The Food and Drug Administration reports contaminated pet food sold in 23 states killed almost two dozen animals and caused another 18 to become sick.
The FDA has traced the deaths to pet food processed at the Diamond Pet Food Company in its Gaston, South Carolina, manufacturing plant.
Diamond Pet Food issued a recall of 19 varieties of dog and cat food on December 21 because some of the pet food made at the Gaston plant was discovered to contain aflatoxin, which comes from a fungus sometimes found on corn and other crops
Aflatoxin can cause severe liver damage.
The recalled Diamond Pet food was sold in 23 states under the brand names Diamond, Country Value and Professional, and bears the date codes of March 1, 2007, through June 11, 2007.
Consumers are warned to immediately stop using the product.
In a December 20 press release, the company said it had notified distributors to hold up further sales of the pet food and a recall was issued the next day.
The company is still attempting to isolate specific lot numbers that were contaminated and provide the information to distributors, retailers and consumers.
The recalled pet food was distributed in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia, Vermont, and Virginia.
