Chief testifies LV firm deceived

WASHINGTON -- ChemNutra might have been intentionally deceived by a Chinese supplier and led to unwittingly import a contaminated ingredient that has sparked a pet food recall, the CEO of the Las Vegas company told Congress on Tuesday.

Stephen Miller, chief executive officer of the Nevada firm that imports nutritional and pharmaceutical chemicals, said he thought the supplier, XuZhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. Ltd., might have knowingly contaminated shipments of wheat gluten with melamine, an industrial chemical used in plastics.

Melamine would have given the appearance of higher protein levels in the wheat gluten, allowing it to command a higher price.

Miller characterized the Las Vegas company as a victim of an unscrupulous supplier.

"We at ChemNutra strongly suspect, at this point, that XuZhou Anying Biologic Technology Company Limited may have added melamine to the wheat gluten as an economic adulteration designed to make inferior wheat gluten appear to have higher protein content," he said.

Miller testified before the House Energy and Commerce oversight and investigations subcommittee, which examined food safety issues at the hearing.

The Las Vegas resident, who was accompanied by a lawyer, declined to talk to reporters after his appearance but said he might be able to at a future date.

Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., the chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said he also thought the wheat gluten shipments were tampered with intentionally.

"So far the evidence suggests the deliberate contamination was for greed," Dingell said.

"While it matters not to the victims whether they are poisoned for profit or politics, we must be particularly concerned that these profiteers have drawn a road map to holes in our regulatory scheme," Dingell said.

The federal Food and Drug Administration has linked melamine to pet food contamination that has caused at least 17 cat and dog deaths nationwide.

A letter from Miller posted on ChemNutra's Web site said the company never again will do business with the Chinese supplier.

Miller told lawmakers ChemNutra halted all shipping and sales of wheat gluten March 8 when the company first learned that pet food company Menu Foods was investigating whether the wheat gluten it had received from ChemNutra was the culprit in the deaths and illness of pets.

Menu Foods CEO Paul Henderson, who also testified Tuesday, said the company first received complaints from cat owners about their products on Feb. 22.

On March 19, Miller said, ChemNutra handed over all documents relating to wheat gluten to the FDA, but he said the company was not notified that the FDA had identified melamine in the wheat gluten shipments until March 29.

Miller said he was in China between March 29 and April 1, and spoke with the president of XuZhou Anying Biologic Technology Company Limited.

"He promised to look into it, and to this date, has not provided us with additional information despite many follow-up efforts on our part," Miller said.