Response to FDA Warning on A+ Answers Straight Beef Formula for Dogs

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A warning announcement was posted on the FDA’s site on January 14 and a response by Lystn, LLC. was confirmed by Pet Age:

The FDA recently issued a warning notice on a lot of A+ Answers Straight Beef Formula for Dogs due to salmonella. Lystn, LLC., manufacturer of Answers Pet Food, issued a response to the FDA’s warning notice in order to address errors in the announcement. This response was confirmed by Pet Age with Roxanne Stone, VP of Quality Assurance/Quality Control for the company.

(1) The Best Use By Date (BUBD) is incorrectly listed as 20/08 20. The correct BUBD is 02/08 20. 

(2) The statement that Lystn has recalled the affected lot in Nebraska is not correct. Lystn stopped further distribution of the lot in question working with Lystn’s distributor, retail stores and the Nebraska Department of Agriculture who reported the follow-up that the product was removed from retail store shelves. 

(3) Just one reason Lystn has not implemented a nationwide recall is because the product was only tested by the State of Nebraska and Lystn for which the test results were contradictory addressed below, and not tested by the FDA. 

The FDA Notice comments that the reason why the FDA issued this warning is because it (the product in question) represents a serious threat to human and animal health and is adulterated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). It is important to note that neither Lystn nor any government agency has received any report of animal or human illness. Neither the State of Nebraska nor the FDA quantified the alleged finding of salmonella which is just one factor for consideration when defining adulterated food under the FD&C Act. The FDA uses a Compliance Policy Guide which contains Nonbinding Recommendations of a “zero tolerance” of salmonella for enforcement. In contrast to human consumed products inspected by the USDA, a certain percentage of salmonella is allowed (some of the same sourcing Lystn buys as ingredients for its pet food). For just some of the reasons stated below, Lystn disagrees with the FDA “zero tolerance” policy, based upon our understanding of science and the FD&C Act. For additional information on the company’s response to the FDA and Lystn’s position on these and other raw pet food industry issues, please visit the website. Additional information is forthcoming through continued updates. 

Read the full response here.