Recalls - So many!

From radioactive shrimp to vodka seltzer in energy drink cans, food and beverage recalls have made headlines throughout 2025 and into 2026—and the headlines are often pretty concerning.

To end the year, there was a massive recall for hundreds of foods kept at a Gold Star Distribution storage unit in Minneapolis (think: Arizona iced teas, Dole products, Haribo candies, and Kellogg’s cereals) because of contamination from rodent urine, bird feces, and salmonella.

It’s not just Gold Star; in 2025, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced recalls of shredded cheese contaminated with metal fragments in 31 states, infant formula contaminated with Clostridium botulinum (a bacteria that causes botulism), and products from big-brand names like Trader Joe’s, Ritz, Haagen Dazs, Wegmans, Boar’s Head, and White Castle.

All that’s to say: if you’ve been feeling like recalls are ubiquitous, it’s because they are.

“We literally have almost a recall a day,” says Darin Detwiler, PhD, a food safety activist and associate professor of food policy and corporate social responsibility at Northeastern University. Detwiler says he’s concerned about the amount of people getting sick from food recalls year after year.

Manufacturers recall foods when they catch a contaminant or serious problem with the product—including the presence of foodborne pathogens, like listeria monocytogenes, E.coli, salmonella, and Clostridium botulinum. Each year, foodborne pathogens cause 48 million illnesses and 3,000 deaths in the United States, per the USDA. “Those numbers haven’t improved by one percent in the past three decades,” says Detwiler.

Rising costs, massive health department staffing cuts, and reductions in food safety programs in the past year are all putting an already underfunded system in jeopardy, says Kowalcyk. 

If you have a recalled food product at home, do not consume it. Instead, return it to the place of purchase for a refund or dispose of it according to the recall notice, and make sure to clean any surfaces it may have touched.

Unfortunately, foods are not the only thing being recalled in mass in recent months.

So, what if you did not know about the recall until AFTER you ate whatever it is that is now recalled? That was my biggest question after the question of what the heck is going on?

Every year an estimated 48 million Americans get sick from food contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites or toxins, resulting in 128,000 hospitalizations and about 3,000 deaths.

Of those 48 million cases, about 9 million are specifically linked to known foodborne pathogens — such as salmonella, E. coli and listeria — which account for 56,000 hospitalizations and 1,300 deaths.

Double-check that your product matches the recall notice: brand, product name, use-by or freeze-by date and establishment number. 

The establishment number — often abbreviated as EST — is a unique identifier assigned by the USDA to the facility where the product was processed. Next:

Wash cookware, utensils and cutting boards with hot, soapy water

Clean counters and refrigerators with hot, soapy water

Sanitize with a diluted bleach solution (1 tablespoon unscented liquid chlorine bleach per gallon of water) and let air-dry

Not all germs act the same. So here's a chart that may help.

Pathogen                             Incubation period             Typical recovery

Campylobacter                  2 to 5 days                          Up to 10 days

E. Coli                                    2 to 5 days                          5 to 7 days

Listeria                                  Within 24 hours                 1 to 3 days

Norovirus                            12 hours to 2 days           1 to 3 days

Salmonella                          6 hours to 6 days              4 to 7 days

Vibrio                                    12 hours to 2 days           1 to 7 days

So, when do you call a doctor or go to the E.R. ?

They recommend that you seek immediate care if you:

Have bloody diarrhea or diarrhea that lasts more than three days

Experience nonstop vomiting or can’t keep fluids down

Show signs of dehydration (dizziness, low urine output, extreme thirst)

Have a fever of 102°F or higher

 Personally, I try to err on the side of caution. If it may be 'iffy' then I would rather sacrifice whatever it cost to the expense and suffering of getting sick. I do not like being sick and I go out of my way to avoid it. If that item cost $5 well, that's too bad. Out it goes. It sure is cheaper than a visit to the Hospital. Not to mention the wear and tear on this old bod.

Not a happy topic, I know but I would rather be informed and aware than sick.

I asked the questions. I found some answers. I shared them. Now I am done.

Why was the math book sad?

It had too many problems.