Honest Kitchen - Voluntary Recall

[TinyTinaTunaFish]

Didn't see another post about this so I figured I'd put it up.

Recall Notice

Dear Honest Kitchen Customer,

I'm writing to inform you that today we are voluntarily recalling five lots of our Verve, Zeal and Thrive products, which were produced between August and November 2012 and sold nationwide in the US and Canada via retail stores, mail order and online after August 2012.

We are taking this precautionary action after learning that one of our raw ingredients suppliers has recalled a batch of human-grade parsley that has the potential to contain Salmonella. The batch of parsley was shipped to us in 2012 and used in the five lots of finished Honest Kitchen products. We've included specific details about which lots are being recalled, directions on how you can obtain a full refund for the affected lots, and information on the potential effects of Salmonella in our official recall press release.

At The Honest Kitchen, we are accountable for every pound of food that we produce and ultimately, when it comes to the way we do business, the buck stops with me. We are committed to always providing healthy, quality products that balance gentle production methods with a focus on safety and integrity, and along with my team, I have built our company over the last decade on the principles of honesty, transparency and openness.

We work closely with each of our suppliers to carefully source our human grade ingredients. Our finished products are made in a human food facility and held to the same high quality control standards as human food products. And, humans taste the products we make as part of our quality control and R&D processes.

As you may know, Salmonella can appear in many human foods, from pistachios to mangoes, but it trends particularly high in meats, eggs and leafy greens such as spinach, lettuce and herbs. To further protect you from the risks Salmonella can pose, we're adding additional steps to our food safety program:

All dehydrated leafy greens (parsley, basil, dandelion, spinach and alfalfa) will be steamed, to eliminate pathogens while maintaining our commitment to very gentle production that retains and protects the nutrients that nature provides.
We will conduct additional tests for pathogens on all leafy greens when they arrive at our manufacturing facility.
We are no longer purchasing any ingredients from the supplier that provided the parsley being recalled.

We are committed to continually evolving and adapting our procedures to prevent problems like this from occurring in the future. If you have questions, concerns, or frustrations, please call our toll free number, 1-866-437-9729 or send an email to info@thehonestkitchen.com. Customer service representatives will be available Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. PST to respond to inquiries.

I apologize for the inconvenience this situation has created and I promise that we will continue to operate our family business in a way that lives up to the high standards that you have always expected from us.
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They also posted up a Q&A regarding the recall here.

[Saeleofu]

Just goes to show, anything can be recalled. "Good" companies are not immune. They seem to be handling it very well, though.

[JacksonsMom]

Recalls seem to come out in big groups at a time, lol -- there's been a lot of different recalls I've seen this week, both human and dog.

Thanks for posting!

[Southpaw]

I like the way they're handling it!

I don't mind a company having a recall - it's food, crap happens - but I don't want to see countless recalls, and the way it's handled and what they do to fix the issue/prevent it from happening again is what affects my viewpoint of the company.

I did have to giggle though, most people are freaked out that the raw meat is going to kill our dogs with salmonella, turns out it's the parsley you need to keep your eye on

[frostfell]

I like their honesty and full disclosure on what theyre doing to prevent another mishap. Unlike some companies that just tell you "its been taken care" ie, "butt out"

[Roger Biduk]

Originally Posted by Saeleofu

Just goes to show, anything can be recalled. "Good" companies are not immune. They seem to be handling it very well, though.

Yeah, big difference with this kind of recall with parsley compared to recalls from Pedigree, Purina, Ol' Roy, etc.

Some of their foods are to be avoided, contain lots of grains...

[Roger Biduk]

Originally Posted by Southpaw

I like the way they're handling it!

I don't mind a company having a recall - it's food, crap happens - but I don't want to see countless recalls, and the way it's handled and what they do to fix the issue/prevent it from happening again is what affects my viewpoint of the company.

I did have to giggle though, most people are freaked out that the raw meat is going to kill our dogs with salmonella, turns out it's the parsley you need to keep your eye on

Ha... you're right... the AVMA, AAHA and most vets need to be reminded that salmonella is no threat to healthy animals... neither should the parsley be.
With a PH of around 1, lots of bile and a very short G.I. tract the parsley should just go through un-noticed.

[Dizzy]

Nothing to add except....

Best. Username. Ever.

[SaraB]

Bummer! I fed this on our roadtrip, the first time I've fed commercially made dog food in 3 years and it has a recall?? LOL I'll have to check upc's/dates when I get home.