Contaminated Wheat Gluten Used in Chicken Feed

FDA and USDA announced that byproducts from pet food manufactured with contaminated wheat gluten imported from China have been used in chicken feed on some farms in Indiana. Approximately 30 broiler poultry farms and 8 breeder poultry farms in Indiana received contaminated feed in early Feb. and fed it to poultry within days of receiving it. All of the broilers believed to have been fed contaminated product have since been processed. The breeders that were fed the contaminated product are under voluntary hold by the flock owners.

FDA and USDA believe the likelihood of illness after eating chicken fed the contaminated product is very low. No recall of poultry products processed from these animals is being issued. FDA and USDA anticipate that, as the investigation continues, additional farms that received contaminated feed likely will be identified. Contaminated feed has also been linked to swine farms in several states.

Also, Menu Foods, Mississauga, Ontario, expanded its recall list to include products that do not contain the contaminated wheat gluten but were manufactured at the companys plants during the period that contaminated wheat gluten was used, due to the possibility of cross-contamination. Menu Foods has received a report from a customer and has received study results, both of which indicate cross-contamination.

In addition, FDA issued an import alert giving inspectors the power to detain without inspection all vegetable protein imports from China for use as animal or human foods if they suspect the products might contain melamine. In the import alert guidance, FDA singled out a number of wheat, rice, corn, soy and mung bean imports from China for regulatory attention.