To the WSVMA Membership:

Recently, there has been important news of a dog food recall for products manufactured at a Gaston, South Carolina plant by Diamond Pet Foods.  Importantly, as of 1-13-06, there has been no contaminated pet food related to this issue discovered in Washington or Oregon and it is highly unlikely there will be.  

On 1-12-06, I discussed this issue with: Dr. Patricia Talcott , MS, DVM, PhD, DABVT, Veterinary Toxicologist with the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, and WSU Associate Professor; Dr. Stan Casteel, DVM, PhD,, Professor of Toxicology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65205, 573-882-6811 Casteels@missouri.edu , and R. Craig Wilson, Vice President, Food Safety and Quality Assurance, with Costco Wholesale. On 1-13-06, I discussed the matter with Dr. Jerry R. Heidel, DVM, PhD, Professor and Director, Oregon State University, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, 541-737-6964, Jerry.Heidel @ oregonstate.edu.

A person with ill and at least one dead animal in a neighboring state has posted allegations by email and it has appeared online alleging a connection between the aflatoxin contamination and recall occurring in the eastern U.S. and pet foods sold under the Kirkland brand name by Costco stores in the Pacific Northwest.  Furthermore, the person alleges that Diamond manufactures pet foods sold under the Kirkland brand and that company officials are withholding that information. 

Diamond does indeed manufacturer pet foods for Kirkland and company officials readily conveyed that information when asked. 

At WSU we have not seen any samples come in related to this issue requesting testing for aflatoxin.  There have been several interested parties contact us for sample submission.  We are encouraging all concerned parties that contact us to see the following websites as they provide in-depth information and a format for contact/complaints with Diamond Pet Foods:

Diamond Pet Foods web site http://www.diamondpetrecall.net/index.html

Cornell University diagnostic lab website http://diaglab.vet.cornell.edu/news/aflatoxin.asp

 Those who still believe that they have contaminated pet food need to keep the food and its original packaging with lot numbers and freeze it until it can be tested for the presence of aflatoxin.  As with most diagnostic testing, the better the samples are preserved and the sooner the samples are tested increases the likelihood for the most accurate, repeatable results.  The Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (509-335-9696) currently tests samples for a $20 fee in-state and $40 for out-of-state submissions.

Here is Dr. Casteel’s response to me by email after our phone call :  

As a precautionary measure, Diamond Pet Foods announced a voluntary recall on December 20, 2005; casting a wide safety net to prevent pet exposure to potentially unsafe food. The original recall included 18 products which have subsequently gone through extensive sampling and testing for aflatoxin. Aflatoxin has been found in less than 1.5% of Diamond's recalled products following 2700 dog food sample analyses done by independent laboratories specializing in aflatoxin testing. Specifically, Diamond is now more focused on further testing of Diamond Premium Adult and Diamond Maintenance dog foods based on testing results of the last two weeks. Diamond's website (www.Diamondpet.com) has a list of all recalled products and those not on the recall. Refunds and replacement of products have been offered to all customers.

Owners and veterinarians need to be aware that recalled products are limited to certain states selling products on the recalled list. These are states served by the production facility in Gaston, South Carolina. Any states west of the Mississippi plus Illinois and Wisconsin are not affected by the recall. States west of the Mississippi receive Diamond products manufactured in Meta, Missouri and Lathrop, California.  The actual source of the aflatoxin is from a lot of corn grown under drought-stricken regions of the Southeastern U.S. 

[Information in brackets inserted by Charlie Powell, Public Information Officer, WSU College of Veterinary Medicine--Also, please note that according to Mr. Wilson at Costco, the dog food formulations produced by Diamond for the Kirkland brand are lamb and rice formulations and do not contain corn.  Some of the cat food products sold under the Kirkland brand do contain small amounts of corn but again were not manufactured in the South Carolina facility with the contaminated corn.  Samples of Diamond foods manufactured in the western U.S. nonetheless have tested negative for aflatoxin.  The testing was done exclusively as a precaution by both Diamond and Costco on the ingredients as well as the finished rations.  It is not practical economically to ship feed corn across the U.S. to formulate pet food rations so it not reasonable to assume contaminated corn from the southeastern U.S. somehow made its way to California or Missouri for ration formualtion and distribution in the western U.S.  Finally, based upon Costco’s sales and consumption rate estimates, most if not all of the cat food manufactured during the same time period in question has been consumed without any reported illness, death, or aflatoxin contamination.

