BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT:Dining with confidence

Especially now with the massive pet food recall that affected more than 50 cat and dog food brands, Costa Mesa resident Kathy Mooney is glad she opts for a delivery service based in Costa Mesa to feed her four dogs.

Pet Chef Express is run by the Bennett family of Newport Beach, who control every ingredient that goes into their independent label cat and dog food.

The food is made at a family-operated plant in the Midwest that was not affected by any recall, mainly because the company does not use additives and preservatives in its food.

On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration and Menu Foods announced that the toxin in the wheat gluten — a pet food additive — that caused a massive pet food recall last month was the chemical melamine.

Initially, tests done by the New York State Department of Agriculture had determined that a rodenticide could have been the reason for the kidney failure present in many dogs and cats that had ingested recalled wet food made by the Canadian-based Menu Foods Inc.

“They would never take chances on putting anything out that they had any question about its safety,” Mooney said about Pet Chef Express, run by husband and wife Pete and Karen Bennett and Karen’s son, Sean Bennett. “I do feel a lot safer with their food.”

All the ingredients in the food, with the exception of the New Zealand lamb, is made and raised in the United States and the first ingredient in the food is always protein — chicken, lamb or fish. That protein is the main ingredient in all of the company’s formulas, but it also adds rice, oatmeal, beet pulp, Omega-3 fatty acids and glucosamine. The formula does not have any artificial colors, soy fillers or sweeteners.

Pete Bennett said he doesn’t add filler to his formula, making the food absorbed more easily by the animals.

“It even makes backyard cleanup easier because the dogs are absorbing more of the food,” Pete Bennett said, petting his dog, which sat by his side in the office.

More than eight years ago, after his retirement, Pete Bennett decided he wanted to work with animals, but he wasn’t prepared to become a veterinarian or to open a pet store.

After some online research, he came up with the idea for a locally-based delivery pet food service.

“Pets are part of the family … They love you unconditionally, they’re loyal and really don’t want much from you,” Bennett said.

“It’s our obligation to them as pet owners or guardians to give them the absolute best you can, including feeding them properly.”

He and Karen have four dogs at home and Sean Bennett’s dog, Sadie, accompanies him on every delivery.

The company now packs its Westside Costa Mesa warehouse with about 40,000 pounds of dog and cat food, which it ships quickly to customers. Sean Bennett delivers the 20-pound bags of cat, dog and bird food to homes in Orange County, the Inland Empire and Long Beach.

But it’s not just the delivery service or the Bennett family’s commitment to pets and their owners that keeps some of the clients coming back. Mooney said she considers them and their dogs friends.

“I think recent events have illustrated why it’s important to control the ingredients and trust the people you’re doing business with,” Pete Bennett said.

For more information or to receive a free sample of the food, visit www.petchefexpress.com or call (949) 515-9600.