HELSINKI — Musti Group recalled two of its grain-free pet food formulas on Nov. 16, following an investigation into pet illnesses. According to the company, the two pet food products contained high concentration of glycoalkaloids from foreign potato flakes.

Since the beginning of November, Musti Group has been working in “close cooperation” with the Finnish Food Authority, veterinarians, and its ingredient suppliers to find the cause of adverse reactions in pets. The company conducted external lab tests on raw materials and the finished food formulas, revealing elevated levels of glycoalkaloids found in imported potato flakes, which is a key ingredient in the pet food formulas.

“We have only used this specific batch of foreign potato flakes in the recipes of these two foods, and we by no means want to take any risks while waiting for results from laboratory analysis,” said David Rönnberg, chief executive officer of Musti Group. “This is why we have decided to withdraw these product batches.”

Following this testing, the company recalled its SMAAK Adult Grain-Free Fish for Dogs product and its SMAAK Adult Grain-Free Chicken for Cats diet. Before the recall, about 1,400 bags of the formulas were sold, with a majority sold in Finland. According to Musti, a majority of the recalled formulas have already been halted at warehouses and retail stores before reaching consumers.

Glycoalkaloids do not have established feed limits in the European Union and European suppliers do not measure glycoalkaloid levels in every batch. To help ensure food safety, Musti has made immediate moves to improve its self-monitoring at its pet food factory in Lieto, Finland, to include batch testing, and has also ended its cooperation with the supplier of the potato flakes.

“We extend our apologies to all our customers, with a special acknowledgment to those whose pets experienced health issues,” Rönnberg said. “This should have never happened. We will do everything we can to restore our customers’ trust in us. This is also a wakeup call to the entire pet food industry, we should all push for established feed limits in the EU together with the European Food Authorities. Only then can we make sure that this can never happen again.”

Musti is continuing to work with the Finnish Food Authority as official investigations continue and until all lab tests are completed.

Read more about recent pet food and treat recalls.