Food Safety
USDA and FDA Need to Better Ensure Prompt and Complete Recalls of Potentially Unsafe Food Gao ID: GAO-05-51 October 7, 2004Two large food recalls completed in 2003 were associated with 8 deaths and nearly 100 serious illnesses in at least 16 states. Manufacturers voluntarily recall potentially unsafe food by notifying their customers to return or destroy it. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), for meat, poultry, and egg products, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), for other food, have programs to monitor voluntary food recalls, verify that companies contact their customers, and maintain recall data. GAO (1) examined the recall programs and procedures USDA and FDA use to protect consumers from unsafe foods and (2) compared their food recall authority with the authority of agencies to recall other consumer products.
Weaknesses in USDA's and FDA's food recall programs heighten the risk that unsafe food will remain in the food supply and ultimately be consumed. Specifically, USDA and FDA do not know how promptly and completely the recalling companies and their distributors and other customers are carrying out recalls, and neither agency is using its data systems to effectively track and manage its recall programs. For these and other reasons, most recalled food is not recovered and therefore may be consumed. GAO's analysis of recalls in 2003 showed that about 38 percent and 36 percent of recalled food was ultimately recovered in recalls overseen by USDA and FDA, respectively. These agencies also told GAO of instances in which companies were slow to reveal where they had distributed the food or provided inaccurate customer lists. That distribution information is critical because USDA's and FDA's primary role in recalls is to monitor the effectiveness of a company's recall actions. To do so, the agencies contact a sample of the distribution chain from these lists to verify that customers in the food distribution chain received notice of the recall, and that they located the food and removed it from the marketplace. However, the methodology that the agencies use for selecting the customers to check can result in entire segments of complex distribution chains being overlooked. Moreover, GAO found that the agencies did not complete verification checks for some recalls before the shelf life of the food expired. In addition, consumer groups and others question the usefulness of USDA's and FDA's efforts to communicate with the public, suggesting alternatives such as posting notices in grocery stores and direct notification of consumers. Agencies responsible for the safety of products, such as toys, heart pacemakers, and automobiles, have specific recall authority not available to USDA and FDA for food. This includes the authority to (1) require a company to notify the agency when it has distributed a potentially unsafe product, (2) order a recall, (3) establish recall requirements, and (4) impose monetary penalties if a company violates recall requirements. For example, by law, companies must promptly notify the Consumer Product Safety Commission after learning that a product may pose an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death, or face penalties of up to $1.65 million. Likewise, FDA has recall authority for unsafe biological products, medical devices, radiation emitting electronic products, and infant formula. Moreover, in contrast to its inability to penalize a company that is slow to conduct a food recall, FDA can impose penalties of up to $100,000 per day for a company that fails to recall a defective biological product, such as a vaccine.
RecommendationsOur recommendations from this work are listed below with a Contact for more information. Status will change from "In process" to "Open," "Closed - implemented," or "Closed - not implemented" based on our follow up work.
Director: Team: Phone:GAO-05-51, Food Safety: USDA and FDA Need to Better Ensure Prompt and Complete Recalls of Potentially Unsafe Food
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Report to Congressional Requesters:
October 2004:
FOOD SAFETY:
USDA and FDA Need to Better Ensure Prompt and Complete Recalls of
Potentially Unsafe Food:
[Hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-05-51]:
GAO Highlights:
Highlights of GAO-05-51, a report to congressional requesters:
Why GAO Did This Study:
Two large food recalls completed in 2003 were associated with 8 deaths
and nearly 100 serious illnesses in at least 16 states. Manufacturers
voluntarily recall potentially unsafe food by notifying their customers
to return or destroy it. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), for
meat, poultry, and egg products, and the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA), for other food, have programs to monitor voluntary food recalls,
verify that companies contact their customers, and maintain recall
data. GAO (1) examined the recall programs and procedures USDA and FDA
use to protect consumers from unsafe foods and (2) compared their food
recall authority with the authority of agencies to recall other
consumer products.
What GAO Found:
Weaknesses in USDA‘s and FDA‘s food recall programs heighten the risk
that unsafe food will remain in the food supply and ultimately be
consumed. Specifically, USDA and FDA do not know how promptly and
completely the recalling companies and their distributors and other
customers are carrying out recalls, and neither agency is using its
data systems to effectively track and manage its recall programs. For
these and other reasons, most recalled food is not recovered and
therefore may be consumed. GAO‘s analysis of recalls in 2003 showed
that about 38 percent and 36 percent of recalled food was ultimately
recovered in recalls overseen by USDA and FDA, respectively. These
agencies also told GAO of instances in which companies were slow to
reveal where they had distributed the food or provided inaccurate
customer lists. That distribution information is critical because
USDA‘s and FDA‘s primary role in recalls is to monitor the
effectiveness of a company‘s recall actions. To do so, the agencies
contact a sample of the distribution chain from these lists to verify
that customers in the food distribution chain received notice of the
recall, and that they located the food and removed it from the
marketplace. However, the methodology that the agencies use for
selecting the customers to check can result in entire segments of
complex distribution chains being overlooked. Moreover, GAO found that
the agencies did not complete verification checks for some recalls
before the shelf life of the food expired. In addition, consumer groups
and others question the usefulness of USDA‘s and FDA‘s efforts to
communicate with the public, suggesting alternatives such as posting
notices in grocery stores and direct notification of consumers.
Agencies responsible for the safety of products, such as toys, heart
pacemakers, and automobiles, have specific recall authority not
available to USDA and FDA for food. This includes the authority to (1)
require a company to notify the agency when it has distributed a
potentially unsafe product, (2) order a recall, (3) establish recall
requirements, and (4) impose monetary penalties if a company violates
recall requirements. For example, by law, companies must promptly
notify the Consumer Product Safety Commission after learning that a
product may pose an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death, or
face penalties of up to $1.65 million. Likewise, FDA has recall
authority for unsafe biological products, medical devices, radiation
emitting electronic products, and infant formula. Moreover, in contrast
to its inability to penalize a company that is slow to conduct a food
recall, FDA can impose penalties of up to $100,000 per day for a
company that fails to recall a defective biological product, such as a
vaccine.
