The national distributor of US dog-food-maker Pedigree announced yesterday it was expanding the recall of its pet food manufactured at a plant in Thailand to eliminate any remaining concerns about the quality and safety of its products.
Effem Foods Taiwan Inc was recalling Pedigree Dry dog food, Whiskas Dry cat food and a few dog treat products made at the plant in Pakchong, Thailand, Jack Jia (
The recalls were effective yesterday, a day after the company discovered mold in raw materials at its Pakchong facility late Wednesday, Jia said.
All dry dog and cat food made at the Pakchong plant will be recalled, and the action applies to Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and six Southeast Asian countries.
Jia declined to specify the volume of the recalled products and the potential losses the company may incur.
"It's too early to estimate the possible losses for the time being," he said.
The company announced on Monday that it would withdraw its Pedigree dry dog food from Taiwan following reports that more than 100 dogs fell ill and about 30 others had died from renal illness after eating Pedigree.
Effem Foods dismissed the reports as rumors and has offered to spend NT$1 million to find a scientific explanation for the dogs' illness and death.
Yesterday, the company claimed that its investigation showed no direct link between the finding at the plant and an increase in reported cases of renal illness among dogs in Taiwan, Thailand and the Philippines.
It also emphasized that it took action on the cat food even though there was no evidence of any increase of illness in cats.
With the closure of the Thai plant, Effem Foods is planning to import fresh products from Australia to Taiwan, Jia said.
Taiwan imports NT$100 million worth of Pedigree products each year, accounting for one-third of the nation's total dog food imports.
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