Pets Beware: Toxic Chemicals in Pet Food Cans - Recommendations

Recommendations for Pet Owners

  • Feed your pet an appropriate amount of food; don’t overfeed.

  • Give your pets plenty of daily exercise to keep their bodies fit.

  • Reduce the overall toxic burden on pets by using nontoxic cleaning supplies and not using pesticides either inside or outside the house.

  • We do not know whether the packaging materials used for bagged pet food contain hazardous substances. We are thus not able to recommend one type of packaging over the other.

Recommendations for Retailers and Food Manufacturers

  • Commit to eliminating BPA and PVC from all food packaging and establish timelines and benchmarks for the transition to safer alternatives.

  • Report a plan to find a safe alternative with a timeline for full hazard disclosure.

  • Label chemicals used in can linings, including BPA epoxy or alternatives.

  • Demand suppliers of can linings fully disclose safety data so as to provide a higher level of transparency to consumers.

  • Take the GreenScreen Challenge and assess potential health and environmental hazards of BPA alternatives being considered or already in use to line canned foods.