Smart shopping during recalls: How consumers can protect themselves

By Roger Hancock, CEO of Recall InfoLink

— OPINION —

Food recalls are often described as safeguards for public health, but in reality, they reveal cracks in our food safety systems. Take the recent deadly Boar’s Head outbreak which involved more than 7 million pounds of ready-to-eat deli meats contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. While Boar’s Head issued a recall and notified retailers to pull affected products, this action came several weeks after reports of illnesses and fatalities surfaced. Worse, the number of affected products significantly increased after the first recall notice, extending the risk to consumers.

This example illustrates a troubling truth: Recalls are too often reactive measures that address long-standing vulnerabilities in food safety protocols. Contaminated products should never reach store shelves. When recalls are required, swift, transparent, and effective action is essential – but this is frequently lacking. These gaps leave consumers bearing the burden of protecting themselves from potentially dangerous – or even deadly – outcomes.

The government and the food industry must strengthen recall processes by prioritizing proactive prevention, rigorous traceability, and clear, timely communication. Addressing these issues means investing in technologies that improve traceability and enable faster identification and removal of contaminated products. It also means enhancing communication protocols to ensure recall notices are timely, clear, and consumer friendly. Prevention must take precedence over reaction, with rigorous testing and quality control measures reducing the risk of contamination before products ever reach the market. Rebuilding trust with consumers requires a commitment to transparency and a demonstrated prioritization of safety.

But until these changes are made, consumers remain their own best advocates, and can take steps to protect their families while holding the food industry accountable.

Here are some ways to shop smart during a recall: 

— Staying informed is critical. Use trusted sources for recall alerts, like the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, or the manufacturer’s website. Sign up or opt-in to communications through a loyalty program – many retailers use this as a way to send recall information directly to affected consumers. Tell your retailer you expect them to notify you if they know you purchased a product that has been recalled.

— If allergens are a concern, sign up for alerts from FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education). You can be specific about the allergens you are concerned about so that notices are tailored to your needs.   

— Check labels, expiration dates and batch or lot numbers carefully. Usually it’s a very specific batch, lot, or type of product that’s involved in the recall. If you’ve already purchased a recalled product, follow instructions for disposal or return products to point-of-purchase for a refund. 

— If you or a family member falls ill after consuming a recalled product, seek medical attention and report the issue to health authorities.

— Speak up when a company can do better at fulfilling their obligation to you as their customer, whether it’s pulling product from shelves, lack of transparency, or poor communication. When companies fall short, consumer pressure becomes critical. 

ecall– Consider avoiding brands that mishandle recalls. Contact customer service to provide feedback on unclear or delayed recall notifications. Join forces with advocacy groups such as STOP Foodborne Illness or the Alliance for Recall Ready Communities that are working to establish recall standards and improve consumer notifications.

Bottom line, when a food product is recalled, it means something has gone wrong. Food recalls should not be viewed as a routine safety tool. Instead, they signify a failure of the system. Leadership in food safety demands a culture of accountability and a proactive approach to minimizing recalls. By addressing systemic vulnerabilities, industry leaders can transform recalls from a symptom of failure into a rare exception. Consumers should not have to shoulder the burden of keeping themselves safe. A robust, transparent, and consumer-focused food system is not only possible but necessary.

Shopping smart during a recall is about more than protecting your family – it’s about sending a clear message to the industry that business-as-usual isn’t good enough. By demanding higher standards and supporting brands that prioritize safety, consumers can help drive long-overdue improvements in the food system.

About the author: Roger Hancock, CEO of Recall InfoLink, is one of the world’s foremost experts on recalls, with experience that spans the retail, tech, data, regulatory, and supply chain. Recall InfoLink, makes recalls faster, easier, and more accurate across the supply chain to protect consumers and brands.

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Source: https://www.foodsafetynews.com/2025/01/smart-shopping-during-recalls-how-consumers-can-protect-themselves/