What GAO Recommends:
GAO proposes that Congress consider legislation requiring a company to
notify USDA or FDA if it discovers it has distributed unsafe food and
giving agencies authority to order food recalls, and recommends that
the agencies take actions to ensure prompt, complete recalls and better
recall monitoring. USDA said the report was generally accurate and its
May 2004 directive will address weaknesses GAO found. FDA did not
believe its system lengthened recalls or its processes reduced
recovery. FDA disagreed with some recommendations. GAO continues to
believe its recommended actions are needed to protect consumers.
www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-05-51.
To view the full product, including the scope and methodology, click on
the link above. For more information, contact Lawrence J. Dyckman at
(202) 512-3841 or dyckmanl@gao.gov.
[End of section]
Contents:
Letter:
Results in Brief:
Background:
Weaknesses in USDA's and FDA's Recall Programs Heighten the Risk That
Unsafe Food Will Reach Consumers:
Other Government Agencies Have Recall Authority Not Available to USDA
and FDA for Food That May Better Protect Consumers:
Conclusions:
Matters for Congressional Consideration:
Recommendations for Executive Action:
Agency Comments and Our Evaluation:
Appendixes:
Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology:
Appendix II: Federal Actions Associated with the Discovery of an Animal
in the United States Infected with BSE:
Beef Recall Was Triggered by a BSE-Positive Sample from One Cow:
Recall Begun in December 2003 Was Completed in March 2004:
Recall Was Complicated by Inaccurate Distribution Lists and Mixing of
Potentially Contaminated and Noncontaminated Beef:
FDA's Role in USDA's Recall:
USDA and FDA Worked Together on the Recall:
Appendix III: Information on a 2002 Recall of Ground Beef by a ConAgra
Plant in Greeley, Colorado:
Appendix IV: USDA and FDA Actions on the Recommendations We Made in
2000:
Appendix V: Information on the 20 Food Recalls We Examined for 2003:
Appendix VI: Recall Authority of Selected Government Agencies:
USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service:
FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition:
FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research:
FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health:
FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research:
FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine:
Consumer Product Safety Commission:
Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration:
Canadian Food Inspection Agency:
Appendix VII: Comments from the U.S. Department of Agriculture:
GAO Comments:
Appendix VIII: Comments from the Food and Drug Administration:
GAO Comments:
Appendix IX: GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments:
GAO Contacts:
Staff Acknowledgments:
Tables:
Table 1: USDA and FDA Verification Rates for 20 Selected Class I
Recalls in 2003:
Table 2: Recall Authority of Selected Government Agencies:
Table 3: Detailed Timeline of USDA, FDA, and Company Actions Related to
the Discovery of an Animal Infected with BSE:
Table 4: USDA and FDA Actions on GAO's Recommendations to Modify Recall
Data Systems:
Table 5: Selected Information on the 20 Class I Food Recalls We
Examined:
Figures:
Figure 1: USDA and FDA Recalls by Risk Classification, 2003:
Figure 2: Downstream Distribution Chain May Include Multiple Levels of
Distributors, Processors, and Retailers before the Food Reaches
Consumers:
Figure 3: Number of Days after Production When Recall Occurred and
Expected Shelf Lives for Four Recalls:
Figure 4: USDA's Recall Verification Checks by Location and Customer
Type for Meat Associated with the Animal Infected with BSE:
Abbreviations:
BSE: bovine spongiform encephalopathy:
CFIA: Canadian Food Inspection Agency:
CPSC: Consumer Product Safety Commission:
FDA: Food and Drug Administration:
FSIS: Food Safety and Inspection Service:
NHTSA: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:
USDA: U.S. Department of Agriculture:
Letter October 6, 2004:
The Honorable Tom Harkin:
Ranking Democratic Member:
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry:
United States Senate:
The Honorable Marcy Kaptur:
Ranking Minority Member:
Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug
Administration, and Related Agencies:
Committee on Appropriations:
House of Representatives:
When food companies discover that they may have distributed food that
is contaminated with disease-causing bacteria or that contains
allergens that can cause serious illness or death, they will usually
conduct a voluntary recall. That is, they will contact their customers
and instruct them to contact the wholesalers, retailers, and others in
the food's distribution chain and ask them to return or destroy the
potentially unsafe food. Recalls may not always prevent serious health
problems. In fact, two large recalls completed in 2003 were associated
with foodborne illness outbreaks involving nearly 100 hospitalizations
or serious illnesses, 8 deaths, and 3 miscarriages in at least 16
states, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
In recent years, the volume of food that companies recalled in the
United States increased substantially; for meat and poultry alone, the
amount recalled increased from nearly 6 million pounds in 1988 to about
36 million pounds in 2003. Concerns that contaminated food could reach
consumers have also intensified because of the potential susceptibility
of food to deliberate contamination. In January 2004, the President
identified the U.S. food system as vulnerable to intentional acts of
terrorism.[Footnote 1]
Food recalls are voluntary and federal agencies responsible for food
safety have no authority to compel companies to carry out recalls--with
the exception of the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) authority to
require a recall for infant formula. USDA provides guidance to
companies for carrying out voluntary recalls of meat, poultry, and egg
products and monitors those recalls. FDA provides guidance to companies
for carrying out voluntary recalls of other foods and monitors those
recalls.
In August 2000, we reported that while USDA and FDA believed companies
carried out timely recalls, the two agencies did not have data to
support their views.[Footnote 2] We recommended that, among other
things, USDA and FDA provide specific guidance to companies, including
time frames for quickly initiating and carrying out recalls, and that
the agencies maintain key dates--such as when the recall started, when
customers in the distribution chain were notified, and when the recalls
were completed--in their recall data systems to allow the agencies to
assess whether companies do indeed carry out timely recalls.
