The best way to handle a recalled food item is to stop eating it immediately, then either return it to the store for a refund or dispose of it safely. Those two steps cover the basics, but there’s more to it: you also need to clean any surfaces the food touched, watch for symptoms if you already ate it, and know how to report a problem. Here’s how to handle each part.
Stop Using the Product and Check the Details
As soon as you hear about a recall, stop eating or serving the product. Don’t taste it to see if it seems fine. Contamination with bacteria like Salmonella, E. coli, or Listeria doesn’t change the way food looks, smells, or tastes.
Next, confirm whether your specific product is actually part of the recall. Recall notices list identifying details like brand name, product name, package size, and a date or production code. You’ll find these codes printed on the packaging, often near the expiration date or on the bottom of the container. They may appear as a “lot code,” “batch code,” “best by” date, or a string of numbers stamped into the packaging. There’s no single standard location, so check all sides of the label. If the lot code and product description match the recall notice, your item is affected.
Return It or Dispose of It Safely
You have two options: take the product back to the store or throw it away. Most retailers will give you a full refund for recalled items, even without a receipt, though policies vary by store. If you still have the packaging, bring it along. Some recalls also offer replacement products or credits from the manufacturer.
If returning it isn’t practical, disposal needs to be done carefully so no one else (including pets or animals digging through trash) can access the food. Place the recalled item in a sealed plastic bag before putting it in the garbage. If the food was stored in a reusable container, wash that container thoroughly with hot, soapy water before using it again. Don’t just toss an open container of recalled food loosely into the trash.
Clean Your Refrigerator Thoroughly
This step is easy to overlook, but it matters. Bacteria from a contaminated product can spread to surfaces and other foods in your fridge through direct contact or dripping liquids. The CDC recommends a full cleaning process after removing a recalled product, especially for recalls involving bacterial contamination.
Start by throwing out the recalled food and any other food that was stored touching it or directly next to it. Then remove all remaining items from the refrigerator and place them on a counter while you clean. Don’t leave them out for more than two hours.
Take out all removable parts: shelves, drawers, and bins. Wash them by hand with hot, soapy water. One important detail: if you have glass shelves or drawers that are cold, let them reach room temperature before running hot water over them, or the glass can crack. Dry everything with a clean towel.
Wipe the inside walls, ceiling, and floor of the refrigerator with hot, soapy water, then wipe again with clean water to remove the soap residue. Do the same for doors and any drawers that don’t come out. For an extra level of protection, you can sanitize the interior with a solution of one tablespoon of liquid bleach per gallon of water. Let everything dry, reassemble the shelves, and put your remaining food back.
Watch for Symptoms if You Already Ate It
If you consumed a recalled product before learning about the recall, don’t panic, but do pay attention to your body over the coming days and weeks. How quickly symptoms appear depends on the type of contamination involved.
Salmonella symptoms typically show up within 6 to 48 hours, though they can take up to 10 days. You’d likely experience diarrhea, fever, and stomach cramps. The dangerous strain of E. coli (O157:H7), which is common in ground beef and leafy green recalls, usually causes symptoms within 3 to 4 days, with a range of 1 to 10 days. Severe stomach cramps and bloody diarrhea are hallmarks.
Listeria is different and worth noting because of its unusually long incubation period. Symptoms of invasive listeria infection can take 2 to 6 weeks to appear, which means you might not connect them to a food you ate a month ago. Listeria is especially dangerous for pregnant women, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems. Symptoms can include fever, muscle aches, confusion, and stiff neck.
If you develop symptoms consistent with foodborne illness after eating a recalled product, that’s worth a call to your doctor. For severe symptoms like bloody diarrhea, a fever above 102°F, signs of dehydration, or symptoms lasting more than three days, seek medical attention promptly.
Report Illness to the Right Agency
If you or someone in your household gets sick from a recalled food, reporting it helps public health officials track the scope of an outbreak and can lead to faster action on future contaminations. Where you report depends on the type of food.
- Meat, poultry, or egg products: Call the USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-674-6854 or file a complaint online through the USDA.
- All other foods: Call the FDA at 1-888-723-3366 or report through the FDA Safety Reporting Portal.
- Restaurant food: Contact your city, county, or state health department directly.
- Pet food: Report through the FDA Safety Reporting Portal or call 240-402-3876.
You should also contact your local county or city health department regardless of which federal agency you reach out to. Local health departments are often the ones who investigate clusters of illness in a specific area, and your report might be the one that connects the dots.
Stay Ahead of Future Recalls
Most people learn about food recalls through news coverage, but by that point the product may have been sitting in your fridge for days or weeks. You can sign up for email alerts directly from the FDA’s Recalls, Market Withdrawals, and Safety Alerts page, which sends notifications as soon as new recalls are posted. The USDA runs a similar alert system for meat and poultry products. Both are free and take about 30 seconds to set up.
It’s also worth occasionally checking the recall pages even without an alert, particularly if you buy a lot of fresh produce, deli meats, or frozen foods, which are the categories most frequently affected. Keeping a general habit of glancing at lot codes and expiration dates when you unpack groceries makes it much faster to check your kitchen if a recall does come through.