California consumers were hit with 11 food recall notices last month, including raw milk from Fresno infected with H5N1 avian influenza, organic carrots from Commerce contaminated with E. coli, and cucumbers from Arizona containing salmonella. exposed.
This notice brings the total number of foods recalled from September to November to 26.
Is it normal for so many foods to be recalled?
Experts say it’s difficult to define the normal amount of recall notices and detected food poisonings because testing systems and investigation procedures have changed significantly over time.
“Baby Carrot” [for example] It may have been contaminated before, but it may not have been detected,” said Barbara Kowalczyk, director of George Washington University’s Institute for Food Safety and Nutrition Security.
In recent years, there has been increased investment in testing, surveillance, identification and tracing systems for food safety, but the systems are far from perfect, she said.
“As we get better at identifying, monitoring and tracking; [contaminated foods] “We’re just getting better at understanding things, so of course we’re going to see an increase in recalls,” said Sarah Bratager, senior food safety expert at the Institute of Food Technology.
While 26 recall notices in three months may seem like a lot, Blatager said it’s not unheard of.
Trace One, a product management software company, looked at the number of U.S. food recalls from 2020 to 2024 and found that the number of recalls increased from 454 to 547 annually. The main causes of food recalls are bacteria, foreign substances, and allergens, which are caused when products are exposed to wheat, dairy products, and tree nuts, and are often due to cross-contamination.
In the United States, California has the highest rate of recall notices at 39.8%, followed by New York at 36.4%. California has the highest rate of recalls because it is the nation’s largest food producer, according to Trace One.
Experts say food chains are becoming more complex as food is often grown, manufactured, packaged and distributed by separate companies, increasing the number of places in the supply chain where contamination can occur. As a result, the total number of recalled foods is increasing nationwide. .
While any number of recalls can feel significant, experts say it’s not all doom and gloom. Outbreaks from contaminated food are becoming smaller, and there are several actions consumers can take to protect themselves.
Are recalls just bad news?
A recall is when the production of a particular food product is discontinued (sometimes voluntarily by the producer), the product is removed from shelves, and the product is no longer available to consumers because it could cause injury or illness. It means a warning not to eat or drink.
Foods are recalled because they are contaminated with bacteria, viruses, or parasites, because foreign objects (broken glass, metal, plastic) are present, or because major allergens are not listed on the food packaging. (such as peanuts and shellfish). According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Blatager said recall notices have both negative and positive associations.
This is a bad thing because it means that the precautions put in place by the FDA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (which regulates meat, poultry, and egg products) have failed and contamination has entered the food production process. Yes, Bratager said.
Recalls are also a good thing because they show that the process of investigating, identifying and tracking contaminated food is working to alert producers and consumers.
“It’s both comforting and scary because we don’t want to see a recall happen,” she said. “But at the same time, if you live in an area where there hasn’t been a single recall, you’d be concerned.”
Why is the number of infected people under recall decreasing?
On November 18, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health notified consumers of two local cases of E. coli linked to a multistate outbreak linked to bagged whole carrots and baby carrots harvested at a Bakersfield farm. I warned you.
The county has one local case linked to the outbreak, which resulted in the death of an adult 65 and older with a medical condition.
We are increasingly seeing recall notices and public health warnings that affect a small number of people who have become ill or died from contaminated food.
Blatager said the lack of recalls is a positive development, but the fact that recalls have reduced the number of people affected by the outbreak reflects that surveillance and detection efforts have become more accurate. said.
“Recalls are often really large because we found a problem, but we can’t necessarily pinpoint when that problem occurred and get to the root cause of it,” she said. .
What can consumers do to protect themselves?
Kowalczyk said to always wash your hands with soap for 20 seconds before handling or preparing any type of food. Next, make sure the equipment and surfaces you use to prepare your food are sanitary.
When it comes to produce, be sure to wash it before preparing and eating it. Soap isn’t necessary, Kowalczyk says. More important to remove bacteria from food is to rub it under running water and then use paper towels to dry it.
Another rule of thumb is to keep raw meat and poultry away from other foods to minimize cross-contamination.
Use a cooking thermometer to cook your food to the proper temperature, especially when cooking meat. For a complete list of safe minimum internal temperatures for various foods, see the USDA’s online list.
“I know it’s fun to take food out, especially on holidays.” [to graze on] A few hours, but I really don’t want to do it. [food] He had been out for more than two hours, Bratager said.
Darin Detwiler, a food safety expert and professor of food regulatory issues at Northeastern University, said these proactive efforts should extend beyond the home kitchen.
For example, if you’re eating at a restaurant and see staff handling food in an unhygienic manner, such as handling food with bare hands or not washing their hands, you should speak up, Detwiler said. If your meal is not cooked properly, alert the staff by saying the meat on your plate is raw.
What is a consumer roll-in recall?
If you get sick and suspect food poisoning is the cause, experts say you should first talk to your health care provider and then report it.
You can report complaints of illness or severe allergic reactions to the appropriate regulatory system for the particular food.
For questions regarding dairy products, produce, nuts, spices, and bottled water, contact us online through FDA’s Safety Reporting Portal or call (888) 723 Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern Time. You can contact us by calling -3366 (phone lines are closed on Thursdays and federal holidays).
Reports of seafood problems should be emailed to Seafood.illness@fda.hhs.gov with the following information: type of fish/fish product, location of disease, and possible contamination. Whether there are food scraps and the number of infected people. Where did you buy food when you got sick?
Meat and poultry issues should be reported to the U.S. Department of Agriculture by calling (833) 674-6854 or emailing the Meat and Poultry Hotline at MPHotline.fsis@usda.gov.
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