As part of their recall programs, both USDA and FDA classify recalls on
the basis of their severity, with Class I recalls presenting the
greatest risk to human health. Class I recalls may involve food
contaminated with disease-causing bacteria, such as Listeria
monocytogenes (listeria) and Escherichia coli (E. coli), or food
containing ingredients not identified on the label (e.g., nuts or eggs)
that could cause severe illness or death to someone allergic to that
ingredient. Class II and Class III recalls involve foods that present
little or no risk of adverse health consequences. For example, in FDA's
case, these foods may cause medically reversible adverse consequences,
such as seasoned popcorn containing a color additive not listed on the
label that can cause mild allergic reactions.
In their guidance to companies for voluntary recalls, both USDA and FDA
have procedures for companies to notify their downstream customers--
such as processors, wholesalers, distributors, institutions, and
retailers in the distribution chain--as well as procedures for
returning or disposing of the food (referred to as "recovery").
Both USDA and FDA also have guidance for their respective field staff
with procedures for monitoring the progress of the recall, ensuring
that the public is notified through press releases and Web postings,
carrying out verification checks to confirm that the company has
notified its downstream customers, and documenting certain agency and
company recall activities in their respective recall databases--Recall
Web for USDA, and Recall Enterprise System for FDA.
In contrast to the voluntary food recall programs at USDA and FDA,
other agencies have authority to issue mandatory recall orders: the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recall authority for
motor vehicles; the Consumer Product Safety Commission's recall
authority for many consumer goods; and FDA's recall authority for
infant formula, biological products, medical devices, and radiation-
emitting electronic products. At the time of our previous study,
legislation had been introduced that would have given mandatory
authority to USDA and FDA for food recalls. Similar legislation was
introduced in the current Congress.[Footnote 3]
As you requested, this report (1) examines the recall programs and
procedures USDA and FDA use to protect consumers from unsafe foods and
(2) compares USDA's and FDA's authority for food recalls with the
recall authority of agencies responsible for the safety of other
consumer products, such as toys, medical devices, and automobiles. In
addition, information you requested on USDA's and FDA's efforts to
identify and recall food from a cow slaughtered in Washington State
that had bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), otherwise known as mad
cow disease, is presented in appendix II. You also requested
information on a 2002 recall of ground beef by a ConAgra plant in
Greeley, Colorado, which is presented in appendix III.
For the purpose of this report, the term "food" refers to food intended
for human consumption, the term "customer" refers to any company in the
downstream distribution chain of the company conducting the recall,
and, with respect to recall authority, the term "order" includes the
authority to order or to require a recall. To examine the recall
programs and procedures USDA and FDA use to protect consumers from
unsafe foods, we analyzed in depth 20 Class I recalls that were ongoing
in fiscal year 2003--10 from USDA and 10 from FDA. We discussed these
recalls with officials from the recalling companies and with the
agencies' district offices that monitored the recalls. These recalls
represented a range of foods, contaminants, and geographical locations.
In addition, we examined the reliability of information from USDA and
FDA recall data systems for that year. We also obtained views on USDA's
and FDA's recall programs from representatives of trade and consumer
organizations, such as the American Meat Institute, the Center for
Science in the Public Interest, and the Consumer Federation of America.
To compare USDA's and FDA's authority for food recalls with recall
authority available to federal agencies responsible for the safety of
other consumer products, we compared statutes and regulations and
discussed these recall programs with agency officials. This report also
provides information on, but does not evaluate, the Canadian Food
Inspection Agency's recall program. The Canadian agency has the
authority to order food recalls. Appendix I discusses our objectives,
scope, and methodology in detail. We conducted our review between May
2003 and August 2004 in accordance with generally accepted government
auditing standards.
Results in Brief:
Even in the context of their limited recall authority, USDA and FDA can
do a better job in carrying out their food recall programs. Weaknesses
in these agencies' systems for monitoring food recalls heighten the
risk that unsafe food will remain in the food supply and ultimately be
consumed. Specifically:
* USDA and FDA do not know how promptly and completely companies are
carrying out recalls. Neither agency's guidance provides time frames
for companies on how quickly to initiate and carry out recalls.
Consequently, companies may have less impetus to notify downstream
customers and remove potentially unsafe food from the marketplace.
Moreover, USDA and FDA are not using their data systems to effectively
monitor and manage their recall programs. They do not track important
dates to calculate how long companies take to carry out recalls and the
percentage of food that is recovered. Furthermore, managers do not
receive routine reports on the progress of ongoing recalls to target
program resources. Finally, we found that FDA's food recall program
staff maintain a recall data system that is separate from FDA's
official recall data system. FDA uses information from this other data
system to report to Congress because, according to program staff, the
system maintained by the program staff contains the most accurate data.
Moreover, the two systems do not contain consistent information, which
brings into question the validity and reliability of FDA's official
system.
* USDA and FDA do not promptly verify that recalls have reached all
segments of the distribution chain, yet monitoring the effectiveness of
a company's recall actions is the agencies' primary role in a food
recall. For the 10 USDA recalls we examined in depth that occurred in
2003, USDA staff averaged 38 days to complete verification checks, and
for the 10 FDA recalls we examined in depth, FDA staff averaged 31
days. These time frames exceeded the expected shelf life for some
perishable foods that were recalled, such as fresh ground beef and
fresh-cut bagged lettuce. Moreover, the agencies' procedures for
selecting the sample of companies to check do not ensure that all
segments of a food distribution chain are included. In May 2004, USDA
issued new procedures to its staff with time frames for completing
verification checks--within 13 days for Class I recalls--and with a
methodology designed to reach all segments of the distribution chain.
If implemented, these procedures should provide reasonable assurance
that recalls are effective.
