Dog Food Recalled Due to Potentially Unsafe Levels of Aflatoxin
Dog Food Recalled Due to Potentially Unsafe Levels of Aflatoxin
Dog Food Recalled Due to Potentially Unsafe Levels of Aflatoxin
The importance of screening food for toxins has been highlighted this month with the recent news that Midwestern Pet Foods Inc. have extended their product recall after reports that the pet food has potentially caused the deaths of 70 dogs due to containing possibly unsafe levels of aflatoxin.
The Food and Drug Administration said in a statement that it has been “aware of more than 70 dogs that have died and more than 80 that are sick after eating Sportmix pet food.”
Aflatoxins are mycotoxins produced by two species of Aspergillus, a fungus which is especially found in areas with hot and humid climates. Aflatoxins have a wide occurrence in feed and cereals, such as wheat, barley, rice and corn, which are used as ingredients in pet food. At high levels, aflatoxin can cause illness and death in animals.
Midwestern Pet Foods first announced a voluntary recall on Dec. 30, extending it last week. “There have been reports of illnesses and deaths in dogs associated with certain lots of products. No human illnesses have been reported,” the company said in a recall announcement. “Out of an abundance of caution, we have expanded this recall to cover all corn products containing pet foods with expiration dates prior to 07/09/22.”
Aflatoxin poisoning can display in animals with symptoms such as sluggishness, loss of appetite, vomiting, jaundice and diarrhoea.
The expanded recall includes “additional corn-containing lot codes of Sportmix, Pro Pac Originals, Splash, Sportstrail, and Nunn Better dry dog and cat foods” that were produced in its Oklahoma manufacturing plant. A full list of recalled products can be found here.
Randox Food Diagnostics
Randox provide solutions to the agricultural industry by having developed a range of screening platforms for toxins and drug residues within feed and cereals. Multiple mycotoxins can affect crops and drug residues can pass through to feed causing adverse health effects in both humans and animals.
Myco 9 facilitates the detection of up to 9 common mycotoxins from a single sample of cereal or cereal based feed, including aflatoxin B1/B2, aflatoxin G1/G2, deoxynivalenol, diacetoxyscirpenol, fumonisins, ochratoxin A, paxilline, T2 toxin & zearalenone.
For more information on the antibiotic screening arrays available contact us at: info@randoxfooddiagnostics.com
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Contact us or visit our Randox Food Diagnostics website.
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Contaminated Cereal Products Rejected at EU Borders
In the month of May alone, over 20 cases of feed and cereal based products have been rejected at EU borders after testing positive for aflatoxins with a risk decision level marking of ‘serious’, countries of origin include; Turkey, Egypt, Gambia, U.S, Indonesia, India, Azerbaijan and Spain.
The European Union have set tolerance levels for Aflatoxin B1 at 2 parts per billion (ppb) and total aflatoxins at 4ppb for nuts, cereals and dried fruits.
Aflatoxins are a mycotoxin produced by a fungus and thrive in hot and humid climates. Aflatoxin B1 is the most prevalent among food products and commonly occur among cereals (including wheat, barley, rice and corn) oilseeds (peanuts, almonds, pistachios and other nuts) spices, fruits, vegetables, milk and dairy products.
Screening for Mycotoxins
There are various screening methods available for mycotoxins in food, but few offer the choice of screening for multiple mycotoxins from one sample. Randox Food Diagnostics has created patented Biochip Array Technology (BAT), an immunoassay ELISA based method, to save the feed and cereal industry time and money on testing.
The Myco Array kit range can screen for 3-10 mycotoxins simultaneously from a single sample and depending on the users testing requirements, customisable kits are available.
For more information on mycotoxin screening with Randox Food Diagnostics contact info@randoxfooddiagnostics.com
