Holistic Pet Cuisine and Market

Please read the comment below and you will see why Holistic Pet Cuisine and Market chooses to carry this line.

I have contacted the President of Weruva and I thought he should comment on his product.

As pet parents of 4, just like you, we want nothing more than the best for our pets. For that reason, we always urge a focus on a company and their safety processes rather than country of origin. For instance, I am sure you have seen several headlines in the past year or so on how many recalls there have been in the US based upon US production . . . 143 million pounds of beef were recalled a little over a year ago in California, and there have been several other large US beef recalls where the beef manufacturer supplied the US pet industry. There was of course the huge peanut scare . . . bags of lettuce and tomatoes are continually being recalled. The FDA has a very thorough list of all the recalls that are occurring on a daily basis right here in the US (http://www.fda.gov/opacom/7alerts.html) based upon US production. I mention all this because although there may have been several gigantic beef recalls in the US, for instance, it does not mean that all beef production in the US is bad.

China has of course been under major scrutiny (wheat gluten, baby food, lead paint on toys etc.) for valid reasons. Yet regarding the horrific recall that led to many tragic pet deaths, we must keep in mind that the products that were recalled were actually products of the USA. These 100″s of US brands that were recalled labeled their food “made in the USA” yet they deliberately sourced their wheat gluten, a major component in their formulas, in China. The customers of these companies likely had no idea that ingredients in the foods they were buying for their pets were sourced in China nor would they have reason to suspect that they were or would ever be. On the flip side, we are very open about the source of all of our ingredients and our production methods and welcome inquiries about them.

Though not China, we produce our foods in a human food facility in Thailand. We are very fortunate to have our manufacturing partner in Thailand, and we have the deepest trust in their quality control measures. The foundation of this trust was established decades ago by a relationship that my father started with them in the late 1970’s. Our sister company, started by my father, has been producing human food in this facility for years. If you look around the supermarket, you may be surprised to learn that much of the food for people has been produced in Thailand, such as fish and fruit. In fact, the US imports about 80% of its fish with the majority coming from Thai plants. If you eat fish at a restaurant, there is a strong chance that it was caught in Pacific waters and processed in an Asian plant.

As mentioned, as we learned with the recall, close to 100 brands of pet food were produced in one facility. In contrast, my father’s company has the exclusive contract of all human food entering the US from this facility. We are not just another number in the production line. In fact, his biggest customer, the Subway Sandwich chain, awarded my father’s company as Vendor of the Millennium, which was based upon the quality of products produced for humans in these facilities over the course of 30+ years.

In that regard, our factory is a human food facility that also makes pet food. As such, the processing of the pet food must meet those of international human processing standards. Perhaps the strictest human processing standard is that of the UK, called the British Retail Consortium (BRC). Our factory earned an “A” on the BRC standard for human consumption, and this distinction would also apply to the pet food side. In addition, by producing in a human food facility, we can ensure that our foods are not merely “human grade”, something that is not defined by pet food regulators, but that our protein sources are truly approved for human consumption.

Thailand is a world leader when it comes to food production for humans. In fact, I believe they are the world’s third largest chicken producer for human consumption. Importantly, the USFDA recognizes the Thai FDA. In a nutshell, if the Thai authorities say our factory is good to go on human standards, the US will accept that. This notion carries over to a similar branch in Thailand called the Department of Livestock Development (DLD). The DLD is similar to our USDA. The DLD sets forth certain processing guidelines. On top of being antibiotic free, hormone free and free range, our chicken, for instance, is also DLD certified.

Part of our dog food line produced in the US. While it is made under great safety measures, our food produced in Thailand is done so under far greater scrutiny. Ultimately, our food produced in Thailand would be “safer” than our food produced in the US.

As mentioned, we encourage pet owners to contact manufacturers and inquire about safety measures rather than focus on country of production. Again, we truly appreciate your concerns. If you have any questions or would like further information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Best Regards,

David Forman
President and co-Founder
Weruva, Because Weluvya !