* The procedures USDA and FDA use to alert consumers to a recall--press
releases and Web postings--may not be effective. According to consumer
groups and others, relatively few consumers may see that information.
They identified additional methods to notify the public, such as
posting recall notices in grocery stores and directly notifying
consumers using "shoppers' club" information.
In contrast to the limited, or lack of, authority that federal food
safety agencies have to order food recalls, agencies responsible for
the safety of certain other consumer products have more specific recall
authority that may help them better protect consumers. This includes
the authority to (1) require a company to notify the agency when it has
distributed a potentially unsafe product, (2) order a recall, (3)
establish recall requirements, and (4) impose monetary penalties if a
company does not cooperate. For example, manufacturers of many consumer
goods are generally required to notify the Consumer Product Safety
Commission within 24 hours of obtaining information that suggests a
product could create a substantial risk of injury. The commission has
the authority to impose monetary penalties of up to $1.65 million if a
company does not inform the commission promptly about an unsafe
product. Likewise, FDA has authority to order recalls of unsafe
biological products and medical devices--and it has used this authority
in the past. Furthermore, the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration has used its authority to establish recall requirements
to require companies to directly notify the purchasers of vehicles with
defects and to remedy the defects. Finally, FDA can impose penalties of
up to $100,000 per day on companies that do not recall unsafe
biological products, such as vaccines.
We are proposing that Congress consider legislation that would require
companies to alert USDA or FDA when they discover they have distributed
potentially unsafe food and that would give both agencies mandatory
food recall authority. We are also recommending that USDA and FDA
better track and manage food recalls, achieve more prompt and complete
recalls, and determine if additional ways are needed to alert consumers
about recalled food that they may have in their homes.
In commenting on a draft of this report, USDA said the report was
generally factually accurate, and the department believes that the
procedures it adopted in late May 2004 will address most of the
weaknesses we observed in its recall program. However, USDA disagreed
with our recommendations regarding additional data collection and
report generation. USDA believes that those recommendations may be a
burden to the agency and industry. We do not believe it would be
burdensome to USDA because the department already generally collects
these data in its inspection paperwork but does not systematically
capture them in its Recall Web database, which should be able to
generate the management reports we recommend. With regard to industry,
companies are already required by law to maintain food distribution
information. Appendix VII contains USDA's written comments and our
detailed response. In its comments, FDA said we did not demonstrate
that FDA recalls were lengthy because of system inefficiencies or that
weaknesses in FDA's recall process resulted in little recovery of food.
FDA agreed with our recommendations regarding using the Recall
Enterprise System to generate routine management reports and
eliminating the duplicative recall database, but it disagreed with our
recommendations regarding the need for specific time frames for
companies' actions and for recording the dates of company and agency
actions in the Recall Enterprise System. We continue to believe that
time frames are critical to reinforce the urgency for companies to act
promptly to protect consumers and that tracking these dates is
essential for FDA to effectively monitor ongoing recalls and assess
actions to improve the timeliness of recalls. Appendix VIII contains
FDA's written comments and our detailed response.
Background:
Food companies, USDA, and FDA may discover that unsafe food has been
distributed from customer complaints, routine facility investigations,
product testing by the company or a federal or state government agency,
or an outbreak of a foodborne illness. Depending on the food, USDA (for
meat, poultry, and egg products) or FDA (for all other food), would
generally monitor the recall.[Footnote 4]
USDA and FDA classify recalls by the potential health risk that the
food poses, as follows:
* Class I: Recalls of food that poses a reasonable probability of
causing serious, adverse health consequences or death, such as foods
that contain listeria, salmonella, or E. coli O157:H7, or undeclared
allergens such as peanuts and eggs.[Footnote 5]
* Class II: For USDA, recalls of food that poses a remote probability
of adverse health consequences, and, for FDA, recalls of food that
presents a remote probability of serious adverse health consequences or
may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health
consequences.
* Class III: For USDA, recalls of food that will not cause adverse
health consequences. (For example, meat or poultry that contains added
water not disclosed on the label, which USDA regulation prohibits.) For
FDA, recalls of food not likely to cause adverse health consequences.
(For example, food that contains mold or insects, which FDA regards as
unfit, although the food is unlikely to pose adverse health
consequences.)
The number of food recalls has generally increased over the past
decade, with a record high of more than 500 in 2002.[Footnote 6] In
addition, for fiscal year 2003, most recalls were Class I--for food
that poses the greatest risk of illness or death. As figure 1 shows,
Class I recalls accounted for 51 (66 percent) of the 77 food recalls
for USDA in 2003 and 160 (54 percent) of the 296 recalls for FDA in
that year.
Figure 1: USDA and FDA Recalls by Risk Classification, 2003:
[See PDF for image]
[End of figure]
USDA and FDA generally monitor a food recall when the recalling company
alerts the agency or when the agency learns about a problem from, for
example, routine facility inspections or product tests. Typically,
recalls are monitored by the agencies' district office responsible for
the geographic area where the recalling company is located. District
office inspectors obtain preliminary information from the company, such
as the reason for the recall, the amount of food to be recalled, and
the food's labeling and packaging. For USDA, a recall committee
comprised of headquarters and district recall staff assign the risk
classification, and, for FDA, the districts assign a preliminary risk
classification.
Both USDA and FDA rely on press releases and Web site postings to alert
consumers about recalls, although there is no law requiring them to
provide such notification. USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service
will generally issue press releases for Class I and Class II recalls
and post information on its recall Web site:
[Hyperlink, http://www.fsis.usda.gov/fsis_recalls/index.asp]. USDA's
press releases describe the product, including any identifying marks
or codes; the reason for the recall; and the risk involved with
consuming the product. The press releases also instruct consumers on
what to do with any product in their possession and provide a name and
telephone number of a company contact for questions.
