Statement

American Chemistry Council Responds to Reports Concerning Pet Food Contamination

ARLINGTON, VA (March 30, 2007) – In its investigation of a series of complaints with regard to contaminated pet food, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has reportedly detected the presence of melamine, a substance that can be used as an ingredient in certain plastics, in samples of pet food products.  However, FDA has not determined that melamine was the source of harm to any pets.  The American Chemistry Council (ACC), which represents many of the nation’s leading plastics makers, issued the following statement:

America’s chemical makers share in consumers’ concerns regarding recent reports of contaminated pet food, some of which may contain a compound known as melamine.

The source of the contamination currently is not thought to have occurred in the United States, but rather from wheat gluten imported from overseas.

Melamine is a chemical building block that is combined with other substances to make scratch- and abrasion-resistant resins for products, such as kitchen appliances, laminate flooring and automotive parts. The properties of resins made with melamine are, therefore, very different than the raw material.  Melamine is a stable, non-hazardous product. It has no acute or chronic toxic effects on human health.

In the United States, chemical substances are strictly regulated under an extensive system of federal and state safety laws that govern how chemicals are manufactured, used and disposed.