Font Size

U.S. & World

E-mail

Close Window E-mail This Page

USDA Clears Chickens Of Contamination

Required fields are marked with an asterisk(*)

Recipient E-mail:*
- Your Name:*
- Your E-mail:*
Add a Message:
Send me a copy of this e-mail.

Type the characters in this picture:*

Click here to refresh with new letters

The information you provide will be used only to send the requested e-mail and will not be used to send any other e-mail communications. Read more in our Privacy Policy

Send E-mail

Print Share + Comments

May 18, 2007 4:01 pm US/Eastern

USDA Clears Chickens Of Contamination

WASHINGTON (AP) ―

Click to enlarge 1 of 1: USDA

Close

numSlides of totalImages

About 80,000 chickens that were fed contaminated pet food scraps can be released for processing because testing showed meat from the birds is safe to eat, the Agriculture Department said Friday.

The chickens, bred to lay eggs hatched for chicks, had been held on Indiana farms after eating feed that included an industrial chemical blamed in the deaths of cats and dogs.

Their feed was supplemented with pet food scraps containing melamine and related compounds. Testing showed that melamine does not accumulate in birds and is eliminated by their bodies quickly, the USDA said.

Previously, the department cleared thousands of pigs given feed also made using pet food scraps.

Melamine contamination has been blamed for the deaths of an unknown number of dogs and cats, resulting in the recall of more than 100 brands of pet food.

While the dog and cat food was lethal to some pets, the diluted use of pet food scraps in animal feed apparently did not sicken any farm animals. Nor, in turn, do any of those animals pose a health risk to humans if eaten, according to the USDA and Food and Drug Administration.