You’ve probably seen the news in the last few months: Ground beef, McDonald’s Quarter Pounders, and baby carrots were recalled in several states due to E. coli outbreaks; cucumbers due to salmonella; and deli meat due to listeria.
As a result, you may be wondering what’s going on with our food supply and what foods are safe to eat. The short answer is that the country’s food supply is still safe.
“We still have a very safe food supply,” Donald Schaffner, PhD, distinguished professor, extension specialist, and chair of the Department of Food Science at Rutgers University, tells PGN. “Most of us eat food every day, and most of us don’t get sick from that food.”
Read on to find out more about food recalls and outbreaks in the United States, why they happen, and what you should do to stay safe.
What are food recalls?
A food recall happens when a food product is taken off the market because there’s a concern that it may not be safe for consumption. For instance, explains Schaffner, a company may test its own product and find that it’s positive for a bacteria, so they recall the product to prevent people from getting sick.
In other cases, like the deli meat recall mentioned earlier, multiple people might report getting sick after consuming the same contaminated product. This results in a foodborne disease outbreak.
When there’s an outbreak, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other public health authorities may investigate and take that product off the market.
“We have recalls all the time, so it’s the recalls that get some attention, but it’s the outbreaks that we care about, because the outbreaks indicate that something has gone wrong to the point where people got sick,” Schaffner explains.
For example, in October 2024, multiple people in several states reported getting sick after eating McDonald’s Quarter Pounders. This prompted public health authorities to investigate.
They found that slivered onions on the burgers were contaminated with E. coli (a type of bacteria), leading to an onion recall from the grower that supplies them and a temporary removal of Quarter Pounders from the menu in approximately 900 McDonald’s restaurants.
Are food recalls actually increasing?
A recent study found that food recalls increased 20 percent between 2020 and 2023. However, data from the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversee food safety, shows that the number of food recalls in 2024 are on track to be slightly lower this year compared to 2023.
Additionally, an FDA spokesperson confirmed to PGN that while it may seem like outbreaks have increased, “the agency’s data show that the number of food related recall events in fiscal year 2024 is generally consistent with years past.”
Martin Bucknavage, senior extension program specialist at Penn State University’s Department of Food Science, tells PGN that we hear more about recalls lately, especially over the past decade, because the technology, communication, and investigation surrounding food recalls are getting better. As such, it’s hard to compare the number of recalls this year with the numbers from past years.
“There’s always been outbreaks that occur where we really never figure out exactly what is [causing them],” says Bucknavage. “That’s always been the case, but I think now we’re seeing that investigators, because of the technology [that’s now available], are able to identify the source of these.”
Why have there been so many food recalls in the last few months?
While the number of recalls has been unusually high this fall, Schaffner says there’s no reason to panic because those recalls have stemmed from different causes.
“Unfortunately, recalls and outbreaks are essentially random events, and so they occur at random when situations align to cause a problem,” he explains. “And we certainly have had a lot of different recalls and outbreaks, but there doesn’t seem to be any pattern that would suggest a common cause.”
He adds that recent recalls and outbreaks have involved different microorganisms. “We’ve seen listeria, with respect to the meat products; we’ve seen E. coli; we’ve seen salmonella. And even within E. coli, we’ve seen different strains of E. coli,” says Schaffner. “So, while it certainly seems to be unusual, there’s nothing that would suggest that something has fundamentally changed, except that we’re just having a string of bad luck.”
Additionally, the FDA spokesperson told PGN that a large proportion of the food recalls in the last few years were related to food allergens (such as milk, eggs, and peanuts). In some cases, according to Bucknavage, these happen because a company may have mislabeled a product or put it in the wrong package.
Is food safe to eat?
Yes, Bucknavage and Schaffner agree that the U.S. food supply is safe. However, they both recommend staying informed about recalls and outbreaks in your area so you know how to stay safe.
How can I stay safe when there are food recalls and outbreaks?
There are a number of ways to protect yourself and your household from consuming contaminated foods.
- Find out more about the recall and stay informed.
If you see news about a recall for a product you have at home, first look for more information. The recall may only affect specific states or a specific brand of the product.
For more information about whether a recall affects you, check one of the below sites:
- FoodSafety.gov: Recalls and Outbreaks
- CDC: Current Outbreak List
- FDA: Recalls, Market Withdrawals, & Safety Alerts
- USDA: Recalls & Public Health Alerts
These sites can answer some of the following questions:
- Where is the recall happening?
- What brand is the product that’s been recalled?
- When is the use or freeze by date of the product that’s been recalled?
- Don’t consume the recalled product.
If you find that a product you have at home matches one that’s been recalled, don’t consume it. According to FoodSafety.gov, you should either:
- Return the product to the place where you bought it for a refund; or
- Get rid of the product following the instructions on the recall notice so that no one else consumes it.
If you already used the product in your cooking, or if you have it in your fridge, clean your kitchen: Disinfect everything, from your cookware and utensils to counters, surfaces, and shelves.
- Practice food safety at home.
Regardless of whether a recall affects you, it’s important to follow good food safety practices at home to avoid getting sick:
- Wash your fruits and vegetables.
- Clean your counters.
- Avoid cross contamination by keeping raw meat and poultry separate from other foods when cooking.
- Cook food to the recommended temperature.
- Put food in the fridge within two hours of buying or preparing it, or sooner if it’s 90 degrees Fahrenheit or hotter outside.
- Consult your doctor if you have severe food poisoning.
Talk to your health care provider if you have severe food poisoning symptoms, including bloody diarrhea, a high fever (over 102 Fahrenheit), diarrhea that lasts more than three days, vomiting so often that you can’t keep liquids down, and dehydration.
People at higher risk from foodborne illnesses include older adults 65 or older, children under 5, people who are immunocompromised, and pregnant people.
For more information, talk to your health care provider.