Does it seem hard to keep track of all the federal government recalls of food, toys, and consumer products? Are you confused about which food item is regulated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), or both? The federal government does have a website recalls.gov, that provides links to all the latest mandatory recalls and voluntary product market removals from federal agencies. The agencies covered include the FDA, USDA, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Coast Guard, and the Environmental Protection Agency. Products covered include food, drugs, motor vehicles (cars, motorcycles, and trucks), tires, child car seats, and boats. (The EPA link for pesticide recalls is currently not available.) The EPA site for emission-related car recalls is at epa.gov/recalls. Each recall notice has specific information about the product recalled, why it was recalled, and often a link to the manufacturer’s website for additional information.
Some recalls may be more relevant to your situation than others. For example, some recent food recalls have been for ingredients not listed on the label, which is most relevant for people with allergies to those ingredients. Some consumer products recalled are for specialty products where only a few hundred units were ever sold, such as a recent recall of mower deck attachments. However, other recalls involve millions of products sold, particularly common food items. While the radio or tv news may provide basic information on the product recalled, the information on the federal government website or the manufacturer’s site will typically provide useful additional necessary information, including manufacture date of items subject to recall and the process for getting a refund.