At Senate Hearing, Sen. Brown Presses Food and Drug Chief Over Tainted Chicken Jerky Pet Treats
Paw Prints Magazine — At a Senate Appropriations hearing today, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) pressed the head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Dr. Margaret Hamburg, over tainted pet treats. Following an increase in tainted pet treats from China connected to animal deaths and illnesses, Brown has repeatedly urged the FDA to take quick action to protect consumers and pet owners. He has sent letters to the FDA urging the agency to promptly pursue efforts to find the contaminant in these pet treats and ensure that they are pulled from store shelves and to explain its current procedures for notifying consumers and retailers of pet food safety breaches. At today’s hearing, Brown urged Dr. Hamburg and the FDA to be more aggressive on pet treat safety, and to continue all efforts to find the root cause of the contaminant.
“While I am encouraged that the FDA has begun inspections at the Chinese plants that manufacture chicken jerky dog treats, I remain concerned about the numerous pet owners that could still be buying these treats, unaware of the possible contamination, and feeding the treats to their beloved dogs,” Brown said. “The FDA must be as aggressive as possible to find the source of this contamination, which has already led to illness and death among an untold number of pets in Ohio and across our country.”
