Tainted foods continue to be sold

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Contaminated dog and cat food is still being sold at some U.S. stores and more products could be added to the widening recall, a top health official told lawmakers on Thursday.

The Food and Drug Administration has inspected about 400 stores nationwide since the problem emerged last month and has found recalled products still on sale.

``We know that there's not 100 percent of the product off the shelf,'' FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine Director Dr. Steven Sundlof told a Senate Appropriations subcommittee.

The FDA has said the affected foods contained wheat gluten contaminated with melamine, an industrial chemical used in plastics and fertilizer. The recalled products represent about 1 percent of all pet foods, the agency has said.

Sundlof told lawmakers the melamine probably caused the deaths of 16 cats and dogs. The agency has received some 15,000 calls about other illnesses and deaths, but he said its main priority was the recall of contaminated food.

The American Veterinary Medical Association separately called on its members to help determine just how many pets may have gotten sick.

Canada-based pet food manufacturer Menu Foods Income Fund initially recalled 60 million cans and pouches of wet pet food sold under various brands including Procter & Gamble Co.'s Iams and Eukanuba as well as store brands sold at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Safeway Inc.

A number of other companies including Colgate-Palmolive Co.'s Hill's Pet Nutrition Inc., Nestle SA's Purina PetCare Co. and Del Monte Pet Products have also recalled some products.

The hearing came two days after Menu Foods expanded its recall to include more cat food. Last week, it widened its alert to include products with earlier production dates as well as dozens of more varieties.

The gluten was shipped by China-based Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. Ltd. to ChemNutra Inc. of Las Vegas, which sold it to Menu Foods and other, according to the FDA. The Chinese company has denied involvement.

The Senate panel questioned the current federal food safety system in light of the pet food scandal, saying it pointed to larger problems with both human and pet food.

Bacteria-tainted spinach sickened more than 100 people last year and ConAgra Foods Inc. recalled Peter Pan and Wal-Mart's Great Value brand peanut butter earlier this year.

``It confirms yet again that pet food as well as human food is at risk because of gaps in the system,'' Illinois Democrat Richard Durbin said. ``Unfortunately, it's the same broken food system.''

He also questioned why Menu Foods waited three weeks before notifying the FDA about concerns with its products.

Sundlof defended the agency, which he said acted as soon as it learned of the problem from Menu Foods. Officials are still tracking some wheat gluten shipments, he added.

When asked if more products could be pulled in the future, Sundlof said ``that's a possibility.''

Representatives for Menu Foods did not appear at the hearing, represented instead by the Pet Food Institute, an industry group.

Duane Ekedahl, the institute's president, said he did not have information about Menu Foods' contacts with the FDA. He said the pet food industry already has enough regulations in place to keep food safe.

``Retailers have to be vigilant about getting products off the shelves,'' he told the senators.

The FDA has posted a list of the recalled pet foods on its Web site at: http://www.fda.gov/ora/fed-state/recalls/Recall.xls

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