For FDA recalls, the recalling company generally issues a press release
for Class I recalls. FDA guidance recommends that the press release be
issued promptly, and if the company fails to issue the press release,
FDA may do so. FDA posts these press releases on its recalls Web site:
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/7alerts.html, along with recalls for the
other products that it regulates. FDA provides companies with model
language for press releases for several different causes of Class I
recalls (e.g., allergens, E. coli O157:H7, or salmonella), which
covers, in general, the same information found in USDA's press
releases. In addition, USDA and FDA food recalls are also posted on a
governmentwide recall Web site: [Hyperlink, http://www.recalls.gov],
which is managed by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
In addition, under both USDA and FDA guidelines, a recalling company is
to alert its customers to the recall and provide them with instructions
for recovery--return or disposal--of the food. This first level of
customers--referred to as primary--can be any number and combination of
processors, distributors, retailers, or other customers and may also
include direct-to-consumer sales. For example, some frozen food
companies distribute their products by direct delivery to individual
homes. The recalling company is to ask its primary customers to pass
the alert to subsequent customers in the distribution chain (referred
to as secondary and tertiary), when they have further distributed or
sold the food. As figure 2 shows, the entire distribution chain can
include multiple levels of downstream processors, distributors, and
retailers before the food reaches consumers.
Figure 2: Downstream Distribution Chain May Include Multiple Levels of
Distributors, Processors, and Retailers before the Food Reaches
Consumers:
[See PDF for image]
[End of figure]
USDA's and FDA's primary role is to monitor the effectiveness of a
company's recall actions by verifying that customers in the food
distribution chain receive notice of the recall, and that the food is
located and removed from the marketplace. To carry out their
verification checks, USDA and FDA contact a percentage of the company's
customers to determine whether the recall was carried out--
specifically, that the customers were provided with recall information,
and that they followed instructions for returning or destroying the
food.[Footnote 7] In addition, several states have agreements with USDA
and FDA to coordinate verification responsibilities for companies in
their states. States are to report the results of the verification
checks to the monitoring agency. USDA and FDA may also request that
recalling companies periodically submit status reports on their
progress, including the number of customers contacted and the amount of
the food recovered or otherwise accounted for. USDA and FDA inspectors
should be consulted prior to the destruction of the food, and they may
request that the company allow them to witness the final disposition of
the food.[Footnote 8]
Both USDA and FDA consider a recall completed when their district
officials finish verification checks and determine that the company has
made all reasonable efforts to recall the food. The agencies are to
notify recalling companies in writing that no further action is
necessary. At this point, the agencies put summary information into
their respective data systems.
The report we issued in August 2000 provided information on several
aspects of USDA's and FDA's voluntary recall programs. It was intended
to assist congressional consideration of then-pending legislative
proposals to give mandatory recall authority to USDA and FDA. Although
such legislation has not been enacted, USDA and FDA do have authority
to detain, seize through the courts, and condemn foods as part of their
overall responsibility for food safety. Specifically:
* The Federal Meat Inspection Act, the Poultry Products Inspection Act,
and the Egg Products Inspection Act give USDA authority to detain meat,
poultry, and egg products for up to 20 days when it has reason to
believe the food is adulterated or misbranded. These acts give USDA
authority, through the courts, to seize, condemn, and destroy unsafe
food. USDA also may withdraw meat and poultry inspectors from
slaughtering and processing facilities or withhold or remove the USDA
"inspected and passed" label--both measures that require the production
line to be shut down--if the sanitary conditions at the company's
facility cause food to become unsafe.
* The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act gives FDA authority, through
the courts, to seize, condemn, and destroy adulterated or misbranded
food not exclusively regulated by USDA. The act also gives FDA
authority to disseminate information about foods that are believed to
present a danger to public health. In addition, the Public Health
Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of
2002[Footnote 9] (commonly referred to as the Bioterrorism Act),
authorizes FDA to detain food for up to 30 days without a court order,
if the agency has evidence indicating that the food presents a threat
of serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals.
FDA issued its final rule for administrative detention on June 4,
2004.[Footnote 10]
The Bioterrorism Act also authorizes FDA to establish record-keeping
requirements for companies involved in the food industry (except farms
and restaurants) so that FDA will be better able to identify companies
involved in the food distribution chain--that is, the immediate
previous sources and subsequent recipients of food. In this way, the
act attempts to address, if necessary, "credible threats of serious
adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals."[Footnote
11] As of August 2004, FDA had not issued final regulations to
implement these record-keeping requirements, and the agency told us it
has not determined the applicability of the act to food
recalls.[Footnote 12]
Weaknesses in USDA's and FDA's Recall Programs Heighten the Risk That
Unsafe Food Will Reach Consumers:
Even recognizing the limitations in their recall authority, federal
agencies could still better protect consumers from unsafe foods if they
addressed weaknesses we identified in their monitoring of companies'
recalls. Specifically, USDA and FDA have not set time frames to
encourage companies to act promptly, and, because the agencies do not
track important dates and recovery rates in their recall data systems,
they do not know how promptly and completely companies are carrying out
recalls. Furthermore, the agencies' procedures for conducting
verification checks do not ensure that agency staff promptly verify
that recalls have reached all segments of the distribution chain.
Finally, consumer groups have raised questions about the effectiveness
of the agencies' public notification efforts.
USDA and FDA Do Not Know How Promptly and Completely Companies Carry
Out Recalls:
In November 2003, FDA issued new recall guidance to companies, and, in
May 2004, USDA also issued new guidance. However, neither agency
included time frames for companies to initiate and carry out recalls of
food that involve potentially serious adverse health risks, nor
procedures for the companies to notify their distribution chains and
alert the public. Without specific guidance on time frames, companies
may have less impetus to promptly notify downstream customers and
retrieve potentially unsafe food from the marketplace. Of particular
concern are perishable foods that are sold and consumed within a few
days. In our 2000 report, we recommended that the agencies include time
frames to ensure that companies would initiate and carry out recalls
without delay. Appendix IV provides information on the actions USDA and
FDA have taken on the other recommendations we made to them in 2000.
