Who’s Fooling Who Tufts University? – Truth about Pet Food

Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University is providing VERY misleading information to pet owners.

In the February 2020 Tufts Veterinary School newsletter “Catnip“, there is a feature article titled “Food Labeling Terms with More Sizzle Than Substance“. The story includes the subtitle “Don’t be fooled by these words when choosing your cat’s food“. However, it appears that Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine is actually the one doing the fooling.

At the very top of their post Tufts discusses the pet food classification of “Human Grade“. Below is the full quote of this section, Tufts attempting to minimize the significance of human grade pet food.

“Human grade” is much more about the plant the food is processed in than where the food came from. For instance, chicken, whether for people or cats, comes from the same bird. It’s just that “human grade” chicken is processed in a plant or kitchen licensed to produce food for people, while chicken that gets put into pet food — which could include breast or thighs, but also nutrient-packed internal organs and the parts you pick off to make soup — goes to plants that manufacture pet food. All these ingredients work together to meet your cat’s nutrient needs. Just as important, they are pleasing to cats’ taste buds.

More to the point, products marketed as “human grade” are not necessarily higher quality nor better options in any other way. The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) sets the standards for the levels of nutrients that should be in cat food, and that’s a separate issue from the origin of the food’s ingredients.

We should note that “human grade” food for cats tends to be relatively expensive compared to regular cat food. There’s no need to purchase it, either for your cat’s health or enjoyment of meals.”

“There’s no need to purchase” human grade pet food? Seriously Tufts? VERY misleading, shame on you.

What Tufts failed to consider (and failed to explain to pet owners) is that pet foods are either human grade or feed grade. The differences between the two are significant.

What’s the difference between human grade and feed grade pet foods?

Feed Grade. The FDA allows feed grade pet products (and feed livestock products) to utilize very inferior ingredients, in fact – some ingredients allowed in feed are illegal per federal law but still allowed by FDA. Evidence of this is FDA’s own words – in a response to our (Association for Truth in Pet Food) request of the Agency to stop allowing illegal ingredients in pet foods. The FDA stated: “we do not believe the the use of diseased animals or animals that died otherwise than by slaughter to make animal food poses a safety concern and we intend to continue to exercise enforcement discretion where appropriate.”

Per the FDA’s own disclosure, feed/feed grade pet foods are allowed to contain diseased animals or animals that died otherwise than by slaughter. All of which – by the way – is a violation of federal food safety laws (illegal, but allowed by all pet food regulatory authorities).

Human Grade. While feed grade pet foods are allowed to use diseased and non-slaughtered animal material, human grade pet foods are required to:

“a. Each of the individual ingredient suppliers has verified that the individual ingredients supplied to the manufacturer are fit for human consumption.

b. Every ingredient and the resulting product are stored, handled, processed, and transported in a manner that is consistent and compliant with regulations for current good manufacturing practices (cGMPs) for human edible foods as specified in 21 CFR part 117.

c. The manufacturing facility is licensed to produce human food by the appropriate authority (which varies by jurisdiction). Such evidence may include, but is not limited to, facility licenses or permits for operation of edible food manufacturing facilities or results of most recent inspections issued by local, county, or state public health authorities.”

Human grade pet foods are required to be…food. And they are held to every single legal requirement of food. Feed grade pet foods are NOT required to meet any legal requirement of food, they are NOT food.

Tufts stated “products marketed as “human grade” are not necessarily higher quality nor better options in any other way“. Using the example of just one ingredient:

This quality of chicken
is the ONLY quality of chicken
allowed in Human Grade pet foods:

This quality of chicken
is allowed in Feed Grade pet foods
(with no warning or disclosure on the label):

There is a reason diseased, condemned, and/or non-slaughtered animal material is illegal…it is dangerous to consume. It is NOT quality nutrition. Why can’t Tufts or any other veterinary school understand that?

Opinion: A pet owner recently sent me this quote: “A lie cannot become the truth JUST BECAUSE it’s accepted.” This one sentence sums up a major problem we have with many of our veterinarians, veterinary schools, and regulatory authorities. Many accept the lie that recycled, illegal waste is quality nutrition for pets.

They accept the lie – but – none of them have ever provided the proof that recycled, illegal waste ingredient pet food is safe for our pets to consume. Never have we seen a study that proves condemned animal material or diseased animal material is nutritious or safe for our pets. A Freedom of Information Act request was sent to FDA asking for their scientific evidence to prove these illegal ingredients are safe, the FDA responded with “We could not find the requested documents.” Of course they couldn’t find it…the FDA has no proof, it doesn’t exist.

Where is Tufts evidence that “products marketed as “human grade” are not necessarily higher quality“?

Just because some veterinarians, some veterinary schools, and all regulatory authorities accept waste processed into pet food does not change the fact that this material is illegal (per federal food safety laws) and it is certainly not quality nutrition. A lie cannot become the truth just because it’s accepted.

Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,

Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Pet Food

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What’s in Your Pet’s Food?
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