[nagdu] The Shocking Truth About Commercial Dog Food

Wed May 9 21:53:14 UTC 2012

The Shocking Truth About Commercial Dog Food
by Mike Sagman
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-industry-exposed/shocking-truth-about-dog-food/
Warning!  The following story is shocking… but true.  It’s taken with
permission from an article which appeared in the Earth Island Journal:

“The rendering plant floor is piled high with “raw product”… Thousands
of dead dogs and cats; heads and hooves from cattle, sheep, pigs and
horses; whole skunks; rats and raccoons… all waiting to be processed.
In the ninety degree heat, the piles of dead animals seem to have a
life of their own as millions of maggots swarm over the carcasses.

“Two bandanna-masked men begin operating Bobcat mini-dozers, loading
the “raw” into a ten-foot deep stainless steel pit. They are
undocumented workers from Mexico doing a dirty job. A giant auger at
the bottom of the pit begins to turn. Popping bones and squeezing
flesh are sounds from a nightmare you will never forget.

“Rendering is the process of cooking raw animal material to remove the
moisture and fat. The rendering plant works like a giant kitchen. The
cooker, or “chef”, blends the raw product in order to maintain a
certain ratio between the carcasses of pets, livestock, poultry waste
and supermarket rejects.

“Once the mass is cut into small pieces, it is transported to another
auger for fine shredding. It is then cooked at 280 degrees for one
hour. The continuous batch cooking process goes on non-stop, 24 hours
a day, seven days a week as meat is melted away from bones in the hot
“soup”. During this cooking process, the “soup” produces a fat of
yellow grease or tallow that rises to the top and is skimmed off. The
cooked meat and bone are sent to a hammer-mill press, which squeezes
out the remaining moisture and pulverizes the product into a gritty
powder. Shaker screens sift out excess hair and large bone chips. Once
the batch is finished, all that is left is yellow grease, meat and
bone meal.”

Welcome to the Dark Side of Recycling

So, what on earth could this unsavory concoction be legitimately used for?

Certainly not to make anything edible… right?

Unfortunately… as hard as it is to believe… the final “product” of
this grisly process is sold as a source of protein and fat for making
animal feeds.

That’s right… food ingredients to be fed to chickens, pigs, cattle…
and you guessed it… dogs!

These revolting products are actually used to make dog food.

Every day, hundreds of rendering plants across America ship thousands
of pounds of this recycled garbage to ranches, farms, feed lots… and
pet food manufacturers.

Each batch of rendered product is labeled… according to its dominant
animal source.  That’s why on a dog food label you’ll see so many
ingredients that look like these…

■Poultry by-product meal
■Meat by-product meal
■Fish meal
■Animal fat
All are products of the rendering process.

Toxic Waste and Euthanized Pets

But this same complex system which converts waste into animal feed has
also evolved into a recycling nightmare.  That’s because rendering
plants are unavoidably processing toxic waste, too.

Here’s how…

The dead animals are frequently accompanied by a host of unwanted
ingredients.  Pesticides enter the rendering process via tainted
livestock.

Fish oil is commonly contaminated with mercury and other heavy metals.

Dead pets are frequently thrown into the grinder with their flea
collars still attached.  Insecticide-laced patches found on the skin
of slaughtered cattle are also carelessly added to the mix.

Antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals follow livestock directly into
the soup.  And drugs given to euthanize pets have been regularly found
in the rendered product.

Unwanted metal contaminants can be traced to a variety of sources
including pet collars, ID tags, surgical pins, and needles.

Even plastics end up getting into the process.

Finding a Use for Spoiled Grocery Meats

Every day, out-of-date supermarket meats as well as spoiled fish and
poultry arrive by the truckload… right in their original Styrofoam
trays and shrink wrap.  There’s simply no time for the tedious task of
unwrapping each individual package of the many thousands of rejected
products.

Plastic cattle ID lags, pesticide patches and even the green waste
disposal bags containing pets from veterinarians are tossed directly
into the pit.

As you can see, literally all of it (plastic, paper, cardboard, and
whatever) goes right into the rendering machine.

By now, you must be starting to figure it all out.  Much of what goes
into dog food is simply what’s left over after the processing of human
food.  It’s what’s commonly classified as “unfit for human
consumption”.

Unfit for Humans… Legal for Dog Food

Here’s a short list of some of the unsavory raw materials I’ve already
mentioned… plus a few others.  All of the following ingredients are
appalling… yet each can be lawfully used to make dog food:

■Slaughterhouse waste (organs, heads, hooves, beaks, feet)
■Bread and cereal rejects (cobs, stalks, mill sweepings)
■Contaminated grain middlings
■Dying, diseased and disabled farm animals
■Road kill (deer, skunks, and raccoons)
■Distiller fermentation waste
■Spoiled supermarket food
■Dead zoo animals
■Restaurant grease
■Euthanized cats and dogs
The pet food industry can be… at least in part… a sinister waste
disposal vehicle for the human food manufacturers… and a way to profit
from its own garbage.  Many companies practice legal witchcraft by
magically turning their trash… into cash.

My Strongest Recommendation

Learn to readily spot these “profit-first” dog food companies… and
avoid buying their second-rate products.

Look for brands made by conscientious manufacturers who take great
pride in producing top-tier products… products designed to
significantly enhance… and extend your dog’s life.

Learn why you should be skeptical of dog food products that claim to
be “premium”, “natural” or “gourmet”.

The Dog Food Advisor publishes independent reviews to help pet owners
make better choices when shopping for dog food.

-- 

Lea Williams

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Lea.williams738
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