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There are a lot of rumors about Blue Ridge Beef and the quality and safety of their raw food. Are the rumors justified or are they the work of internet bullies?

I’ve been hearing unflattering rumors about Blue Ridge Beef for a few months and when someone posted their thoughts in a raw feeding group on Facebook, I decided to do my own digging.

Rumors about Blue Ridge Beef

  • The meat allegedly comes from inferior or questionable sources
  • They allegedly won’t share the names of farms where they source their meat
  • They are allegedly in business with a company that collects dead/diseased animals
  • They’re allegedly unprofessional in their correspondence with customers
  • They allegedly won’t share what’s in their food

It's important to know that I was never able to find anything that confirmed that Blue Ridge Beef was doing anything untoward or producing unsafe pet food. Everything I found was alleged statements by pet owners in online forums.

Forum Discussions about Blue Ridge Beef

When I began my research into the topic of Blue Ridge Beef, I was only able to find online forum discussions. These discussions typically begin with someone asking about the brand (apparently, their prices are affordable, which is attractive to raw feeders) and the discussion devolves into a lot of allegations that attack the brand’s integrity.

This list represents the forum discussions I found on the first 2 pages of my Google Search for “Blue Ridge Beef.”

When I added “complaints” to my search, I didn’t find anything. Given the rumors, I was surprised that someone hadn't created a Blue Ridge Beef Sucks website to raise awareness, reported the company to the Better Business Bureau, or a website that tracks scams.

There are also individuals in the pet space who report on pet food companies, shedding light on any shady practices, yet none of them has written about Blue Ridge Beef.

I’m not saying the rumors are false; I’m saying that I couldn't find proof that they're true.

Why I Want to Know the Source of Proteins

I can understand why Blue Ridge Beef wouldn’t share the name and address of their sources. My immediate thought was that either it’s in their contract or it’s simply not done in this industry.

I can also understand why this would raise a red flag for dog owners.

Pet owners have trust issues thanks to the chicken jerky treat fiasco and the various videos online warning us about what’s really in our pet’s food. Being stonewalled doesn’t help build trust. Questioning a brand’s integrity without cause doesn’t help either.

Protein sources are important to me because I want to make sure that the meat is coming from local, humane farmers. That the animals aren’t subjected or exposed to unnecessary chemicals (antibiotics, hormones, weed killer).

Why I Want to Know the Ingredients

Being able to review an ingredients panel helps me…

  • better identify food that will or won't be a good fit for my dogs
  • assess what I may need to add to the meals that is missing in the food

When people complain that Blue Ridge Beef won't share their recipe, I wonder if they are looking for a detailed list of what (and how much) goes into their chubs or if the brand doesn't provide an ingredients panel. It's not unusual for brands not to share their recipe, legitimatley claiming proprietary reasons.

According to the FDA, “Pet food labeling is regulated at two levels. The current FDA regulations require proper identification of the product, net quantity statement, name, and place of business of the manufacturer or distributor, and proper listing of all the ingredients in the product from most to least, based on weight.”

However, there are brands that don't have an issue sharing more details about what goes into their food, where they source their ingredients and more. This is not an industry standard and if this level of transparency is important to a pet owner, then Blue Ridge Beef, at the time of this article, may not be the appropriate choice.

My Thoughts on Blue Ridge Beef

I’m reserving judgment because I have found no proof that the rumors are true. Is this all just fear-mongering and, as Blue Ridge Beef stated below, the work of “internet bullies?”

If Blue Ridge Beef was sourcing its protein from diseased animals, wouldn’t we have heard about it beyond forum discussions?

I wrote this post because I think it’s important to step back from emotionally charged online discussions and examine the facts that are available. This is my take on what I learned this week.

  • Blue Ridge Beef’s choice not to disclose the names of the farms where they source their proteins doesn’t equate to them processing diseased animals.
  • Blue Ridge Beef’s choice not to disclose the details of their recipes simply means that if you’re raising a dog with a high level of food allergies, Blue Ridge Beef may not be the brand for you.

My Correspondence with Blue Ridge Beef

I did reach out to the three representatives listed on the Blue Ridge Beef contact page (on their website) hoping to gain clarification of why they don’t share their sources or ingredients. I thought that maybe this was due to privacy agreements and copyright/trademark laws. I received one response and I did let them know that I would be publishing their response in this blog post.

This response has not been edited or changed in any way.

“Kimberly

We have been defending ourselves from these internet bullies and ridicules posts for years.

We will no longer address this stupidity with a response

We stand behind all our products 100% and will let the quality of our products speak for itself.

Fortunately there are enough common sense customers that realize these bullies attacks for what they really are, and business is going well.

Have looked at your site and wish you all the best in your business

Thank you” ~ Steven Lea, Blue Ridge Beef

Although I was taken aback by the email, because I really thought that they would be more forthcoming; I can’t say that I blame them for shutting the door on this topic.

I’m sorry that I don’t have a definite conclusion for you about Blue Ridge Beef. Discussions with fellow dog owners can be invaluable, especially when it comes to raw feeding because we’re all learning on our own.

While we should look to our fellow dog owners as a resource, it’s important to weigh what we learn against the facts available. It’s okay to be wary, but remain open-minded until your questions are answered. And what if you never get an answer? Well, that lack of an answer may be the answer you need.

Updates on Blue Ridge Beef

The following details were included in the warning letter (the following are direct quotes from the letter linked above):

  • Your firm utilizes tissues from animals that have died otherwise than by slaughter in the manufacturing of pet food without first determining whether the animals suffered any type of illness, injury, and/or whether any medications may have been administered to the animals prior to your pick up from the supplier and subsequent use in manufacturing, such that tissues from the animals would be unsuitable for manufacturing and processing into your pet food.
  • In your grinder/mixing room we observed thawing beef parts used to manufacture your pet food coming into contact with the concrete floor. As noted in violation 2, the condition of your floors creates a possible niche for undesirable microorganisms that could contaminate the thawing ingredients.
  • In the cooler, employees were observed performing sanitation procedures. Over-spray from the pressure washer was observed falling into open tubs of exposed meat held for use as pet food.
  • On the kill floor, while employees removed hides from three cow carcasses, stomach contents and fecal matter were observed spilling over onto exposed carcasses. We did not observe these carcasses being rinsed before being rolled into the cooler area where the carcasses are further separated for pet food use.
  • On the kill floor, deteriorating, exposed insulation was observed in the ceiling directly over where exposed beef carcasses are trimmed and separated for pet food.

Read more here: FDA Warning Letter to Lea-Way Farms Inc. dba Blue Ridge Beef

 Read More About Raw Feeding

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