Couple Pleads Guilty in Tainted Pet Food Case

The couple responsible for distributing toxic pet food that potentially killed thousands of pets have pleaded guilty. In 2007, more than 150 brands of pet food nationwide were recalled in connection with the case.

Sally Qing Miller, her husband Stephen S. Miller and the couple’s Las Vegas-based company, Chemnutra Inc. pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of selling adulterated food and one count of selling misbranded food, both misdemeanors. The pair faces up to two years in prison, a fine of 200,000 and an order of restitution. “The Millers and ChemNutra look forward to putting both this case and this tragic matter behind them and hope that today’s enhanced awareness of food safety issues will prevent this from ever happening again,” said Robert J. Becerra, Sally Qing Miller’s defense attorney.

ChemNutra picked up wheat gluten tainted with melamine shipped from China, then sold it to the makers of various brands of pet foods. Melamine artificially boosts the gluten’s protein content, in order to pass chemical inspections. The tainted pet food reportedly killed the deaths and illness of thousands of family pets.

Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. and Suzhou Textiles, Silk, Light Industrial Products Arts and Crafts I/E Co. were also indicted for shipping adulterated food into interstate commerce and introducing misbranded food into interstate commerce. Suzhou Textiles mislabeled 800 metric tons of tainted wheat gluten produced by Xuzhou in order to avoid inspection in China.

AUTHOR: Annette Hulbert