New Questions about Risks to Humans Evolving in Contamination Quandry

If you haven't checked the latest news on the pet food contamination situation, you might want to. Contaminated food may have been eaten by chickens and hogs, some of which have already gone to slaughter and may have entered the human food chain. Although the USDA and FDA say the health risk to humans from eating meat of animals who ate the contaminated food would be very low, the source and prevalence of the contamination still remain unclear. It now appears wheat gluten and rice protein may not have been the only contaminated food components. Corn gluten, corn meal, soy protein, rice bran and rice protein may also have been contaminated. Additionally, contaminated rice protein, the ingredient in the hog feed, appears to have been imported during the week of April 2, well after the start of the recall initiated March 17 by Menu Foods.

6,000 hogs may have eaten tainted feed: USDA
from Reuters.com
Thu Apr 26, 2007 8:57PM EDT
By Christopher Doering

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An estimated 6,000 hogs from New York to California were likely given feed containing melamine, a chemical used in plastics and fertilizer, the U.S. Agriculture Department said Thursday.

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FDA officials said they would inspect imports of six grain products -- wheat gluten, corn gluten, corn meal, soy protein, rice bran and rice protein -- used in foods ranging from bread to baby formula for traces of the chemical that is believed to have killed and sickened cats and dogs.

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