Potato salad with foreign plastic. Mixed greens with listeria exposure. Ice cream with metal fragments. Cookies with undeclared nut allergens. Dried pasta with mold contamination.
These are just a few examples of recent food recalls issued by the U.S. federal government.
Food recalls frequently generate headlines and public concern because of their associated safety risks and health hazards. To help protect consumers, government officials have developed a system of regulation and oversight that identifies potentially unsafe products and issues recalls that get those products off of store shelves and out of consumers’ homes.
This system of oversight is a shared responsibility of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. Each agency is authorized by law to oversee certain types of farms and food production facilities, with sometimes overlapping jurisdiction. As the agencies identify hazardous products, they can issue recalls to minimize risks to consumers.Both the USDA and the FDA distinguish between Class I, Class II, and Class III food recalls to signify the level of risk associated with each. While the two agencies’ systems are slightly different, the general classifications used are similar. Class I recalls are for the most hazardous products, which have higher risks of causing serious adverse health consequences or death, while Class II recalls have more moderate risks and Class III recalls have minimal risks.
Trends in U.S. Food Recalls
The total number of food recalls increased by 20% between 2020 and 2023
Source: Trace One analysis of 2020–2024 FDA and USDA data
Over the past few years, the number of food recalls issued by the two agencies has increased. From 2020 to 2023, the total number of recalls grew from 454 to 547, an increase of more than 20%. This growth took place across all classes of recall, but notably the number of Class I recalls has increased in each year since 2020. And through the first half of 2024, the number of total recalls is set to roughly match 2023’s total.
Common Causes of Food Recalls
Allergen contamination is responsible for the largest share of recalls
Source: Trace One analysis of 2020–2024 FDA data
The leading causes of food recalls are allergen, bacterial, and foreign object contamination. Allergen contamination, responsible for nearly 40% of all cases, occurs when products are exposed to allergens like wheat, dairy, and nuts, often due to cross-contamination during manufacturing. Even trace amounts can trigger severe allergic reactions in sensitive individuals, making prevention and accurate labeling crucial.
Bacterial contamination follows at 21.1%, with recalls for pathogens like salmonella, E. coli, and listeria. These bacteria can cause serious illness, particularly in vulnerable populations such as young children, the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems. Infections can lead to severe gastrointestinal distress, long-term health complications, and even death.
Foreign object contamination accounts for 11.6% of recalls and includes materials such as rocks, insects, plastic, or metal. These contaminants can cause physical harm, such as choking, dental damage, or internal injuries if ingested.
The least common but highly concerning are lead contamination recalls, comprising just 1.7% of the total, yet attracting significant public attention due to their severe health risks. Recent high-profile lead recalls include contaminated applesauce pouches, which garnered extensive media coverage due to the potential harm to vulnerable populations.
Food Recalls by State
Nearly 40% of all recalls impact customers in California & 16% originate from its producers
Source: Trace One analysis of 2020–2024 FDA and USDA data
Recalls are a nationwide concern, but some states are more vulnerable than others. California is the nation’s largest producer of food, and as such, the state is also responsible for the largest share of all recalls. More than 16% of recalls originate from California products, more than double the share of the next-closest state. And as the nation’s most populous state and a large market for food, California customers are also most frequently affected by recalls. Nearly 40% of all recalls nationally impact residents in California, with residents in other large states like New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Texas following close behind.
The analysis was conducted by Trace One, a company specializing in regulatory compliance for the food and beverage industry, using data from the USDA and FDA. To calculate which states have been most impacted by food recalls in recent years, researchers combined data on recall events from both sources for the years 2020–2024, then ranked states accordingly.
Here is a summary of the data for Montana:
- Share of all recalls impacting state’s residents: 16.7%
- Total recalls impacting state’s residents: 371
- Share of Class I recalls impacting state’s residents: 17.0%
- Total Class I recalls impacting state’s residents: 155
- Share of all recalls originating from state’s producers: 0.1%
- Total recalls originating from state’s producers: 3
For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, see States Most Impacted by Food Recalls in Recent Years on Trace One.
