Update: As I had replied to Edie in the comments, hoping Merrick’s website would be fixed to reflect the recall on the front page and also the missing News page item, that is what occurred today. A full page flash on the front page announced the recall. Also, the erased reference to the January recall of this product is back where it belongs on the News page. Note the links to what was there no longer prove the point. Of course, there are many other blogs and websites that noted the same deficiences I am sure. The contents of the FDA warning letter still leaves a serious breach of trust on the table.
Buried in their website and left unreported by the FDA due perhaps to the late Friday filing,
Merrick is recalling their Beef Filet Squares for the second time this year. This recall is hot on the heals of a FDA warning letter sent to Garth Merrick, owner of Tejas Industries in Plainview Tx, the manufacturer.
When the recall for this same product was finally issued in January, Merrick’s decided not to inform their customers and the general public for two weeks, after being notified of FDA’s test results, that they were in danger of contracting Salmonella from that product.
Merrick’s chose to spin the truth to best serve the company, telling wholesalers and retailers that the product “may not have been processed properly.” Well, thanks for making it abundantly clear where your priorities lie. And as if to underscore this disregard for the safety and well-being of their customers and their customer’s dogs, on Merrick’s News & Info page, the January 15 2010 recall never happened. That’s right, they would just as soon you forgot that this product was already recalled once this year, the messy timing facts leading up to announcing the recall, and that pesky FDA warning letter, too!
With thanks to a tweet from twitter pal @k9cuisine via @lambybiscuits for the lead. Here’s the new recall notice found on the About page in the news section (great place to bury a news page you don’t really want people to read):
07.02.2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 2, 2010
Customer Inquiries: (800) 664-7387
Other Inquiries: JAMES WITCHER, COO (806) 322-2806MERRICK PET CARE RECALLS BEEF FILET SQUARES 10oz BAG (ITEM # 60016 LOT # 10084TL7 BEST BY MARCH 24,2012) BECAUSE OF POSSIBLE SALMONELLA HEALTH RISK
Merrick Pet Care, Inc. of Amarillo, Texas is recalling 86 cases of its 10oz “Beef Filet Squares for Dogs” pet treats (ITEM # 60016 LOT # 10084TL7 BEST BY MARCH 24, 2012) because they have the potential to be contaminated with Salmonella. Salmonella can affect animals and there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products. People handling the treats can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the chews or any surfaces exposed to these products. Consumers should dispose of these products in a safe manner by securing them in a covered trash receptcial.
Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers immediately.
Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian immediately.
The Beef Filet Squares were shipped to distributors and retailers throughout the US. These individuals have been notified and have activated their recall procedures.
The treats are sold in 10oz plastic bags marked with “Lot # 10084TL7 Best By Mar 24, 2012” on the top of the bag and on a sticker applied to the bottom.No illnesses have been reported to date. FDA collected a surveillance sample of “Merrick Beef Filet Squares for Dogs” (lot #10084TL7) which were purchased from a retail store. The sample tested positive for Salmonella.
Consumers who have purchased 10 ounce packages of “Beef Filet Squares for Dogs” are urged to return the unused portion to the place of purchase for a full refund. Consumers with questions may contact the company at 1-800-664-7387 M-F 8:00 – 5:00 CDT
This is a prime example of why we must demand transparency in reporting food issues. It’s not to browbeat companies who actually report their recalls and do it with integrity with a front page above the “fold” splash on their website, it’s to catch out these types of companies who believe in hiding the truth while pets and people get ill, possibly even die, from their own inability to face responsibility.
No one likes recalls. But they will occur, and that’s a fact of manufacturing life. Human error, machine and computer failures will not be going away, though avenues for continuous improvement will hopefully keep them to a minimum. The public has a need to know and a right to speedy warning.
I used to trust them. As a matter of fact, I thought they were one of the more forthcoming companies during the big recall.
Not any more, I guess.
