It’s one of the most important decisions a sportsman/pet owner can make. I’m talking about the food stuffs you put into your pet. In fact, aside from choosing the right breed for your hunting needs and the best trainer…perhaps no other decision is nearly as important to a canine companion as to deliver the proper nutritional health to your four-legged friend.
In recent weeks, however, this particular topic has really hit home with me. Maybe you heard about the Diamond Pet Foods recall of tainted dog food. Certainly this has the makings of some bad news for dog owners…and if you haven’t heard about it then listen up.
I’m not going to go into all the details here…but suffice it to say that a controversy seems to be brewing as to when the pet food company knew there was a problem and IF it continued to sell the dog food after this awareness. But that’s a topic for another day and likely complex enough it will need to be settled in the courts. For more information on a brewing lawsuit, link here.
I’m saddened because up until this incident I have always had high regard for Diamond dog food. In fact, it is the only food my soon to be 7 year old dog has ever eaten.
It all began back about 7 years ago when I was searching for a new puppy. I read everything I could and searched out all the information I could absorb to do everything right with this dog. Part of that research brought me to a friend, Karla.
You see, Karla was the manager of several large independently-owned pet stores and knew more about dog food than I could ever possible learn in this lifetime. She explained to me the importance of choosing the right food, especially since I had planned on bringing home a new black lab puppy to the household.
I had never heard of such a thing, but Karla cautioned me on the importance that the diet of large-breed puppies (such as the lab) need a vastly different ratio than many smaller-framed dogs. The appropriate protein, fat, and calcium levels for large breed puppies must be delivered at specific ratios to ensure bones develop strongly and properly. It made sense at the time…so I followed her recommendations.
Karla laid out a feeding plan for me that started my new seven week old puppy on adult dog food from the get-go. Her choice…none other than Diamond Premium Adult. She explained that Diamond was a quality food for the money and most importantly, as a pet store manager who could feed her own dogs whatever she wanted; she had no qualms about recommending Diamond over most other brands. As I recall, the only two other brands at the time that even compared to Diamond was IAMS and Science Diet, both good premium dog foods in their own right.
Now it’s important to understand that Karla was not giving me this advice as a sales person looking to make a sale. Nope, when I discussed this with her she had just quit her job as pet store manager and was going back into her nursing career. She had no vested interest in what or where I purchased my pet foods.
Over the years I have turned lots of folks on to the Diamond brand of dog food. In most cases it was usually $10 to $15(or more) cheaper than the previously mentioned brands. Karla explained that Diamond gets by with this because they do not spend the millions on advertising such as the other big two. Still, the quality of the food is certainly comparable…at least until this recent incident.
Even though my state (Minnesota) does not fall within the recall list of states served by the Gaston, SC Diamond facility…I’m feeling a bit perplexed these days and my anger is slowly building. When I shell out $25 for a premium bag of dog food I expect the product to be wholesome and nutritious. I certainly don’t anticipate my dog growing sick from the food and warranting a trip to the vet. More importantly, reports are that perhaps dozens of dogs have died to date possibly as a result of eating this tainted dog food. How sad.
Diamond Pet Foods, even though the food I am serving my pooch (and have served her for nearly seven years) was not on your recall list…my confidence in your ability to provide a quality product has now been shaken. Believe me, when I must stop at the pet food store within the next two weeks to purchase another bag of food…for the first time in years I will likely not be looking exclusively for the Diamond brand. What a shame.
As a sportsman who loves his canine partner and strives to give her the best…I’ll be watching closely how you handle this current crisis. More importantly, if someday its proven that some bad judgments were made by your company you need to make it right with the dog owners who were directly affected. I’m not sure what actions you will need to take to accomplish that difficult task…but you better get creative and do it sooner rather than later.
And let this be a lesson, not only to the Diamonds of this world…but to all manufacturers of pet-related products. When sportsmen and dog owners perceive they have been taken advantage of in some manner…we’ve learned to speak loudly and effectively by keeping our pocketbooks closed when contemplating future purchases. Somehow I already sense that Diamond corporate is well aware of this growing PR nightmare.
