As if it's not bad enough that our pets are being poisoned by tainted food, it now appears that one of the suspected chemicals may be in human food, too. News reports say that pigs destined for human consumption could have been fed melamine-tainted pet food.
A couple of paragraphs in this story stand out:
"The California Agriculture Department said separately it was trying to contact 50 people who bought pork that may have come from pigs fed food containing melamine. The state’s health department recommended humans not consume the meat, but said any health risk was minimal.
There is little research on melamine’s effect on humans, according to World Health Organization, but the chemical has been studied in animals for its risk of kidney problems and cancer. The WHO does not classify the chemical as a carcinogen for people." [emphasis mine]
Honestly, I'm not sure how a state health department can declare a minimal health risk when there has been so little research done on how melamine might effect human health. Nor is it reassuring to learn that the World Health Organization (WHO) doesn't classify melamine as a carcinogenic (cancer-causing) substance. Why would they, since it hasn't been extensively tested?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but plain old common sense would seem to suggest that eating meat laced with plastic dinnerware is just not a good idea. So if the massive amounts of energy and pollution -- not to mention animal suffering -- required to produce pork chops, bacon, sausage, etc., isn't enough to get people to think twice about what's on their plates, maybe the tragic poisoning of companion animals -- and now humans -- will be.
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