No other products, sizes, or production dates are involved. For further information, contact the company at 1-866-922-9222.Turducken Canine Diet 8oz. Patties, manufactured by Steve’s Real Food, Inc., of Murray, Utah. This is a frozen pet food product with the “Use By” date code of 10/27/13 B209, which is located on the lower front panel of package. For further information, contact the company at 801-540-8481 or gary@stevesrealfood.com.

Read the full release.**

Update March 13, 2013: The FDA has announced that Bravo! has recalled 2lb tubes of Chicken Blend-Raw Frozen Diet for Dogs and Cats.**PetCareRx does not currently sell these products.

Is slaughter-free meat proteins the future of pet food?

Pet owners of today are careful when it comes to foods that their pet eats. A survey done in 2018 revealed that 70 percent of pet owners who themselves follow a diet push provide the same for their pets. To give an example, organic food eaters give their pets an organic diet. The problem is that such a diet may not give the beneficial effects the pet owner hoped for in the first place.

Pet food fears

For caring pet owners, the fear of low-quality food making its way to the mouths of their four-legged best friend is a valid one. In 2018, the FDA warned of a possible link between grain-free foods and heart disease in dogs. It is not surprising that a company has come up with a product that has real edible animal protein sans the slaughtering of animals. These animal proteins are created without any harm to any animal. According to the promotional literature provided by the company, it said that it does not hold the opinion that pharmaceuticals and antibiotics are a must for farm animals raised specifically for meat production. The need for meat brings it with the always present foodborne illness present risk from conventional processing of the substance.

There is a definite method to obtain slaughter-free meat. According to an industry specialist, the manufacturing process utilizes a few of the principles which are found in brewing craft beer. The process of fermentation is leveraged to grow premium quality proteins which are subsequently harvested to quench the nutritional requirements of household pets.

Fewer pet food options

The founders of the company which makes slaughter-free meats said the idea came to them after he tried hard to locate pet foods that are in accordance with the high criteria that they fixed for their own consumption habits. He found out that there is a dearth of options where no animal was harmed to make sustenance for humans as well as pets. This compelled him to do the necessary research on how technologies could be used to foster a “clean-meat” industry.

It makes good economic sense to create a slaughter-free meat industry for pets. About 30 percent of all meat production in the United States ends up as pet food. This high consumption leads to residual concerns linked to animal welfare and antibiotic resistance. There are also the issues of sustainability and processing safety. A few slaughter-free meat production companies have created proteins that have passed all FDA tests, including ones for performance and safety. It helps that meatless food will enjoy a reduced environmental footprint. This is as the production of slaughter-free meats for pets takes huge quantities for fuel, land, and water.