Klein

Appellant Kenneth H. Klein proposes that a pet food distributor commits an act of unfair competition within the meaning of Business and Professions Code, section 17200 when it unwittingly causes contaminated pet food to be distributed into the stream of commerce. Accordingly, he seeks to overturn the summary judgment in favor of Earth Elements, Inc. It is undisputed that Earth Elements acted promptly to recall the contaminated products, advertised the recall effort and afforded restitution to customers. We conclude that the distributor’s conduct was neither illegal, unfair nor fraudulent within the meaning of section 17200. Therefore, we affirm the judgment.

I. Facts

In June 1995 Earth Elements was in the business of distributing premium pet food products under the name “Nature’s Recipe.” Southwest Pet Products, Inc., manufactured the food and was responsible for procuring the grain and for quality assurance.

Prior to June 26,1995, Earth Elements had no knowledge that its products were unmerchantable. On or about June 26, the company received customer complaints that pets were refusing to eat its food or were vomiting upon eating it. Testing revealed that the affected…