Menu Foods

Menu Foods Limited
Company typePublic
TSX: MEW
IndustryFarm Products
Defunct2010
FateAcquired by Simmons Foods
Headquarters
Mississauga, Ontario
,
Canada
Key people
Paul K. Henderson
Number of employees
924[1]
Websitewww.menufoods.com

Menu Foods Limited,[2] based in Streetsville in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada,[3] was the largest maker of wet cat and dog food in North America, with its products sold under 95 brand names,[4] which the company identifies as supermarkets, big box and pet product retailers and wholesalers.[2] It was bought out by Simmons Foods in August 2010.[5]

In March 2007, after numerous animals fell ill and died during quality-control tests, the company recalled over 60 million containers of food. Subsequent to the recall, the Animal Health Laboratory at the University of Guelph in Ontario, identified contaminants in some of the recalled food: aminopterin, melamine, and cyanuric acid.[6] If consumed by themselves, isolated doses of melamine or cyanuric acid should not cause health issues in pets.[6] However, when these two chemicals are mixed together, an insoluble crystal is formed, that can rapidly obstruct the kidneys and cause kidney failure.[6] The incident has been labelled "one of the largest consumer-product recalls in North American history".[7]

  1. ^ "Company Profile for Menu Foods Income Fund (CA;MEW.UN)". Retrieved 2008-10-15.
  2. ^ a b "Profile". Menu Foods Income Fund. Archived from the original on 2009-12-01. Retrieved 2007-03-20.
  3. ^ "Contact Us." Menu Foods. Retrieved on May 20, 2009. "Menu Foods Income Fund 8 Falconer Drive Streetsville, ON Canada L5N 1B1"
  4. ^ Elizabeth Weise and Julie Schmit (March 23, 2007). "Pet food maker to pay for vet bills". USA Today. Retrieved 2007-03-31.
  5. ^ marketwire.com
  6. ^ a b c U.S. study ties 27 pet illnesses and deaths in Canada to pet food recall
  7. ^ "Pet deaths likely to rise: Menu Foods". Toronto Star. March 27, 2007. Retrieved 2007-03-27.