Moreover, we found that, although USDA and FDA have developed new data
systems since our 2000 report, the agencies are not using the systems
to effectively monitor and manage their recall programs. The agencies
do not track some critical data for assessing the timeliness and
effectiveness of recalls. For example, USDA does not track when a
company learns that it needs to initiate a recall or when it provides
complete distribution lists. In addition, neither USDA nor FDA tracks
when the company begins and finishes notifying its customers or when
the agency begins and finishes its verification checks. Without
tracking these data, the agencies do not have the information they need
to assess how quickly the company and the agency have acted. Even when
the agencies collect data, they do not use the information to generate
routine reports that would help their managers track the progress of
recalls that are ongoing or assess the effectiveness of their recall
programs' activities. Such reports are a key prerequisite to effective
management of resources, as emphasized in the Government Performance
and Results Act of 1993.[Footnote 13]
We found, for example, that while both agencies record the information
for calculating the recovery rate, they do not calculate the recovery
rate for recalls. As a result, they did not know how much food was
actually recovered, although both agencies told us recovery was an
important indicator of a successful recall. Using the information in
USDA's Recall Web database, we calculated that the total recovery rate
has generally declined since 1988 for recalls monitored by
USDA.[Footnote 14] We could not similarly analyze recovery rates for
FDA-monitored recalls for multiple years because the agency has not
recorded recovery information in its database in a way that allowed us
to do the calculation. That is, FDA uses inconsistent units, such as
cases, cans, boxes, or bags of food, which prevented us from
calculating annual recall volume. However, we calculated the average
recovery rate for about one-half of FDA recalls in 2003 for which the
agency used the same unit for both "quantity distributed" and "quantity
recovered."[Footnote 15] We found that companies' recovery rates for
FDA-regulated food was about 36 percent. In a similar analysis of USDA
recalls, about 38 percent of food was recovered.
USDA has a low expectation of recovering much food with a short shelf
life, such as fresh meat, which moves quickly through the distribution
chain. USDA said that the drop in its recovery rates may also be due,
in part, to the significant number of recalls related to its E. coli
O157:H7 testing programs, which started around 1994.[Footnote 16] Test
results take several days. That is, because of the delay in getting the
test results, meat that tested positive for E. coli O157:H7 may have
already been distributed, sold, and consumed--thus reducing the amount
that may be recovered. Some companies told us that, to avoid recalls
related to positive E. coli O157:H7 tests taken by USDA, they have
begun holding meat from distribution until test results are back.
Another reason for low recovery rates is that USDA is using
epidemiological evidence, such as outbreaks of foodborne illnesses that
are traced back to the food, as a basis for requesting that companies
conduct a recall. Because traceback can be slow, recalls linked to
illness outbreaks may have low recovery rates.
Recovering perishable foods is particularly challenging because they
may be subject to recall after the product's shelf life has passed. As
USDA pointed out, it is unlikely that much food will be recovered in
these recalls. Figure 3 illustrates the timeline for 4 of the 20
recalls that we examined in depth. Of these 4 recalls, the recall for
canned soup began well before the end of the food's shelf life, the
recall for packaged turkey sandwiches near the end, and the recalls for
fresh-cut bagged lettuce and ground beef well after the recommended
shelf life of the product. USDA recall officials pointed out that
consumers could have frozen the meat or poultry, so that some of those
products could still have been in consumers' homes. FDA also pointed
out that the fresh-cut bagged lettuce may have deteriorated in quality,
but may still have been edible after its shelf life expired.
Figure 3: Number of Days after Production When Recall Occurred and
Expected Shelf Lives for Four Recalls:
[See PDF for image]
Note: The recall of canned soup began during the soup's shelf life. The
recall of ground beef began after the shelf life because of the time it
took to identify the source of the contamination following an illness
outbreak. The recall of packaged turkey sandwiches began near the end
of the sandwiches' shelf life because the turkey used in the sandwiches
was part of an expanded recall conducted by another company. The recall
of fresh-cut bagged lettuce began after the shelf life of the lettuce
because the food tested positive for listeria after it already had
reached store shelves, and the test results were slow to reach the
agency and the company.
[End of figure]
We relied primarily on the agencies' documents for our analysis. We
cannot say with confidence that FDA's Recall Enterprise System
accurately depicts actions taken. At the end of our review, we learned
that FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition continues to
maintain a separate food recall data system and uses that system--not
the official Recall Enterprise System--to report recall information to
Congress. According to center program staff, FDA uses information from
this unofficial data system to report to Congress because the center's
system contains the most accurate data. FDA invested more than $3
million to implement the Recall Enterprise System, which was designed
to be a valid and reliable automated system for capturing information
about recalls across FDA's five centers. The system is accessible to
FDA staff in both headquarters and district offices. In addition to
this substantial investment and the duplication of effort for
maintaining two separate data systems, the existence of a second recall
data system raises several other concerns:
* The unofficial database reflects a substantial difference in the
number of recalls over the period we examined. For example, the
unofficial database included 296 food recalls for 2003, while the
Recall Enterprise System shows only 207. Some of the difference can be
explained because recall counts from the unofficial system are based on
the year that FDA assigns a risk classification--typically at the end
of the recall--whereas our analysis of Recall Enterprise System data
used the year the recall began. FDA was not able to provide us with
enough information on the recalls to resolve the differences.
* Data in the two systems were not consistent for individual recalls.
For example, the start date and classification date for some recalls
did not agree.
* Some fields, such as the date the company completed its recall
actions, are in both the Recall Enterprise System and the unofficial
system. This is one of the critical dates we recommended in our 2000
report that the agency should track. However, we found that this date
was not entered into the Recall Enterprise System for a significant
number of recalls--about 20 percent of recalls in 2003.
