Posted on 04/29/2007 7:48:23 AM PDT by Flavius
About 45 state residents ate pork from hogs that consumed animal feed laced with melamine from China.
(Excerpt) Read more at chicagotribune.com ...
Chinese unregulated additives are a disaster waiting to happen...
I have long advocated ceasing all trade with Red China because it is a disgusting totalitarian state that we should not be supporting in any manner, and this case just makes me think it is also a matter of our health and safety.
Let them rot in their own poisoned system: we don't need any food, no matter how inexpensive, from the PRC.
i want to know where ceo’s eat
Ping
Are there any candidates that are talking about this?
please, like people are represented by anyone
just shut up and eat your swill
Surely you jest.......
The silence is deafening!
She is serious.
And don’t call her Shirley.
(Obligatory “Airplane!” ref.)
Unfortunately, none that I aware of.
Representative Hunter to his credit has been a critic of our China trade policies, but I don't believe that I have heard any report of him speaking directly to this issue. (His web page at the House is here.)
I want to know a LOT more about this.
See updates at ITCHMO.COM
Government says no recall needed in case of hogs thought to have eaten contaminated pet food.
http://www.woodtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=6442091
WASHINGTON The government says the risk to humans is very low from hogs that may have eaten contaminated pet food.
The Food and Drug Administration and the Agriculture Department say their ongoing investigation has also determined that no hog recall is warranted.
Surplus pet food sent to some farms contained rice protein concentrate imported from China. Tests after cats and dogs got sick after eating it showed the pet food contained the industrial chemical, melamine. Melamine is not considered a human health concern, but there is no scientific data on the health effects of melamine combined with the other compounds.
Several hundred hogs that had the food are believed to have been placed on the path to slaughter, but thousands more are still on farms in California, New York and South Carolina. Those states have been told that no meat from any of those hogs can enter the food supply.
That appears to be a valuable website.
This FDA link from just yesterday in particular was interesting:
FDA News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 28, 2007
Media Inquiries:
FDA Press Office: 301-827-6242
USDA Press Office: 202-720-4623
Consumer Inquiries: 888-INFO-FDA
Joint Update: FDA/USDA Update on Tainted Animal Feed The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continue their investigation of imported rice protein concentrate which has been found to contain melamine and melamine-related compounds. Based on information currently available, FDA and USDA believe the likelihood of illness after eating pork from swine fed the contaminated product would be very low. The agencies are taking certain actions out of an abundance of caution.
As announced on April 26, swine known to have been fed adulterated (contaminated) product will not be approved to enter the food supply. (Because the animal feed in question was adulterated, USDA cannot rule out the possibility that food produced from animals fed this product could also be adulterated. USDA cannot approve potentially adulterated meat.) This update provides additional information regarding the ongoing investigation.
As reported on April 22 by FDA, the Agency determined that rice protein concentrate imported from China was contaminated with melamine and melamine-related compounds. The product was imported by Wilbur-Ellis, an importer and distributor of agricultural products. Although the company began importing product from China in August 2006, the company did not become aware of the contamination until April 2007. As part of the ongoing investigation, FDA has determined the rice protein was used in the production of pet food and a portion of the pet food was used to produce animal feed. The ongoing investigation is tracing products distributed since August 2006 by Wilbur-Ellis throughout the distribution chain.
At this time, we have no evidence of harm to humans associated with the processed pork product, and therefore no recall of meat products processed from these animals is being issued. Testing and the joint investigation continue. If any evidence surfaces to indicate there is harm to humans, the appropriate action will be taken.
The assessment that, if there were to be harm to human health, it would be very low, is based on a number of factors, including the dilution of the contaminating melamine and melamine-related compounds from the original rice protein concentrate as it moves through the food system. First it is a partial ingredient in the pet food; second, it is only part of the total feed given to the hogs; third, it is not known to accumulate in the hogs and the hogs excrete melamine in their urine; fourth, even if present in pork, pork is only a small part of the average American diet. Neither FDA nor USDA has uncovered any evidence of harm to the swine from the contaminated feed.
In addition to the dilutional factor and the lack of evidence of illnesses in the swine fed the waste pet food, we are not aware of any human illness that has occurred from exposure to melamine or its by-products. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention systems would have limited ability to detect subtle problems due to melamine and melamine-related compounds, no problems have been detected to date. To further evaluate any potential harm to humans, the FDA is developing and implementing further tests and risk assessments based on the toxicity of the compounds and how much of the compounds consumers could be expected to actually consume.
The ongoing investigation and product reconciliation and testing have led to certain farms. We expect the investigation will continue to find more places where product may have been distributed. As of April 26, sites in the following states are believed to have received and used contaminated product: California, Kansas, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina and Utah. As we confirm additional sites that have received and used contaminated product, we will provide additional updates.
USDA and FDA continue to conduct a full, comprehensive examination to protect the nation’s food supply and will provide updates as new information is confirmed.
####
Since that seems to be the exact opposite stance of their usual regime for new and unknown drugs, this seems to me a remarkable statement from the FDA.
This statement seems to be bending over backwards to discounted any adverse effect of an admittedly dangerous compound. How much does our trade policy with China affect the FDA’s public statements, I wonder?
Yes, not only is it bending over backwards to discount any adverse effects, it seems to be also be the polar opposite of their usual policy with regard to drug testing.
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