© 2006 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.
Filed under: Current Outdoor Issues, Dogs
Very well said. My pocketbook is zipped tightly shut as far as any Diamond product is concerned. While animals may hold only property status under the law, pet owners are not powerless, and do not have to accept shoddy quality assurance and excuses. I’m not sure that there is anything Diamond can do to make up for the anxiety, fear, and abject grief that they have caused. They certainly cannot replace anyone’s beloved animal(s), nor remove the guilt suffered as a result of feeding one’s best friend poison. However, it is my belief that they could certainly do better than they are doing. I hope that the results of the FDA investigation and the SC State Ag. Dept. investigation will be made public, since so far we have been treated to only one side of the story – Diamond’s side. Diamond would like to make this a corn issue, but I believe that the issue is quality control. After all, there has never been an outbreak of aflatoxin poisoning among humans in the United States (according to the FDA’s website), so why does this occur every several years with one pet food or another? Until someone answers that question to my satisfaction, I rest my case.
perro blanca in SC
Thanks for the the post and the link to the attorney. My 18month old Yellow Labrador Scout died a couple of weeks ago from eating Diamond Premium Adult dog food. Diamond was quick to set up a call center to gather information but have been unresponsive to inquiries about reimbursement. We were told by a Diamond representative that an employee had been terminated for allowing the tainted corn into the production process. He told us, “needless to say, that employee no longer works here.”
I hope Diamond steps up soon, our vet bills were about $25,000 and we had to take out a loan to pay them because Diamond would not pay the vet directly or arrange to be billed direcly even after our food was confirmed to be toxic and Scout was diagnosed.
Thanks for hlping get the word out.
As the Chief Operations Officer of Diamond Pet Foods, these last 45 days have been distressful to say the least.
What has been most discouraging, however, is the miss-information that has been posted on the internet. I have been operating as company spokesman and have first-hand knowledge about how this information has been miss-handled.
Myth #1: Diamond knew the toxin was in the pet food up to 3 months prior to a recall.
Here are The True Facts: I was asked by an AP reporter when Diamond knew there was a risk of aflatoxin in the food. My answer should have been, “The day we got into the pet food business”, because that’s the true answer. Aflatoxin is a risk every year, some years worse than others. However, the 2005 corn crop year was especially bad due to excessive drought during the pollination stage, followed by high moisture. The State Department’s of Agriculture’s knew this and were getting the word out to all feed manufacturers prior to harvest. Diamond also received their warning letters, which is exactly why we stepped up our testing going into September. I explained to the reporter that Diamond knew the CORN CROP was higher risk, and he knew what I meant. He twisted my answer in order to sensationalize the story, by suggesting we knew it was in the FINISHED PRODUCT. That was a lie, but it did sell newspapers.
Myth #2: Diamond is and always has been a bad manufacturer with no quality control. That’s why their prices are so far below the National brands.
Here are the True Facts: This was the 1st recall in Diamond’s 35-year history. Out of precaution for its customers, Diamond recalled 102 production days. After all the testing was completed, only 2 products, and 4 date codes of those 2 products ended up testing with toxic levels of aflatoxin. At the end of the day, less than 1% of what we recalled contained toxic levels.
Aflatoxin is a colorless, tasteless, odorless toxin. It can’t be seen, smelled or tasted. It can only be caught through rigorous statistical sampling. The USDA has set 20 parts per billion as the maximum allowable level in pet food. That’s less than the weight of 2 kernels of corn in a full truckload. Toward eliminating this risk, Diamond has redoubled our statistical sampling efforts on incoming loads of corn, AND by testing outgoing finished product.
Since the recall, various State Department’s of Agriculture in the Southeast have pulled over 250 samples of Diamond products from the shelves for testing. All have come back clean.