Thanks for stopping in, Eric! I know! I was saying to Anthony @K9cuisine how surprised I was…which of course makes me doubly disappointed! I had gven the Merrick canned food along with other things to the foster person for one of the four distemper afflicted puppies Lake Shore took on transfer to get him back to health after he beat back a death sentence. This is not the guy to run the company, unless into the ground is where they want to go… How tone deaf can you get??
Jeez. Did they really think they could get away with that? Haven't they heard of the Interwebs where diligent bloggers like you make the information readily available?
Guess it's a case of "Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me." I don't see ever trusting Merrick again.
Hey, Edie – glad you stopped in! I gotta shake my head. I just don't get it. You can't hide information anymore – it will get out and you will look like a schmuck.if you lied and deliberately tried to mislead people. And that's what they did.
They put people and their beloved dogs in harm's way – a russian roulette game people didn't have a clue they were playing.. I looked at this and looked again and saw no other answer for their actions and continued action (reference the scrubbing of the previous recall from their news page) that could be construed as accidental.
I will be interested to see if the site changes radically on Tuesday although that won't change the facts,
Really, what is there to say?
We've had quite a run this week on recalls and expansions, this being the worst. Thanks for chiming in, Jim.
I like Merrick and serve the canned food to my dogs Faith and Mac. And I must say I'm disillusioned with their actions about the Beef Fillet Recall. If they keep doing actions like this, they'll hurt their brand — and break the trust between them and the people like me who buy their products.
But an even more serious issue is all the pet food recalls lately: five within the past month! Does this indicate that something's wrong with the way our pet food is manufactured? Or with the way it's inspected?
Is this the beginning of a worrisome trend? I hope not.
I liked Merrick too, and trusted them, as you can see here in the comments, but as far as I am concerned I do not see how they will be able to walk back this incredible blunder – it's not just the recall. It's the way they hid the reason for the first recall and did not inform their customers of salmonella back in January. People and dogs could have and may have died, and they didn't care. It's as my mom always said "When someone shows you who they are, believe them."
Just checked their site – I'll update the post too because they did think better of what they were doing and put the recall on the front page, and I see the reference to the January recall in the News section of the About section is back on the page. Good thinking.
Oh, for pete’s sake. Is it just me or have there been a wave of these recalls again this summer? I need to install that widget that reports that latest news.
Hi Roxanne! Even with the widget you won't necessarily catch them all – many companies still like to bury news on Fridays, so the FDA is not reporting til Monday. But yes, quite a flow of recalls. Human error and machine/computer error will occur, but as long as we are made aware – that transparency is everything. That's why I was so very upset at the way Merrick's reported and what happened over the weekend. Happy to see their website now reflects the original recall on this item in January that had been removed from their site. But the FDA warning letter revealing that they hid the reason for the January recall – that was a real bomb. Thanks for stopping by.
Mary – I work with Merrick Pet Care and I just wanted to respond to some of the information that is flying around. Having a recall happen over July Fourth weekend was the last thing they wanted to have happen. Merrick released the information to the AP as soon as they were given the approval by the FDA. The website was altered and the news posted. In addition, a tweet was sent out with the link to the press release. Merrick's internal customer service team worked hand in hand with their retail and distributor customers to get the word out to the end consumers as well. To date 72% of the highlighted lot have been reclaimed. I would be happy to put you in touch with some of the Merrick folk if you would like to discuss it further. Merrick appreciates you getting the word out but please know that they really do care about the pets and pet owners that use their products and agree that transparency is very important.
Thanks for chiming in here – representatives are always welcome and yes, I would like to discuss this further with Merrick. I am sending you a separate email to confirm. I appreciate the offer and think it's important that readers get to hear both sides of anything I write about – not to water it down, but to have vital conversations about processes, timing, info release, etc. I think readers want to know why recalls happen and with what frequency. What's "normal" and statistically insignificant, and what's not. With greater transparency on one front comes greater responsibility for sharing information on quality control and safety measures, and the process questions that are part of public confidence. I look foward to an interview.