Heavy Metals in Pet Food: Changes in Heavy Metal Contamination in Pet Food Over the Past Decade

Pet food is a multibillion dollar per year business that affects businesses and pet owners on a daily basis. Along with increased growth, there has been increased controversy. The melamine pet food scare of 2007 affected millions of people and their pets, along with the pet food industry. The pet food scare highlighted the potential for contaminants and controversial ingredients that could be contained in pet food. In addition to organic chemical contaminants and additives, there is also the possibility of toxic elemental contamination from protein sources, fillers, and manufacturing processes. Therefore, the search for 'healthy' pet food goes beyond the choice of a name brand food or nutritious ingredients on a label.
Ten years ago, SPEX CertiPrep, first introduced its popular study on 'Heavy Metals in Pet Food,' which was featured in Spectroscopy (1,2). The purpose of this 2009 study was to [...]