Hill's Pet Food - Statement

There seems to be a lot of confusion in the current pet food crisis and Hill's want to make it clear that all its dog and cat foods on sale in South Africa are safe and can be fed with confidence.

16 April 2007

~ Only one Hill’s product sold in South Africa, Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry, has been recalled as a precaution. NO animals have fallen ill from eating Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d, either here in South Africa or in the USA.

~ Hill’s precautionary recall of Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry has nothing to do with the Vet’s Choice / Royal Canin recall or the AquaNutro / Woolworth’s recall. Hill’s is not linked to any of these companies.

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In early April 2007 Hill's announced its decision, voluntarily and purely as a precaution, to recall Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry food from the US and export markets, including South Africa. This was in response to low levels of foreign substance possibly being present in the wheat gluten meal used in this particular food.

ONLY Hill’s Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry was recalled in South Africa and NO OTHER HILL’S FOOD IS AFFECTED, whether PRESCRIPTION DIET or SCIENCE PLAN. All Hill’s dog and cat foods are safe and nutritious and can be fed with confidence.

Hill’s retrieved the entire batch of potentially affected product before distribution to vets, so no potentially contaminated Prescription Diet m/d feline dry food was ever available for sale in South Africa.

Now, in light of the recent announcement by other brands and continuing media coverage, we would like to reiterate the following facts about Hill’s foods:

~ All Hill’s foods sold in South Africa, both Prescription Diet and Science Plan, are safe and can be fed with confidence to dogs and cats.

~ No potentially contaminated Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry food was ever sold in South Africa. It was recalled before leaving the warehouse.

~ No cats have been reported as suffering after eating Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry food. And no other Hills’ food contains wheat gluten meal (the potentially contaminated ingredient).

~ Hill’s precautionary withdrawal has nothing to do with to the Vet’s Choice / Royal Canin recall or with the ethylene glycol-contaminated food produced by Malmesbury-based Aquanutro, which was marketed by Woolworths.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further with us please do not hesitate to contact Hill’s on 0800 22 87 83.