A food recall is the removal of a food product from store shelves and consumer homes after it’s found to be unsafe or mislabeled. Companies issue recalls when they discover contamination, incorrect labeling, or foreign objects in their products. Most recalls are voluntary, meaning the company pulls the product on its own, but federal agencies have the authority to force a recall when public health is at risk.
Why Foods Get Recalled
Between 2004 and 2013, the United States saw roughly 4,900 food recall events. The two biggest triggers were pathogen contamination (41% of recalls) and undeclared allergens (27%). Pathogen contamination means disease-causing bacteria like Salmonella or Listeria were found in the product. Undeclared allergens means the label failed to list one of the major allergens: wheat, eggs, peanuts, milk, tree nuts, soybeans, fish, or shellfish. For someone with a severe allergy, a missing label can be life-threatening.
Physical contaminants account for about one in ten food recalls. These are foreign objects that end up in food during manufacturing or processing. Plastic fragments are the most common complaint, partly because plastic is so widely used in food equipment and packaging and is difficult for detection systems to catch. Glass fragments, while less common, pose the greatest injury risk and are the most likely to lead to lawsuits. Other physical contaminants include metal shavings from machinery, wood splinters from pallets, stones, bone fragments, and even personal items like jewelry from employees on the production line.
How Recalls Are Classified
Not all recalls carry the same level of urgency. The FDA assigns each recall a class based on the health risk involved:
- Class I: The most serious. There’s a reasonable probability that eating or handling the product will cause serious health consequences or death. Examples include food contaminated with a dangerous pathogen or a product containing a potent undeclared allergen.
- Class II: The product may cause temporary or reversible health problems, or the chance of serious harm is remote. A product with lower levels of contamination or a minor labeling error might fall here.
- Class III: The product is unlikely to cause any health problems. These recalls often involve technical violations, like a label that lists ingredients in the wrong order.
When you see a recall in the news, checking its classification tells you how urgently you need to act. A Class I recall means stop eating the product immediately. A Class III recall is far less pressing.
Which Agencies Oversee Food Recalls
Two federal agencies split responsibility for food safety in the U.S. The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), part of the USDA, regulates meat, poultry, and egg products. The FDA regulates everything else: produce, packaged foods, seafood, dairy, beverages, and more.
For products under FSIS jurisdiction, all recalls are technically voluntary. The company decides to pull its product, though FSIS monitors the process and verifies the recall is effective. The FDA operates differently. Under the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2011, the FDA gained the authority to order a mandatory recall when a company refuses to act voluntarily. This power applies when there’s a reasonable probability that a product will cause serious health consequences or death. Only the FDA Commissioner can issue that order, and the company gets a chance to request a hearing within two days. In practice, most companies comply voluntarily before it reaches that point.
What Happens During a Recall
A recall typically starts when a company, a government agency, or sometimes a consumer identifies a problem. The company might discover contamination through its own testing, receive consumer complaints about illness or foreign objects, or get flagged during a routine government inspection. Once the issue is confirmed, the company notifies the appropriate federal agency and begins pulling the product from distribution.
The agency then works with the company to classify the recall, determine which specific products are affected (by lot numbers, production dates, and distribution areas), and issue a public notice. These notices include detailed information: the product name, package sizes, UPC codes, best-by dates, and where the product was sold. Retailers pull affected items from their shelves, and the company typically offers refunds.
To give a sense of scale, FSIS tracked 42 total recalls in just the first portion of calendar year 2025 for meat, poultry, and egg products alone. The FDA handles many more across its broader range of regulated foods.
What to Do If You Have a Recalled Product
If you find out a product in your kitchen has been recalled, check the recall notice for specific instructions. You’ll generally be told to do one of two things: return the product to the store where you purchased it for a full refund, or dispose of it so that no person or animal can eat it. Disposal matters especially if you’ve already opened the package, since contaminated food in an open trash bag could still pose a risk to pets or children.
If you’ve touched or handled the recalled product, wash your hands thoroughly with warm water and soap for at least 20 seconds. For items that were stored in your refrigerator or pantry, it’s worth wiping down shelves and containers that came into contact with the product, particularly if the recall involves bacterial contamination like Listeria, which can survive and spread on surfaces.
If you’ve already eaten the recalled food and feel fine, there’s no need to panic. Many recalls are precautionary. But if you develop symptoms like fever, vomiting, diarrhea, or unusual fatigue in the days following, let your doctor know what you ate.
How to Stay Informed About Recalls
Recalls are posted publicly on both the FDA’s website (under “Recalls, Market Withdrawals, & Safety Alerts”) and FSIS’s website. The FDA offers a free email subscription through GovDelivery that sends recall alerts directly to your inbox, and both agencies post updates on social media platforms including Facebook and X. FoodSafety.gov, a joint government site, also aggregates recall information in one place and provides consumer-friendly guidance.
Grocery stores and manufacturers sometimes contact customers directly if they have loyalty card data or purchase records linking you to a recalled product. But relying on that alone isn’t reliable. Signing up for email alerts or checking recall pages periodically is the most dependable way to catch a problem before it affects you.