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According to Food Safety News, between October 2016 and July 2017, Mars’ production facility in Columbus, Ohio was crawling with an “infestation of German cockroaches.”
During this time, multiple consumers also complained about finding hard plastic pieces and elastic material in their pet’s food. The plastic was traced back to broken equipment at the plant. After consumers discovered foreign material in the canned food in 2016, Mars recalled 54,255 cases of CESAR Classics Filet Mignon Flavor.
Later inspections of the plant confirmed Mars had not completed the repairs that were causing the problems—and the environment actually was in worse shape than expected. During one inspection, investigators from the Food and Drug administration observed roaches “where raw materials and ingredients were maintained.”
During a 72-day period between 2016-2017, there were 99 reported instances of pest activity. One instance even described “millions of roaches” being present. Employees also reported seeing birds, spider webs, beetles, multiple flies, maggots and larvae.
The FDA eventually found the source of the pests: Disrepair of dock doors and the building, spillage of raw materials, and “damaged cans ‘covered in flies’.”
And as for the plastic shards in pet food? Mars responded by changing the color of their plastic from white to blue to identify it more easily, but as of the July 2017 inspection, they were still receiving complaints from customers about foreign objects in their pet food.
The FDA also reported Mars officials for refusing to comply during inspections. Mars would not allow photography during the inspection, refused to permit the review of customer complaints, and would not provide photocopies of consumer complaints, manufacturing, shipping and pest control records.
A representative from Mars said, “We want to assure pet owners we take all feedback received from regulatory agencies and consumers about product safety and quality very seriously. We took swift and direct action to address the issues highlighted by the FDA during their July 2017 inspection—which has been subsequently closed.”
We understand the nutritional demands of your pet
Understanding the nutritional needs of dogs and cats has been the predominant idea of the company founder Paul F. Iams. He was the first to consider cats and dogs primarily as carnivores, a perception which was to revolutionise the whole pet food industry.
And still today we follow this idea when developing our foods. That’s why our IAMS foods perfectly correspond to the natural nutritional demands of your furry companion. By feeding our 100% complete and balanced diets you offer your pet a delicious taste they will love containing all nutrients they need.
With our dry food ranges IAMS for Vitality and IAMS Naturally for cats and dogs as well as with our cats wet food assortment IAMS Delights and IAMS Naturally we offer products with a variety of flavours, locked into every bite to support your pet‘s health without compromising on a tasty enjoyable meal. Therefore, all our IAMS foods will suit the nutritional needs of your four-legged companion to allow their personality to shine through every day.
Whether dry food or wet food; whether fish or meat: the choice is yours how to feed your feline companion depending on your preference and your cat’s individual taste. No matter on which alternative you decide: As all our foods are made of top-quality ingredients and include a high content of animal protein share you can be sure to offer your cat a 100% complete and high balanced nutrition.
In addition to this, our dry food range for adult cats also includes food varieties tailored for felines with special nutritional needs, e.g. for cats with a tendency to gain weight or indoor cats. Further food varieties offer special dental care or support your feline friend when suffering from hairballs. Feeding IAMS means great variety and high quality to support a healthy and active life.
Foundation of IAMS food company by Paul F. IAMS in Ohio, USA.
Launch of the first true IAMS product, IAMS 999. This dog food was an energy dense diet and used animal-based protein as the primary protein source.
Paul Iams continued his approach to producing the best nutrition, launching his breakthrough product IAMS Plus. This high protein formula began to capture the attention of passionate dog owners.
Based in Ohio, the company focused on the US market but started to export their products to Europe in 1984.
IAMS company is aquired by Procter & Gamble.
Further development of the food recipes: adult dog diets and our IAMS for Vitality Cat Dental recipe now incorporate DentaDefense, a benefit based on the inclusion of a mineral to help reduce tartar build up and launch of puppy diets with a proven beneficial level of the Omega 3 DHA.
IAMS is bought by Spectrum Brands Inc. which still owns the brand today. Staying true to the brands heritage of continuous innovation they launched IAMS Naturally with a product range with a number of natural ingredients and IAMS Delights, a wet food created with a variety of tastes and textures.
The recipes are reformulated with fresh chicken while the whole brand is refreshed and revitalised through the launch of IAMS for Vitality, an evolution of the current IAMS Proactive Health dry food range. This dry food formula is created to support 7 signs of healthy vitality for all cats and dogs.
Small face-lift of IAMS for Vitality packaging for better navigation and consumer orientation. The Delights family received a design update and is in line with the dry food assortment for Vitality.
Nutritional Value
Their basic kibbles are almost identical in terms of nutritional value, and that’s not a good thing in either case.
However, Purina’s ceiling is much higher, as their premium foods are packed with quality ingredients. IAMS has some good foods in its lineup too, but they can’t compare with the best of Purina’s best.
