News from the FDA that suggests that the pet food situation is not yet under control, since now chickens already eaten by people were given melamine-tainted pet food:
The potential threat to human health from contaminated pet food has now widened to include chickens, with U.S. health officials announcing that melamine-tainted pet product made its way into poultry feed at 38 Indiana farms.
Much of the adulterated feed was eaten in early February by broiler chickens that have since been sold and consumed nationally, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in a joint statement issued late Monday.
The melamine-contaminated feed was used at 30 broiler poultry farms and eight breeder poultry farms across Indiana; all of the broiler chickens have since been sold to outlets nationwide. The breeder chicken have been quarantined and may be euthanized, the FDA and USDA said. The agencies also warned that "as the investigation continues, additional farms will likely be identified that received contaminated feed."
There is no reason to panic. Eaten and metabolized by the chicken and trapped mostly in the kidneys, it is not likely that the melamine would harm a human eating a portion of chicken muscle. It should be noted, though, that when heated, melamine breaks down into guanidine, a muscle stimulant, and ammonia.
Maybe not panic. But anger would be appropriate, I think. Aimed at the Chinese:
Amid growing revelations that suppliers in China frequently spike pet food and other food ingredients with contaminants to boost profits, momentum is building in Washington to bolster the Food and Drug Administration's capacity to detect and screen out adulterated imports.
Several Chinese suppliers conceded over the weekend that adding melamine to pet food ingredients -- now blamed for the deaths of many animals in the United States and possible contamination of the human food supply -- is but the latest technique for fooling U.S. companies into thinking they are purchasing a high-quality product.
That's called lying and cheating. How do you do business with these people? If we cut off food imports from China, Chinese farmers might face serious financial difficulties. If that happens, they won't be happy. To prevent unrest, the Chinese government will have to spend money earmarked for weapons systems aimed at Japan and Taiwan on buying up Chinese agricultural products that can't be sold any longer. The material will either have to be destroyed, or it will be sold back to Chinese consumers. But if it is sold back, the Chinese government will not need to import so much food. Reducing imports will aggravate the chronic trade imbalance China has with virtually every other nation on the planet. That frustration will further isolate China and subject it to possible trade sanctions from nations fed up with the Chinese never buying anything.
Hey, sounds like a plan to me.
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