These problems raise significant questions about the validity and
reliability of the official Recall Enterprise System.
USDA and FDA Do Not Promptly Verify That Recalls Reach All Segments of
the Distribution Chain:
Neither USDA nor FDA acted promptly to carry out verification checks or
used a sound methodology for selecting the sample of a company's
downstream distribution chain for verification. As a result, the
agencies could overlook entire segments of a food's distribution chain,
as they did in many of the recalls we examined in detail.
For the 10 USDA recalls from 2003 that we examined in detail, USDA did
not have guidance in place with time frames for when agency staff
should finish verifying that a company had completed its recall. In
addition, USDA does not collect in its data system information on when
agency staff begin and finish verification checks. Therefore, we could
not calculate how long USDA took to verify all recalls for the period
we reviewed. However, for the USDA recalls, we calculated that district
staff took an average of 38 days to verify whether the recalling
company's customers were aware of the recall. That length of time
exceeds the shelf life of fresh meat and poultry. Furthermore, it
delays the agencies' ability to identify problems with the recall and
request corrective actions before consumers eat the recalled food.
USDA revised its guidance to its staff in May 2004 and included a risk-
based goal for verification activities that considers the class of the
recall.[Footnote 17] Specifically:
* For Class I recalls, district offices should begin verification to
determine whether a company carried out the recall within 3 days of the
start of the recall and should substantially complete the verification
within 10 days thereafter.[Footnote 18]
* For Class II recalls, verification should begin within 5 days and be
completed within 12 days.
* For Class III recalls, verification should begin within 10 days and
be completed within 17 days.
In contrast, FDA had guidance for beginning and finishing its
verification checks during the recalls we reviewed. The total process
is to take 20 days: that is, checks are to begin within 10 days of the
company's starting a recall and be completed no more than 10 days after
checks begin.[Footnote 19] Because FDA, like USDA, does not collect
information on when agency staff begin and finish verification checks
in its Recall Enterprise System, we could not assess the extent to
which FDA met its time frame for all recalls in 2003. However, we were
able to make that determination for the 10 recalls we examined in
depth. We found that FDA did not conduct verification checks for 4 of
those recalls. For the remaining 6 recalls, we calculated that district
staff took an average of 31 days to complete the checks--with 3 recalls
taking more than the targeted number of days.
In conducting their verification checks, USDA and FDA told us that they
can be hindered in their efforts to initiate verification checks when
companies delay in providing their distribution lists or provide
imprecise lists. According to FDA, if every customer in a distribution
chain takes 2 days to provide its list, even with a short distribution
chain, this could add 2 weeks to the verification process. In a May
2003 proposed rulemaking under the Bioterrorism Act, FDA stated that
the amount of time it would take FDA to determine where a food is
located "may be increased if the [distribution] records are incomplete
and FDA has to wait for missing records to be retrieved. This possible
delay would be a substantial concern if FDA were attempting to remove
[unsafe] food that presents a threat of serious adverse health
consequences or death—."[Footnote 20]
We also found that the agencies have not been using sound methodologies
for selecting the sample of companies in the distribution chain for
verification. As part of their recall activities, USDA and FDA decided
on what percentage of the recalling company's primary and secondary
customers they would contact to determine whether the customers were
aware of the recall and had removed the food from the marketplace
according to the recalling company's instructions. If the downstream
customers they checked were aware and had removed the food, USDA and
FDA generally considered the food recall effective.
Both USDA's and FDA's recall procedures include methodologies for
conducting verification checks. Although USDA revised its procedures in
May 2004, the practice that was in effect during the recalls we
reviewed was for district staff to contact at least 20 percent of
primary customers and 10 percent of secondary customers. We found that
the districts' understanding, and therefore implementation, of that
practice varied, with some districts saying that, for example, they
were to check 10 percent of primary customers and others saying they
were to check 20 percent. As table 1 shows, for the 10 Class I recalls
we examined, USDA checked between 14 and 100 percent of primary
customers.
The procedures that FDA used are based on regulations that specify five
different verification levels--0, 2, 10, between 10 and 100, or 100
percent.[Footnote 21] However, the regulations and FDA's procedures do
not specify when to use different levels of verification. FDA officials
told us that district staff would generally not do any checks when they
believe the food is no longer on store shelves or when the company can
demonstrate that it is doing the verification checks. Agency recall
officials said that they select a level depending on the size of the
distribution chain and the risk associated with the recalled product.
As table 1 shows, for the 10 FDA Class I recalls we examined in detail,
FDA checked from 0 to 100 percent of primary customers. In 4 recalls,
FDA determined that no verification checks were needed. Appendix V
provides USDA's and FDA's recall identification numbers for the 20
recalls we examined.
Table 1: USDA and FDA Verification Rates for 20 Selected Class I
Recalls in 2003:
Agency: USDA;
Food: Fresh ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Primary customers: Number checked: 7;
Primary customers: Total number: 15;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 47%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Chicken frankfurters;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Primary customers: Number checked: 9;
Primary customers: Total number: 24;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 38%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Primary customers: Number checked: 4;
Primary customers: Total number: 12;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 33%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Fully cooked frozen chicken;
Reason for recall: Hard piece of plastic[A];
Primary customers: Number checked: 8;
Primary customers: Total number: 14;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 57%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Fresh and frozen ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Primary customers: Number checked: 51;
Primary customers: Total number: 84;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 61%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Fresh and frozen ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Primary customers: Number checked: 18;
Primary customers: Total number: 30;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 60%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Frozen ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Primary customers: Number checked: 41;
Primary customers: Total number: 129;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 32%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Fresh and frozen ready-to-eat turkey and chicken;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Primary customers: Number checked: 103;
Primary customers: Total number: 757;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 14%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Fresh and frozen ready-to-eat turkey and chicken;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Primary customers: Number checked: 47;
Primary customers: Total number: 144;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 33%.
