The FDA is reporting that it is possible that pet food linked to kidney failure was intentionally contaminated.
Health officials say tainted wheat gluten from China is to blame for making pets sick.
FDA officials say that none of the tainted wheat gluten made it into human food.
There is a US embargo on wheat gluten imports from the Chinese company that sold the pet food.
The company says that it is cooperating with the US investigation.
Not much of a report, nor is it clear that the FDA is merely saying the possibility has not been ruled out, or that there is reason to believe that this indeed is the likely means by which the food was contaminated.
I haven't seen anything on the FDA website that reports a shift in the theory. The pet food poison FAQ continues to say that the FDA does not know how melamine made it into the food, nor does the FDA point to melamine as the definitive cause of the deaths:
Q: Has melamine been identified as the causative agent in the reported illnesses?
The association between melamine in the kidneys and urine of cats that died and melamine in the food they consumed is undeniable. Additionally, melamine is an ingredient that should not be in pet food at any level. However, we are not yet fully certain that melamine is the causative agent. As in any investigation, we follow leads, use advanced forensics and try to narrow down the cause.
Q: What research exists regarding melamine and cats and dogs?
There is a scarcity of research in the published literature on melamine exposure in dogs and cats. We know of a 1945 published article in which dogs were administered 125 mg of melamine/kg body weight. The study reported melamine as having a diuretic effect, but no toxic effects were noted. We are not aware of any studies in the published literature involving the administration of melamine to cats.
Q: How did melamine get into the wheat gluten?
At this time, we do not know how the melamine got into the wheat gluten.
Q:What about the aminopterin? Is this latest finding in addition to aminopterin?
FDA has not been able to confirm aminoptrein in samples it has tested.
Q:How do you account for why NY State found aminopterin but FDA didn’t?
Our labs were not able to verify aminopterin. At this time, we cannot comment of the methodology or findings of NY State.
So far everything the FDA has been saying is consistent with my research that says melamine, either as the contaminant, or as the metabolized byproduct of a contaminant such as cyromazine, is not likely to be the source of the problem.
On the other hand, I go back to my original theory that a poison that seems to have had such a widespread and deadly effect was likely added to the food late in the production process in order to maintain its potency. And that means it was likely done here in North America rather than in China, and that in turn suggests a deliberate act instead of an accident or negligence.
If you reason along that path, the question that needs to be asked is who would stand to benefit the most. If the goal is to kill animals, then the answer is no one, so it makes it less likely that the pets were the real target. But the deaths of these pets is causing immense financial hardship for the pet food industry (in particular, Menu Foods and Iams). If the pet food industry was the real target, the obvious culprits are the animal liberation organizations (PETA and the Animal Liberation Front being the better known ones), who have been very vocal during this crisis that the pet food industry must be held fully culpable for what happened, including facing criminal charges.