The real reason Diamond is able to put a value-priced product of exceptional quality in the marketplace is because we choose to make lower margins, and we don’t advertise. It really is that simple. Our ingredient costs are as high as anybody’s, and higher than most.
We are not just a good manufacturer. We are one of the best. Where other companies only guarantee the minimum nutrients “Moisture, Protein, Fat, and Fiber”, Diamond guarantees many, many more. We take pride in our product’s consistency, which is why we guarantee minimum AND maximum levels on various nutrients.
We purchase chicken protein ingredients and chicken fat direct from the major chicken processors. We require them to screen out bone content from the chicken meals, allowing for more digestibility. Our chicken fat arrives with free fatty acid content (a measure of rancidity) below 2%. It is an exceptionally pure source for energy and for the skin & coat.
Yes, we had a breakdown in quality control that cost the lives of customer’s pets. That has created justifiable anger and grief. But, we grieve with those families, and we are working to make things right for them as best we can. We will not hide nor run from our responsibility to them.
We know that we have to work twice as hard in the days ahead to restore the confidence of a customer base that will be skeptical when we speak of improvements in quality control. But, Diamond is a family-owned business that grew from nothing. We didn’t’ get there by having a fear of the future. We will do whatever it takes to restore the trust that has always been our foundation.
Mark Brinkmann
Chief Operations Officer
The Diamond Pet Food Company
http://www.fda.gov/ora/frequent/483s/01192006_DiamondPetFood/Diamond_Pet_Food_ProcessorsFDA483_01192006.pdf
In reply to Mark Brinkmann’s post…
First of all, “rigerous statistical sampling” does not find aflatoxin. Statistical sampling is a method of quality control not a method of testing for toxin or anythhing else. I’m not a chemist so I can’t tell you how to test for toxin, but statistics has nothing to do with it.
Regarding Myth #1: I didn’t take away from the articles I’ve read that Diamond knew there was aflatoxin in the pet food 3 months prior to the recall (admittedly, I have not read all articles written). What I did take away, was that Diamond knew of the increased risk and, in September, began rejecting 2 loads of corn per week, versus the normal 1 to 2 per year. Would I have had to bury my dog and would we even be making these posts if Diamond, knowing of the increased threat, would have “redoubled its efforts” to screen for toxin?
Regarding Myth #2: You quote many results of various testing of samples, however in an AP Wire Service article by John C. Drake it was reported that Diamond “did not retain samples of more than half the incoming corn received at least three months in 2005 – a violation of its own procedures – meaning the FDA could not perform follow-up tests.” How good is the information you have provided if it is in fact true that samples were not retained for follow-up testing?
Regarding your comments on Diamond’s guarantee of “many, many more” nutrients than competitors: I read in that same AP wire service article that the FDA inspection found that “Diamond accepted shipments of wheat flour, rice bran, and chicken byproducts meal between Jan. 3 and 17, despite testing that found most of the ingredients did not meet the company’s own content specifications for protein, moisture, fat, ash and fiber.” Is this a lie as well? The article goes on to say, “Of 21 shipments of wheat flour accepted during the two-week period, 17 failed testing of three or more of the five specifications.” (That is, 81% failed testing of 60% of the specifications).
Regarding your comment that “we (Diamond) are working to make things right for them (the victims) as best we can”: I have personal knowledge of how this statement is misleading and twisted around. It has been my personal experience that Diamond has not been willing to return any of my phone calls for help or made any contact with me or attempted to pay vet bills but has simply turned this over to their insurance company. Additionally, and this is from speaking to other affected victims not my own personal experience, the insurance company has made offers only for very minimal amounts. Possibly the minimum required or as established by law in each state. Contrary to what you may have the public believe, this is not “as best we can” this is in fact the least we can get away with!
Is any of this “mis-information?”
Glen Guider
[...] and more specifically Social Media (SM) Marketing. Back in January of 2006 I wrote a blog piece about Diamond Dog Food as the company was embroiled, at the time, in a controversy regarding some [...]