Open Farm removes six dog food products over plastic film issue: full analysis

CURRENT FULL VERSION: Open Farm has removed six dog food products from the market after identifying small pieces of soft, food-grade plastic film in limited production lots, a move the company says is about quality, not canine safety. In its public update, Open Farm said the material is non-toxic, thin, and malleable, and “does not pose a health risk for dogs,” while asking retailers to remove affected products and helping customers with refunds or alternatives. (openfarmpet.com)

The issue surfaced publicly in late December 2024, when Open Farm posted a “Freeze-Dried Raw and RawMix Dog Update” dated December 23, 2024. That notice covered five Freeze-Dried Raw Morsel recipes for dogs and one Front Range Ancient Grains RawMix recipe. Subsequent reporting from Dog Food Advisor described the action as a market removal rather than a recall, and Truth about Pet Food reported that FDA enforcement records listed the products as being withdrawn for “foreign object (plastic)” contamination, with no FDA recall press release expected. (openfarmpet.com)

Open Farm said the root cause was incomplete removal of liner material from some raw protein ingredients before manufacturing. The company said the plastic pieces were found in “very limited instances” across the production lots and that only the listed lot numbers were affected. The six affected product lines were Homestead Turkey Freeze-Dried Raw, Grass-Fed Beef Freeze-Dried Raw, Surf & Turf Freeze-Dried Raw, Pasture-Raised Lamb Freeze-Dried Raw, Farmer’s Table Pork Freeze-Dried Raw, and Front Range Ancient Grains RawMix. Open Farm also said all other products and lot numbers could continue to be fed as usual. (openfarmpet.com)

The company’s response was operationally significant even if the health risk appears low. Open Farm said it asked retailers to remove affected products from shelves, instructed distributors to destroy potentially affected lots, and offered refunds or replacements to consumers. It also said it added material-handling requirements and enhanced quality inspections for the implicated recipes to prevent a recurrence. (dogfoodadvisor.com)

Direct outside expert commentary was limited in the available reporting, but the industry reaction was notably centered on transparency and classification. Dog Food Advisor emphasized that the event was “not a recall” and characterized it as a quality issue, while Truth about Pet Food highlighted the FDA enforcement-record angle and the absence of a public FDA press release. That split matters because pet parents often interpret any shelf removal as a safety emergency, while manufacturers and regulators may classify foreign-material events more narrowly depending on hazard assessment. It also stands in contrast to more conventional safety recalls, including a separate FDA-aware recall by Revival Animal Health involving canine milk replacers with variable vitamin D levels that prompted advice to stop feeding immediately and contact a veterinarian if puppies developed signs such as vomiting, poor appetite, increased thirst or urination, drooling, weight loss, or possible renal dysfunction; that event also included two reported complaints of rickets. (dogfoodadvisor.com; truthaboutpetfood.com)

Why it matters: For veterinary teams, the practical issue is client communication. Clinics may hear from pet parents who are alarmed by the words “plastic” or “withdrawal,” even when the manufacturer says the material is non-toxic and no health threat is expected. This makes it important to ask for the exact product, lot code, and whether the dog has shown any gastrointestinal signs or evidence of choking or obstruction. Even though Open Farm says the film is soft and not dangerous, foreign material complaints can still erode trust, disrupt diet continuity, and complicate feeding plans for dogs on limited-ingredient or freeze-dried diets. The classification piece matters too: distinguishing a low-risk market withdrawal from a nutrient-related recall with documented clinical consequences can help clinics set urgency, counsel clients appropriately, and avoid over- or under-reacting. (openfarmpet.com; truthaboutpetfood.com)

There’s also a broader signal here for the pet food sector: quality-control failures involving packaging or ingredient-handling interfaces can trigger market action even without a classic recall-level hazard. For veterinary professionals who advise on nutrition, this is another example of why lot-level traceability, rapid manufacturer communication, and clear distinction between quality defects and toxic exposure are important when counseling pet parents. The contrast with vitamin D-related recalls is useful because those events can involve both deficiency and excess, nationwide distribution, and clinically meaningful outcomes in vulnerable animals such as puppies on milk replacers. (openfarmpet.com; truthaboutpetfood.com)

What to watch: The next developments to monitor are whether FDA posts any additional enforcement detail, whether Open Farm narrows or expands the affected lot list, and whether the company’s added inspection controls prevent similar events in future freeze-dried or RawMix production runs. (truthaboutpetfood.com)