Why Are Food Recalls Increasing?

Posted on June 29, 2009 in Consumer Goods, Health & Medicine, Recalls, Recent Studies

Food recalls are happening more frequently these days: the federal government has issued warnings about raw alfalfa sprouts, pistachios and peanut butter, all in the course of one year. According to the Food and Drug Administration, there were 214 food recalls in 2006, 247 in 2007 and 310 in 2008.

The increase in recalls might be a positive development, authorities say. Many public health experts believe that the nation’s food supply is much safer than it was 100 years ago, and probably safer than ten years ago. As scientists get better at detecting outbreaks of recent years, like the chemical melamine in infant formula and salmonella in peanut butter, more recalls are bound to occur.

However, others worry that the FDA still has a ways to go in terms of protecting Americans. Lawmakers are developing a new bill that would require food manufacturers to track the distribution of their products. The bill would also require the FDA to make more frequent trips to food manufacturing plants.

More food is coming from abroad, which makes it difficult to monitor the sources of contaminated food. The FDA recently opened offices in India and China to keep tabs on food manufacturers, and increased food surveillance in the United States may put consumers at ease. But one tainted food item can wreak havoc on the industry.