Taste of the Wild vs IAMS: Monday food mash-up
Pet parents can track their dogs behavior through the leading pet tech healthcare of Whistle™ smart devices to identify a tailored IAMS dog food product that fits their individual health and nutritional needs
FRANKLIN, Tenn., Oct. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Pet parents will go to great lengths to keep their furry friends healthy. Thanks to the newly announced partnership between IAMS™ dog food and Whistle™ smart devices, pet parents are empowered to be an expert of their dogs health, helping keep their dogs at their best with a whole new way to care for our canine friends.
The brands are partnering to support the health and wellness of pets through science, nutrition and technology. By using the leading pet tech healthcare capabilities of Whistle™ smart devices, pet parents can identify the nutritional needs of their dog through data-driven insights based on their behavior and choose a tailored IAMS dog food to help keep their dog healthy.
“The partnership between IAMS dog food and Whistle™ Health is an incredible example of marrying leading technology with tailored nutrition to support the health of our pets,” said Jean-Paul Jansen, Vice President of Marketing for Mars Petcare North America. “We know that pet parents want the best for their dogs, and were making it easier for them to track their dogs habits with the Whistle™ smart device to help choose the best IAMS nutritional solution to support their dogs holistic health.”
Whistle™ Health tracks key health metrics like a dogs activity levels, eating and drinking times, and scratching and licking habits, which gives dog parents insights to detect potential health issues, monitor and manage chronic health conditions, and make data-driven decisions on the best way to care for their pets, including how to choose the most appropriate IAMS product for their respective nutritional needs. For example, if the Whistle™ smart device identifies that your dog may not be physically active or is overeating, you can select the IAMS Healthy Weight diet to support a healthy metabolism and help them reach a healthy weight.
“Whistle™ Health is the first product of its kind to help pet parents understand their dogs behaviors and needs based on data,” said Kate Balingit, General Manager of Whistle™. “Whistles ground-breaking artificial intelligence was built by marrying an unprecedented amount of time series data with clinical insights, to create an entirely new way of understanding your dogs health every single day. By pairing our technology with the IAMS brands nutritional solutions, were able to create an even better experience for pet parents who want to provide personalized care for their dog.”
For more information on the partnership and to find the right products for your dog, please visit iams.com/iams-and-whistle.
The IAMS™ brand is dedicated to helping dogs and cats live happy, healthy lives and believes high-quality nutrition truly makes a difference. IAMS is driven to create pet-specific nutritional solutions that are tailored across every life-stage, pet size and health need. Through years observing the behavior of dogs and cats, combined with research and dietary findings, the IAMS brand believes that the right diet can help pets boost immunity, burn fat and maintain muscle, and promote healthy digestion. IAMS products are made with high-quality ingredients and unique, patented recipes that give your pet our best nutrition possible. When you choose IAMS dog or cat food, youre choosing high-quality food that will help you see visible differences in your furry friend. For more information, visit IAMS.com.
AtMars Petcare we have one purpose: A BETTER WORLD FOR PETS™. Through comprehensive veterinary care, nutrition, breakthrough programs in diagnostics, wearable health monitoring, DNA testing and pet welfare we help pets in more than 130 countries. For decades weve supported research into the incredible science of human-animal interaction at theWaltham Petcare Science Institute where scientists discover important advances in pet health and wellness. Mars Petcare is part of Mars, Incorporated, a global, family-owned business with a focus on becomingSustainable in a Generation. Follow us onInstagram andLinkedIn.
For more than a century, Mars, Incorporated has been driven by the belief that the world we want tomorrow starts with how we do business today. This idea is at the center of who we have always been as a global, family-owned business. Today, Mars is transforming, innovating and evolving in ways that affirm our commitment to making a positive impact on the world around us.
Across our diverse and expanding portfolio of confectionery, food and petcare products and services, we employ 130,000+ dedicated Associates who are all moving in the same direction: forward. We produce some of the worlds best-loved brands including DOVE®, EXTRA®, M&Ms®, MILKY WAY®, SNICKERS®, TWIX®, ORBIT®, PEDIGREE®, ROYAL CANIN®, SKITTLES®, BENS ORIGINAL™, WHISKAS®, COCOAVIA® and 5™; and take care of half of the worlds pets through our nutrition, health and services businesses, including AniCura, Banfield Pet Hospitals™, BluePearl™, Linnaeus and VCA™.
Kinship is here to help everyone pet parent like a pro. Why? Because our pets make us better humans, and we owe them the best possible care. As the premier partner to a new generation of pet parents, we use our data, products, and services to help people be the best pet parents they can be. And we unite changemakers in pet care to break down barriers, open new doors, share insights, and advance our collective knowledge. All so we can reimagine the pet parenting experience, and up peoples confidence, and help the world find better ways to care.
Kinship is a coalition that includes Whistle™, an award-winning leader in smart monitors for pet health, Wisdom Panel™, the worlds most accurate pet DNA test, The Wildest™, one destination that helps people ace it for their animals, Pet Insight Project, a pioneer in interpreting health data to improve pets lives, GoodFriend by Kinship™, a platform that connects pet parents and care providers, and Adopt-a-Pet.com™, a site that helps share homeless pets with millions of adopters.