Judge Sentences Importers of Melamine-contaminated Ingredients

Ever wonder what happened to ChemNutra, the company that was responsible for importing the melamine-contaminated ingredients sold to so many U.S. and Canadian pet food manufacturers that resulted in the massive pet food recalls in 2007? According to ConsumerAffairs.com, the judge sentenced the owners to three years of probation:

U.S. Magistrate Judge John T. Maughmer also ordered Sally Qing Miller, 43, a Chinese national, and her husband, Stephen S. Miller, 57, to each pay a $5,000 fine. In addition, Whipple ordered the Miller's company, Chemnutra, Inc., to pay a $25,000 fine.

Remember, melamine was added to Chinese wheat flour (and later to milk products sold in China) to give the appearance of the ingredients having a higher protein content than they actually had. The toxin resulted in illness and death for pets eating the adulterated foods.

The court decided not to impose additional restitution because of a $24 million settlement in a related civil suit against several companies involved in the tragedy.

Steve McBride, DVM