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Charges In 2007 Pet Food Poisonings

982 views 0 replies 1 participant last post by  murraysmom 
#1 ·
http://www.latimes.com/business/printediti...0,1111051.story

Someone on another board posted that charges had been levied in the Melamine-adulterated pet food scandal from last year. I found this LA Times article which explains what is happening for those interested.(see link above)

Quote from article:

A Las Vegas food import company, two Chinese businesses and the companies' top executives were indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury in connection with their parts in a tainted-pet food scandal last year that sickened or killed thousands of dogs and cats, the Justice Department said.

The announcement by John F. Wood, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri, marks the first time that a domestic company has faced criminal charges because melamine -- a chemical found in plastics that can cause kidney failure in animals -- was added to shipments of wheat gluten, a binding agent used in pet foods.

ChemNutra Inc., which imports Chinese food and ingredients for distribution across the United States, along with married owners Sally Qing Miller, 41, and Stephen S. Miller, 55, were charged in a 27-count indictment with evading mandatory inspections of the ingredients in China, delivering adulterated food, misbranding food and conspiring to defraud the companies that unknowingly bought the tainted ingredient. All but the conspiracy count are misdemeanors.

In a separate case, the grand jury returned a 26-count felony indictment against two Chinese companies and their top executives, accusing them of intent to defraud and mislead, delivering adulterated foods and falsely labeling wheat gluten to avoid export inspection.

"I didn't think anyone in government thought it was all that serious because it was 'just pets,' " said Christie Keith, a contributing editor for PetConnection.com, which last year became a clearinghouse for information about the tainted food as well as a site that thousands of pet owners turned to for moral support.

"Whether it satisfies me or not depends on what happens," Keith added.

"If the penalties end up being big enough or even if the process is onerous enough that it can have a deterrent effect on companies both here and overseas, then it might have a positive impact."
 
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