What was recalled
On February 8, 2023, Nestlé Purina PetCare Company voluntarily recalled select lots of Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets EL Elemental dry dog food. The recall was expanded on March 10, 2023 to include two additional production lots preceding the originally recalled lots. The affected dry dog food was distributed throughout the United States by prescription only through veterinary clinics, Purina Vet Direct, Purina for Professionals, and other select retailers; the product is not available through general retail channels. EL Elemental is a hydrolyzed-amino-acid diet typically prescribed for dogs with severe food allergies, inflammatory bowel disease, or other gastroenterology indications where a hypoallergenic protein source is required.
The recall trigger was two separate confirmed consumer reports of dog vitamin D toxicity after consumption of the diet. Purina’s internal investigation traced the elevated vitamin D to a supplier error in the vitamin premix; affected production lots tested at up to 77 times the expected vitamin D concentration. Nestlé Purina published the formal recall notice at the Purina news center, and the FDA published a parallel notice at its safety alerts archive.
Why it was recalled
Vitamin D in dog food is supplied as a precisely-formulated micronutrient at AAFCO-substantiated levels (a minimum and a maximum per the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profile). Vitamin D is fat-soluble and bio-accumulates in liver and adipose tissue; chronic over-supplementation produces hypervitaminosis D with progressive renal injury, hypercalcemia, and soft-tissue mineralization. The Purina 2023 event traced to a vitamin premix supplier whose vitamin D component was provided at a concentration far above the formulation spec. Routine Purina pre-release testing for vitamin D was not configured to catch the supplier-level error because the testing protocol assumed correct premix concentration and validated dispensing rather than re-assaying the finished food. After the two consumer complaints reached Purina, the company tested affected lots and confirmed vitamin D levels up to 77 times the formulation target. The supplier error pattern is the same failure mode that produced the Hill’s Science Diet 2019 vitamin D recall (which affected approximately 22 million cans of wet food); both events reinforce the regulatory rationale for the post-2008 FDA Amendments Act incoming-ingredient traceability requirements.
Health risks for your pet
Vitamin D toxicity in dogs presents as vomiting, loss of appetite, increased thirst (polydipsia), increased urination (polyuria), and excessive drooling, progressing in severe or prolonged cases to renal (kidney) dysfunction, hypercalcemia, soft-tissue mineralization, and acute renal failure. Bloodwork shows elevated calcium and phosphorus, elevated BUN and creatinine, and isosthenuria (loss of urine concentrating ability). The two affected dogs in the Purina event presented with classical vitamin D toxicity signs and recovered fully after being removed from the diet and given supportive care. The clinical course of chronic vitamin D over-supplementation depends on dose-duration product: high-dose short-duration cases (like the Purina event) typically recover with prompt diet discontinuation and supportive care, while chronic moderate over-supplementation can produce permanent renal damage. The fact that EL Elemental is prescribed primarily to dogs with pre-existing GI or allergy disease — populations already managing complex medical conditions — raised additional clinical concern, though no fatal cases were reported.
What to do if you bought affected product
If you have Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets EL Elemental dry dog food at home, check the lot codes against the recalled lot list at the Purina news center or contact your veterinarian. If lots match, discontinue feeding and contact your veterinarian; Purina’s consumer affairs department processed reimbursement claims under the recall. If your dog consumed recalled product and shows vomiting, increased thirst or urination, loss of appetite, or excessive drooling, contact your veterinarian for serum chemistry evaluation (calcium, phosphorus, BUN, creatinine, vitamin D 25(OH)D level). Most affected dogs recover with diet discontinuation alone; severe cases may need fluid therapy, calcitonin, or pamidronate to manage hypercalcemia.
How this affects KibbleIQ’s grade
Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets EL Elemental is a prescription product not in the KibbleIQ retail scored database; KibbleIQ scores Pro Plan’s standard retail lines per our published methodology. The 2023 vitamin D event reflects a supplier-error event rather than a Purina manufacturing systems failure: a vitamin premix supplier delivered material at a concentration 77 times above formulation spec, and Purina’s pre-release testing protocol did not catch the error because it validated dispensing rather than re-assaying finished food. The corrective action (Purina revised its incoming-vitamin-premix testing protocol post-recall and expanded finished-food vitamin D assay frequency) addresses the root cause. The structural lesson is the same as the Hill’s Science Diet 2019 vitamin D event: precision-formulated micronutrients require finished-product verification testing because supplier-level errors are a documented failure mode. Pro Plan’s broader retail catalog (Pro Plan Sport, Pro Plan Sensitive Skin & Stomach, Pro Plan Bright Mind, etc.) was not affected by this recall and continues to score in the B range across most variants. For now, our recommendation: read both our current Purina Pro Plan review AND this page when evaluating the brand.