| Blessedbee | 07-23-2012 12:32 PM | This is the response I received from Puppy Vantage, the holistic puppy food my picky Kipper finally chose, when I asked them about where they get their ingredients:
Thank you for your interest in Earthborn Holistic® Natural Food for Pets. Earthborn Holistic® dry pet food is manufactured in our company owned manufacturing facility in Monmouth, Illinois, USA. Midwestern Pet Foods was founded in 1926. A family owned business, now in it’s 4th generation, Midwestern Pet Foods owns and operates three state-of-the-art pet food production facilities in the Midwest. We are proud of the fact that we manufacture all of our own dry pet food and do not specialty co-pack for any companies. Our Earthborn Holistic canned cat food and dog foods are produced in a human-grade facility by USPet Nutrition a division of Chicken of the Sea. We source all ingredients from US suppliers if ingredients are available, grown or produced in the US. All ingredients in Earthborn Holistic dry pet food are grown or produced in the US except for lamb meal which comes from Australia or New Zealand and flaxseed which comes from Canada. Our vitamin premixes are formulated, sourced and blended in the United States by a US company in a human grade facility. Certain subparts of the vitamin premixes are only available overseas. Our US supplier assures us that they make every effort to source from reputable non-Chinese vendors. All these ingredients are thoroughly tested and undergo many quality checks to insure safety and that specifications are meet. But even with these checks in place, it is difficult if not impossible to say that some subpart of some vitamin ingredient may originate in China. We feel that it is unethical to claim, like some manufacturers do, that even though our vitamins and minerals are formulated, sourced and blended by a US company in the United States that there could not be a trace or subpart of a vitamin that comes from China. We at Earthborn Pet Foods strive to provide correct, truthful information. You can be sure your pet is safe with Earthborn Holistic. Our ingredients are tested when they are delivered. We test for toxins (vomitoxin, aflatoxin, fumitoxin). We check peroxide value and for free fatty acids in the fat. We also test for salmonella. We check for water activity to prevent mold. Samples are sent to an independent lab if there are any questions on a test result. Our suppliers also run a multitude of tests depending on the ingredient including testing for melatonine. So ingredients are tested by the manufacturer; ingredients are tested by us upon delivery; our pet food is tested before being packaged and shipped. Our facilities are inspected multiple times per year by USDA APHIS. The facility where Earthborn Holistic® is manufactured is approved for sales to the European Union, Russia, Israel, Australia, and many more all of which have strict regulations. We are HAACA approved and FDA inspected.We have never had a recall. Cindy MontgomeryVP, MarketingMidwestern Pet Foods, Inc.9634 Hedden RoadEvansville, IN 47725p 812-867-4504, ext. 107f 812-867-0424cmontgomery@midwesternpetfoods.com |