While issues in medicine should never be declared impossible, it is highly improbable that Kirkland brand cat foods sold in Washington or Oregon could be contaminated with aflatoxin related to the recall by Diamond as speculated on Internet postings.  WSU’s veterinary college recommends that in the case of clients who remain concerned about aflatoxin contamination, submission of samples and testing may provide the greatest piece-of-mind. In all cases, clients with ill animals should seek the care of their regular veterinarian.  CP]

Not all dogs exposed to aflatoxin will develop liver disease. Just like with any toxic exposure, development of aflatoxicosis is a dose-related effect. Some dogs that develop liver disease will recover and those exposed to large doses for extended periods may not recover. In an attempt to help with these tragic losses, Diamond has hired 24 veterinarians led by a board certified veterinary toxicologist to operate a recall center and gather the medical case information to ascertain if pet illnesses are related to aflatoxin in dog food. In cases where owners have retained pet food samples, they are instructed to send samples with label information (lot number and best before dates) to independent testing labs for aflatoxin analysis. If the product is part of the recall listing and Diamond receives a copy of the test report, they will pay the testing cost.

Speculation about the effects of low-dose exposure and the long-term effects in dogs recovering from toxic exposures are widespread on the Internet. Since many of these statements are unsupported by the scientific literature we recommend caution in their use and reliability.  Based on a review of the scientific literature dealing with aflatoxicosis in dogs, the minimum toxic level in dog food is 60 ppb. This level of aflatoxin exposure requires continuous consumption for several weeks to months in order for signs of liver dysfunction to appear. Other articles have suggested the toxic level in dog food is in the 100-300ppb range and requires continuous exposure/consumption for several weeks to months. No information is available to suggest that recovered dogs will later succumb to an aflatoxin-induced disease.

There is no specific antidote for aflatoxicosis.  Symptomatic and supportive care tailored to the severity of the liver disease may include intravenous fluids with dextrose, active vitamin K, B-vitamins, and a restricted, but high quality protein diet, with adequate carbohydrate content.

Posted on Wednesday, Jan 11th 2006
Contaminated Diamond Pet Food Products and "Best By" Dates Narrowed
Based on analytical sampling of finished product lots retained by Diamond Pet Foods, the company has been able to narrow products and "Best By" dates affected by aflatoxin.

Testing of more than 2,700 finished product samples conducted by independent laboratories confirms that only Diamond Maintenance Dog and Diamond Premium Adult Dog with "Best By" dates of April 3, April 4, April 5, and April 11, 2007, are potentially toxic. These products also will have a capital "G" (in reference to the company's Gaston, S.C., facility) in the 11th or 12th position of the date code (18 lb. to 55 lb. bags). The capital "G" will be in the 9th position on smaller 4 lb. to 8 lb. bags.

Test results for all other products have not been toxic.

As a proactive precautionary measure, Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul and Premium Edge brands have been tested and are negative for aflatoxin. It is important for consumers to note that Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul and Premium Edge brands are not included in the product recall.

"This testing will help our customers better identify products affected," said Mark Brinkmann, chief operations officer, Diamond Pet Foods.

Brinkmann also stressed that products included in the original voluntary recall should be returned to retailers. For complete information on the product recall, please refer to the company's Web site, www.diamondpet.com.

On December 21, Diamond Pet Foods initiated a voluntary recall of all products containing corn produced at its Gaston, S.C., facility and distributed to 23 states in the eastern U.S. The only states affected by the recall are Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, Vermont and Virginia.

Charlie Powell, Public Information Officer and Public Information Director WSVMA
College of Veterinary Medicine
Washington State University
Pullman, WA 99164-7010

phone 509-335-7073 (all hours)
fax 509-335-2132