Consumer Affairs reports that Dianne, a volunteer with Collie rescue in IL, was feeding her own 4 dogs at home when she says she found a dead frog in a can of Pedigree chicken with gravy dog food:
“My big concern is what’s going into this food,” she says. “What’s going into this food that people are feeding their pets? Obviously, it’s not chicken. There’s a frog in that food – a whole dead frog. And if there’s a frog in there, what else is in the food?”
Mars Petcare, maker of Pedigree, seems to be attempting to file the claim under W for Wendy’s Chili Finger Fraud:
“At Mars Petcare US, quality and food safety is our top priority,” the company said in a statement ConsumerAffairs.com received Friday evening. “While it’s highly improbable that this could occur, we’re taking it very seriously and launching a full-scale investigation into this consumer’s claim.”
Mars added: “We are sending a third-party to the consumer’s home today to collect the frog and deliver it directly to an independent lab for testing. It’s important to note that canned pet food is cooked at high temperatures and processed on high speed equipment, making it very unlikely that a frog could become enclosed in a can.“
Dianne told us on Saturday that no one with Mars or an independent lab came to her home on Friday to pick up the dead frog.
Stay tuned. And yes friends, there is a photo of the dead frog at the link.
OK, this is probably going to get me pilloried, but I’m falling into the chili finger camp.
My SO works for Mars (or, as I fondly refer to them, the Evil Empire). While he doesn’t work directly in the pet care division, I have to say that these guys are NUTS about quality control. Just nuts – and I’ve seen him bring home the paperwork to prove it. They have one of the best run Quality Control protocols in the world, and their plants are like computer clean rooms.
I’m hardly a fan of the EE’s food (or its ingredients), but you won’t find me complaining about the conditions its manufactured under. There’s a reason you hardly ever see these guys or Purina involved in recalls, and it’s because they don’t outsource ANYTHING, and their in house testing is very rigorous.
I’m not saying it couldn’t happen – I’m just sayin’.
Pillory! Pillory! OK I agree it’s certainly a plausible theory, I just think it’s not the *only* plausible theory. If this report came from a consumer of YesBiscuit brand canned food, I think the first thing I’d do is follow through on my public promise to send someone to pick up the food/frog for testing (Mars apparently did not). I would also hire an independent inspector to come into my plant and document whether or not he sees any evidence of frogs. Even if I felt certain it was a hoax, I’d be thinking about reassuring my customers that my food was safe. Mars seems to be going in a different direction – one that I as a consumer do not find reassuring. Out of interest, since you believe so strongly in the QC at Mars, I’m curious as to your opinion on the whole Nutro thing.