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With the pet food recall now a daily occurrence and with dry dog and cat food and canned food and at times even dog and cat treats added nearly every single day how will companies ever rebuild trust? Many pet owners are fed up at all levels. They are furious with the companies that make the food, and they are furious with the US government for allowing this to happen to their pets. The company that imported melamine-tainted ingredients linked to the deaths of thousands of dogs and cats nationwide called today for a national Pet Food Ingredients Safety Summit.

Pet Food Recall: Dog & Cat Food Recall Summit Planned

ChemNutra, of Las Vegas, said it wants manufacturers, ingredient importers, and analysis laboratories to work together at the summit -- tentatively set for July 14, 2007 in Las Vegas -- on import standards and specifications for pet food ingredients from China and around the world.

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“Just as E. coli incidents have forced retailers and restaurateurs to get more directly involved with ensuring the safety of growers, the melamine adulteration of pet food mandates that importers and manufacturers establish new protocols for ensuring the safety of our suppliers,” ChemNutra’s CEO, Steve Miller, said in a written statement.

“I am hopeful that those who import and use imported pet food ingredients will set aside any competitive differences we may have to unite for what I know is a common purpose, the safety of pets."

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Consumer Affairs reports that Since March, 18 companies have recalled more than 5,600 pet food products because they contained imported and mislabeled ingredients tainted with melamine and melamine-related derivatives. Melamine is a chemical used in plastics and fertilizers. It is not approved for use in pet or human food.

How did this happen? According to Senator Dick Durbin, "Fewer than one in 50 food products from overseas are inspected. Those are poor odds for any bet, and not a risk American families should have to take."

Durbin (D-IL) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) have asked the country’s trade representative to examine America’s trade relationship with China. That's a start - but it will be along time before trust is rebuilt.