WASHINGTON, DC -- In the wake of a nationwide recall of cat and dog food, the U.S. Senate today passed legislation to strengthen pet food safety standards. U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), voted in favor of the measure to impose stricter production and labeling standards so people have more information about pet food products. The bill also establishes fines for companies that fail to promptly report contaminated products. "Pets play an important role in the lives of millions of Americans. We owe it to pet owners to make sure they have access to all the information they need to help keep their animals healthy and safe," said Reed. "The bill we passed today establishes an early warning and notification system for human food, as well as pet food, improves inspections and the monitoring of imports, and will create more uniform pet food safety standards." The Senate bill creates an early warning and notification system for pet food products. Such a system could have helped thousands of consumers during the recent recall of more than 100 brands of cat and dog food which contained contaminated ingredients that were imported from China. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has confirmed the deaths of 16 pets that had eaten the tainted food, but thousands more pet owners reported that their pets got sick or died as a result of the contaminated pet food. The Senate legislation directs the FDA to work with professional organizations, veterinarians, and others to disseminate information about pet food contamination and in cases of both pet and human food, to keep updated, comprehensive, searchable recall lists on their website. "I was pleased to work with Senator Durbin and our colleagues to help pass this legislation," concluded Reed. "This bill will go a long way toward helping pet owners care for their animals."