Digging deep into recalls -- technology and customer trust

Earlier this week, NPR released a thoughtful article all about food recalls and food safety measures in the United States. 2024 brings us the highest number of recalls in the last 5 years, though the article makes a point to say that not all of it is due to contamination -- often we do see recalls and voluntary recalls due to mislabeling of allergens and ingredients. Technology to identify outbreaks, to test for pathogens, and to report are all improving each year. So while we do have many recalls, much of this is due to the advancements in identification and processing.

Despite this, there is still consumer distrust with the food safety system here in the US. Is this due to the high profile recalls, such as the Boar's Head Listeria recall from the summer, or to the general lack of education into how much more effective outbreak declaration is than even 10 years ago?

Click the link to not only delve into these topics, but to also get a good refresher on the common pathogens we've been experiencing as a country -- salmonella, listeria, and E. coli.

NPR: "Yes, the number of food recalls has been rising. Here's what you need to know."