Julia Conte
Staff Writer
The purpose of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is to ensure the food being ingested by people in the United States is in no way harmful to them.
The FDA oversees most food products with the exception of items that include meat, poultry, alcohol and drinking water. These products are monitored by other governmental organizations, including the Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.
In 2014, Wyoming had 19 recalls per every 100,000 residents. In 2015, those numbers increased to 25 recalls per every 100,00 residents. Over just four years, Wyoming saw a 31.6% increase.
The top reason for food recalls in every state was undeclared allergens, making up about 39.1% of all food recalls between the years 2014 and 2018. The second largest reason for food recalls in America was due to salmonella, accounting for 14.6% of the total food recalls.
Wyoming’s second reason for recalls, however, was a tie between salmonella and listeria monocytogenes.
“Food recalls are an important mechanism and public health protection tool utilized by food companies to ensure that contaminated or defective products do not reach or sicken at-risk consumers. The process can be voluntary or triggered by regulatory agencies…In recent years, recalls have been on the rise, due to a variety of reasons, including concentration of production and distribution, but also due to increased oversight (Food Safety Modernization Act, 2011) and improved traceability,” said Bledar Bisha, the department head of the Animal Sciences department.
Each month, the FDA recalls food items in every state due to concerns with the safety of the food.
“…Food recalls… are important because removing potentially dangerous food from circulation can have a significant positive impact on public health. This has become particularly essential with larger food production facilities as they often supply their product to large portions of the country and accordingly can impact a significant population. Moreover, once it is known that a food poses a health hazard, recalling that product is also just the right thing to do,” said John Willford, a lecturer for the Department of Molecular Biology.
Food is mainly recalled for three reasons. The first being contamination by a bacteria that could be harmful or damaging to the body if ingested. These bacterias could include listeria monocytogenes, salmonella and E.coli, among others.
A second reason for recall would include the presence of an allergen discovered in a product where it should be absent, including dairy, nuts and gluten. The third reason for recall is if a product is not labelled or branded properly. However, the majority of FDA recalls are voluntary. For example, a company will often recall a product on their own accord after discovering an issue with it.
In addition to that, a company will voluntarily recall a food item if the FDA expresses concern about the product. If, somehow, a contaminated product slips through the cracks and is distributed into the public, then the FDA will request a recall. However, this only occurs in rare situations.
According to statistics from 2014-2018 derived from food recalls reported in the FDA’s Weekly Enforcement Reports, the United States experienced a spike in food recalls in 2017, rising from 20.5% in 2016 to 23.4% in 2017.
In 2018, the percentage dropped to 19% for the nationwide total for FDA food recalls. However, Wyoming was highest in the number of recalls for that year. Using the same data from 2014-2018, Wyoming was ranked 5th in the number of food recalls. Falling just below Montana, Wyoming had 19.6 food recalls for every 100,000 residents.
Food recalls are important in regards to the functioning of our society because the production of contaminated food provides a high risk of mass consumption, which can lead to serious illness or in some cases, death.
