Melamine traced to hog farm

CERES, CALIF. — State officials quarantined a Stanislaus County hog farm after finding melamine traces in the urine of animals. The compound was identified as a contaminate in the ongoing national pet-food recall.

Officials believe the risk to human health was "minimal" as they continue the investigation.

American Hog Farm in Ceres, Calif., was placed under quarantine on April 18 by State Veterinarian Richard Breitmeyer after being notified by the FDA that melamine-contaminated feed was being delivered to the farm. The California Department of Food and Agriculture later identified pig urine samples taken from the facility as having tested positive for the chemical.

CDFA has since focused on tracing all animals that left the farm since April 3, when the feed was delivered. They identified four recipient vendors. USDA's Food Safety Inspection Services agency reported that products from the first vendor — a federally inspected facility — were all secured before entering the commercial food supply. Three other vendors are state-inspected facilities. Of those, one received animals that were not exposed to the contaminated feed, and a second, with the help of CDFA, was able to account for and quarantine all exposed animals on-site before they could be sold.

The third vendor, Bar None of Half Moon Bay, received hogs that were possibly exposed to contaminated feed, and 42 have already been sold, according to CDFA.

The California Department of Health Services is recommending that pigs in question not be consumed, but California State Public Health Officer Dr. Mark Horton considers the health risks minimal if the pork has already been eaten. CDFA staff is working to notify the 50 American Hog Farm and Bar None customers who may have purchased a contaminated pig to prevent consumption of the meat. At least 18 of the customers may not be reachable because of incomplete or erroneous contact information, reports CDFA.

Both Bar None and the American Hog Farm operate what are known as "custom slaughterhouses," which are state-inspected and, by law, may only sell to individuals for personal use and not for resale.

It is believed the melamine originated with rice protein concentrate shipped from China, CDFA says. Through an importer, the concentrate was distributed to Diamond Pet Foods, a manufacturer in Lathrop, Calif., which sold pet food scraps to the American Hog Farm for pig feed.

The investigation remains ongoing, and the California Animal Health Food Safety Laboratory at UC-Davis continues to test pig urine, serum and tissue samples submitted.