Where you report a foreign object in food depends on what type of food it was found in. Grocery store meat and poultry go to the USDA, most other packaged foods go to the FDA, and restaurant food goes to your local health department. The process is straightforward, but preserving the right evidence before you file makes your report far more useful.
Which Agency to Contact
The U.S. has separate federal agencies overseeing different parts of the food supply, so there’s no single place to report every complaint. Here’s how it breaks down:
- Meat, poultry, or processed egg products: Call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-674-6854, or file a complaint online through the FSIS website.
- All other food products (canned goods, frozen meals, snacks, beverages, produce): Call the FDA at 888-723-3366, or submit a report through the FDA Safety Reporting Portal at safetyreporting.fda.gov.
- Pet food: Call the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine at 240-402-3876, or use the same FDA Safety Reporting Portal.
- Restaurant food: Contact the health department in your city, county, or state. Your state health department’s website will have local contact information.
If you’re unsure whether your product falls under the USDA or FDA, check the packaging. USDA-regulated items carry a round “USDA Inspected” mark with an establishment number. If you don’t see one, the FDA is your starting point.
What to Preserve Before You Report
The single most important thing you can do is not throw anything away. Agencies need physical evidence to investigate, and without it, your complaint is much harder to act on. Keep these items:
- The foreign object itself: Glass, metal, plastic, bone, or whatever you found. Place it in a clean bag or container.
- The original packaging: This includes the container, wrapper, box, or bag the food came in. The lot number, production codes, and establishment number printed on it help investigators trace the problem back to a specific factory or production run.
- Any uneaten portion of the food: Refrigerate or freeze it right away. Even a small amount can be tested.
- Your receipt: It confirms the store name, location, and purchase date.
Take photos of everything before you seal it up, including close-ups of the foreign object, the food it was found in, and all sides of the packaging. A timestamped photo on your phone is easy to produce later if needed.
Information You’ll Need for the Report
Whether you call or file online, you’ll be asked for a specific set of details. Having them ready speeds up the process considerably. The USDA hotline, for example, asks for:
- Your name, address, and phone number
- The brand name, product name, and manufacturer
- Package size and type
- Can or package codes (these are printed production codes, not the UPC barcode)
- The establishment number, usually found inside the USDA inspection mark on the label
- The store name and location where you bought it, along with the purchase date
FDA reports ask for similar details. The FDA’s online portal, called SmartHub, walks you through the process step by step. You’ll select “Food” from the product categories, then describe the problem and upload photos if you have them. The form is designed for consumers and doesn’t require any technical knowledge.
Reporting Restaurant Food
Federal agencies don’t regulate individual restaurants. If you found glass, metal, plastic, or another foreign object in a meal from a restaurant, food truck, or catering service, your local health department handles the complaint. Most city and county health departments have an online complaint form, and many accept phone reports as well.
You’ll want to note the restaurant name and address, the date and approximate time of your visit, what you ordered, and a description of the object you found. If you still have the object or took a photo, include that. Local inspectors use these reports to prioritize restaurant inspections, so even if it feels minor, filing a complaint creates a record that can reveal patterns.
What Happens After You File
After you submit a report to the USDA or FDA, an investigator may follow up to ask additional questions or arrange to collect the evidence you’ve preserved. For the USDA, this could mean a local inspector visits your home to pick up the product and foreign object. The agency then traces the product back through the supply chain to determine where the contamination happened.
If investigators find that the problem is widespread or poses a serious health risk, the result can be a voluntary recall by the manufacturer, a public health alert, or enforcement action against the facility. Not every individual report leads to a recall, but each one contributes to the agency’s surveillance data. A single complaint might be the tipping point that triggers an investigation if other reports about the same product are already on file.
You generally won’t receive updates on the investigation’s outcome unless it results in a public action like a recall. If you want to pursue compensation for medical bills or other damages, that’s a separate legal matter outside the scope of the federal reporting process.
If You or Someone Else Swallowed the Object
Foreign objects in food aren’t just unpleasant. Sharp items like glass, metal fragments, or bone shards can cause real injury. Symptoms that need immediate medical attention include difficulty swallowing, throat or chest pain, abdominal pain, choking, coughing, wheezing, or trouble breathing. In children, watch for drooling, irritability, fever, or vomiting.
Small, smooth objects often pass through the digestive system without trouble. But sharp or pointed objects, magnets, and disc batteries are more dangerous and may require removal through an endoscopy. If there’s any doubt about what was swallowed, calling your doctor or going to an emergency room is the right move. Bring the packaging with you so medical staff know exactly what product was involved.
If someone was injured, mention that in your report to the FDA or USDA. Complaints involving physical harm are prioritized and may trigger a faster investigation.