Japanese petfood makers required to show all product ingredients
Petfood manufacturers and importers will soon be required to indicate all ingredients and expiration dates of their dog and cat products, the Japanese government has recently decided. The Japanese Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries have decided to require manufacturers and importers of dog food and cat food distributed in Japan to display more detailed product information as of June of next year.
The move, which is based on the petfood safety law that was enacted in June 2008 in Japan, is aimed at preventing health damage to companion animals. Currently, petfood manufacturers only need to follow the industry’s voluntary standards set by the Pet Food Fair Trade Association, which apply to member companies and have no penalties for violators. The association has 46 member companies—domestic petfood manufacturers and importers—which deal with more than 90% of the petfood currently available in Japan.
The latest measures will mandate all domestic manufacturers and distributors of petfood to display the name of the petfood, the expiration date, the name and address of the manufacturer/distributor, the country of origin, and each and every ingredient used. Furthermore, the new measures will set limits to the residual amount or usage of: poisonous mold, agricultural chemicals, heavy metals, harmful microbes and additives that require extra attention in handling. Violators of the new measures will suffer a ban on production and will be sentenced up to one year in prison or fined up to JAP¥1 million (US$9,952). A corporate violator will be fined up to JAP¥100 million (US$995,222).
Since the fatal petfood recall of 2007 involving Chinese-made petfood containing melamine in the United States, and the revelations that Japan was also importing petfood laced with melamine, calls have been mounting to regulate the safety of petfood distributed in Japan for some time.
