Archive for June 13th, 2009
Another plug for Food, Inc. movie
If you’re following the blogs and internet, you may know all about Food, Inc. The movie is already out in select theaters.
However, we can’t resist helping to spread the word.
Being a small manufacturer of a food product, we ran into a lot of these kinds of issues when we set up manufacturing for Dog-Wa. It’s just so much easier to do things the fast, cheap and easy way. It can be a hard temptation to resist because everything is reflected on the bottom line – price. As we’ve said before, it is not impossible to make high quality, safe and nutritious food products. It just takes more time and effort.
That said, check out the trailer for Food, Inc. and help get the word out. We think this is an important film.
Add comment June 13, 2009
Saving and restoring fish populations – a step forward?
If you’re a sushi fan or a fish lover, then you should know that bluefin tuna has reached a critical threshold.
Some fish conservationists claim the bluefin is now as endangered as the panda and the tiger.
We just read that one of the UK’s sandwich chain restaurants, Pret A Manger, has removed bluefin from their menu. This came as a result of the owner of Pret A Manger seeing the film “The End of the Line,” which chronicles the plight of the bluefin tuna and describes how modern fishing is destroying the oceans’ ecosystems. This is a small step in the right direction, and we applaud Pret A Manger.
Still, we’ve all heard about overfishing and depletion of fish stocks for years. But the fishing goes on.
But it seems like there may be some change coming.
On Friday, President Barack Obama launched a plan to protect the oceans, U.S. coasts and Great Lakes from the threats of climate change, pollution and overfishing. This is the launch of a task force to recommend a national policy to protect and restore “the health of ocean, coastal and Great Lakes ecosystems and resources” within 90 days.
Here’s part of what President Obama had to say:
“To succeed in protecting the oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes, the United States needs to act within a unifying framework under a clear national policy, including a comprehensive, ecosystem-based framework for the longterm conservation and use of our resources.
In order to better meet our Nation’s stewardship responsibilities for the oceans, coasts, and Great Lakes, there is established an Interagency Ocean Policy Task Force (Task Force), to be led by the Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality.”
From what we can tell, the plan isn’t in place yet. So now is the time to become involved. It’s clear that the health and safety of the oceans, and the maintenance of biodiversity, is critical for all of us.
Get involved
Send an email, fax, or letter, or place a call to your lawmaker. Let them know that now is the time to bring together a coherent, cohesive plan and get to work.
If you wish to submit your comments directly to the Council of Environmental Quality, the address is:
Council on Environmental Quality
722 Jackson Place, NW
Washington, DC 20503
Nancy Sutley is President Barack Obama’s appointment to lead the White House Council on Environmental Quality.
Here’s the website for The End of the Line.
Here’s the trailer for The End of the Line:
1 comment June 13, 2009
Chicken is the number 1 cause of food-borne illness: What you and your pets need to know
According to a report released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, chicken (poultry) is the number one cause of food poisoning in the United States.
Fruits, nuts and leafy vegetables followed poultry on the list.
Food processing and handling is the most critical component in food safety
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that two-thirds of all food-related illnesses traced to a lone ingredient were caused by viruses, which are often added to food by restaurant workers who fail to wash their hands. Another potential source of contamination would be the handling process for foods that are sold in non-restaurant locations like grocery stores and farmers markets.
What about food poisoning that isn’t caused by viruses spread in the handling of food? The second leading cause of food poisoning is Salmonella.
What does this mean for the health of your dog?
You need to be aware of leading causes of food-borne illness, and develop a strategy for providing necessary nutrients that takes the dangers of food-borne illness into account. This is particularly true if you have committed to a raw diet for your pet.
At Dog-Wa, we are committed to providing the nutritional and digestive benefits of fresh, raw leafy greens to dogs. So we watch all of these studies very closely. Our own health and safety is important to us. But the health and safety of our dog customers is our top priority.
Since our mission is to provide the nutritional and digestive benefits of fresh, leafy greens to dogs, we have to be extremely careful.
So how do we, as food manufacturers, deal with food safety?
In the first place, we test every batch of Dog-Wa in bulk for 4 days. This testing happens before the product is bottled, so that the tests come from the entire batch of product. We test for Salmonella, E. coli, microorganisms, safety, stability, and purity. After bottling, we randomly select samples and test again for 4 days, running the same tests to ensure that no contamination has occurred during the bottling process.
Second, we manufacture in facilities that are GMP compliant. GMP means “Good Manufacturing Practice.” Good Manufacturing Practice or GMP is a term that is recognized worldwide for the control and management of manufacturing and quality control testing of foods, pharmaceutical products, and medical devices.
Since sampling product will statistically only ensure that the samples themselves (and perhaps the areas adjacent to where the samples were taken) are suitable for use, and end-point testing relies on sampling, GMP takes the holistic approach of regulating the manufacturing and laboratory testing environment itself.
Third, we manufacture in facilities that are FDA registered and pharmaceutically licensed to make products for human consumption. This means all of our ingredients must meet the highest standards for pure, human-food-grade products. Pharmaceutical licensing adds another layer of obligations to us as manufacturers. It means that our facilities must meet the highest standards established by the laws and regulations of the FDA.
That is how we have found a way to provide safe and effective fresh, raw greens for dogs everywhere. By limiting our product’s ingredients and manufacturing with unsurpassed quality standards, we have created a way for our customers to integrate indispensable fresh vegetable nutrients into their dogs’ diets. That’s why Dog-Wa is the perfect mix-in for all raw, dehydrated, canned, dry, and homemade diets.
Food safety is not impossible
It’s just more difficult and expensive. But we believe that the difficulty and expense are justified by providing a product that we and our customers know is safe and effective.
Add comment June 13, 2009
