05 November
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) believes it has control of remaining contaminated pet food associated
with the death of a Sumatran Tiger at Wellington Zoo.
Says MAF Food Assurance Authority Director Animal Products, Tony Zohrab: “We believe that product, apparently
contaminated with the euthanasia drug pentabarbitone, has been either consumed at the zoo or detained by MAF.”
MAF, in the weekend, suspended operations at the Dogs Delight pet food factory in Christchurch following the death of
the Sumatran Tiger. MAF detained product at the factory and instructed Dogs Delight Ltd to have those, to whom it had
supplied product in the past four weeks, withdraw that product from retail sale.
MAF officers today (Monday) carried out investigations at both Wellington Zoo and the Dogs Delight factory.
MAF collected samples of the pet food sent to the zoo, and from the dead tiger. MAF then sent the samples for laboratory
analysis in order to confirm the presence of pentabarbitone.
The next stage of the investigation will involve determining how the raw material, destined for pet food, became
contaminated, and whether or not legal requirements were met.
Once these conclusions are drawn MAF will evaluate existing controls on, and supervision of the sourcing and manufacture
of pet food.