Agency: USDA;
Food: Canned soup;
Reason for recall: Cheese[B];
Primary customers: Number checked: 1;
Primary customers: Total number: 1;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 100%.
Agency: FDA;
Food: Crab cakes;
Reason for recall: Milk[B];
Primary customers: Number checked: 22;
Primary customers: Total number: 34;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 65%.
Agency: FDA;
Food: Ice cream;
Reason for recall: Peanuts[B];
Primary customers: Number checked: 1;
Primary customers: Total number: 1;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 100%.
Agency: FDA;
Food: Salted herring;
Reason for recall: Botulinum spores;
Primary customers: Number checked: 2;
Primary customers: Total number: 8;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 25%.
Agency: FDA;
Food: Oregano;
Reason for recall: Salmonella;
Primary customers: Number checked: 0;
Primary customers: Total number: 11;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 0%[C].
Agency: FDA;
Food: Fresh-cut bagged lettuce;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Primary customers: Number checked: 0;
Primary customers: Total number: 79;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 0%[D].
Agency: FDA;
Food: Packaged turkey sandwiches;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Primary customers: Number checked: 0;
Primary customers: Total number: 2,700;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 0%[E].
Agency: FDA;
Food: Alfalfa sprouts;
Reason for recall: Salmonella;
Primary customers: Number checked: 14;
Primary customers: Total number: 25;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 56%.
Agency: FDA;
Food: Smoked salmon;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Primary customers: Number checked: 12;
Primary customers: Total number: 107;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 11%.
Agency: FDA;
Food: Packaged breakfast pastry;
Reason for recall: Egg[B];
Primary customers: Number checked: 0;
Primary customers: Total number: 341;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 0%[F].
Agency: FDA;
Food: Chocolate milk;
Reason for recall: Excessive amounts of vitamins A and D;
Primary customers: Number checked: 4;
Primary customers: Total number: 53;
Primary customers: Percentage of total: 8%.
Source: GAO summary of USDA and FDA data and documents.
[A] The hard piece of plastic was considered to be foreign material.
[B] The presence of a potential allergen (cheese, milk, peanuts, or
eggs) was not declared on the food's ingredient label.
[C] FDA did not conduct checks because the recalling company recovered
100 percent of the distributed oregano.
[D] FDA did not conduct checks because the bagged salad was 2 weeks
past its expiration date, and it concluded that the salad was not
likely to be available on store shelves.
[E] FDA did not conduct checks because the recalling company documented
that it visited each of its customers and recovered sandwiches.
[F] FDA did not conduct checks because the recalling company used a
third-party vendor to contact 100 percent of the primary customers, and
the company faxed timely status reports to update the agency.
[End of table]
USDA and FDA were limited in their ability to reasonably ensure that
recalls were effective because their methodologies did not take into
account the complexities of downstream distribution chains. In the
recalls we examined, USDA and FDA generally obtained the recalling
company's primary distribution lists and then checked a percentage of
the customers on those lists. The agencies then obtained customer lists
only from the primary customers that they checked, which enabled them
to identify secondary customers associated with the primary customers
that they checked. Because the agencies did not usually check all
primary customers, they were not aware of all secondary customers. As a
result, the agencies may have overlooked whole segments of a
distribution chain with their verification checks. That is, even when
the agencies conducted the recommended percentage of verification
checks, they may not have conducted enough checks across the
distribution chain to be able to determine whether the recall was
effective.
Moreover, USDA's Office of Inspector General issued a report in June
2004 that was critical of USDA's verification process.[Footnote 22]
That report recommended that USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service
document its recall effectiveness determinations, implement controls to
ensure the data are valid, and conduct future effectiveness checks in a
timely and methodologically sound manner.
In the future, however, USDA's verification checks may help the agency
better ascertain whether a recall was effective because USDA adopted
new verification guidance in May 2004. If properly implemented, this
guidance will provide greater assurance that downstream customers are
aware of a recall and have followed the recalling company's
instructions for removing the food from the marketplace. USDA's new
guidance provides a statistical, risk-based method that considers the
class of recall, any illnesses associated with the food, and the number
of customers in the distribution chain. Specifically, the guidance sets
standards for the (1) number of checks to conduct, (2) method for
sampling which customers to check, (3) method for conducting the checks
(e.g., on-site visits or telephone calls), and (4) critical number of
verification checks, finding that customers were not aware of the
recall, beyond which USDA determines that the recall process was
inadequate and warrants further action by the recalling company. In
addition, the guidance provides time frames for completing these
checks.
For example, for a Class I recall with associated illnesses and a
distribution chain that included 1,000 customers, USDA would select 200
customers by checking every fifth customer and consider the recall
ineffective if it found any customers that were not notified of the
recall or that still had food that could reach consumers. USDA also
would begin checks within 3 days of the recall's start and finish
checks within 10 days thereafter. USDA's new approach is similar to the
one that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has used since 2001.
FDA's verification approach also does not ensure that a reasonable
number of downstream customers are aware of a recall and have taken the
appropriate action. While FDA's policy is to determine the percentage
of downstream customers to contact on the basis of the size and the
risk associated with the recall, we found that the agency lacks methods
for consistently determining which level of checks--the percentage of
the downstream customers--to use in verifying a given recall. FDA's
verification approach also lacks other features of a risk-based
methodology, such as considering whether illnesses have resulted from
the unsafe food or criteria for whether to consider the recall
ineffective.
Agencies and Consumer Groups Differ in Their Views on the Effectiveness
of Public Notification:
More than 200 Class I food recalls occurred in 2003, but the procedures
USDA and FDA use to alert consumers to a recall--press releases and Web
postings--may not be effective. Both USDA and FDA rely on press
releases as their main tool to alert consumers to the dangers of
recalled foods. Both agencies also make recall press releases available
on their Web sites as a service to consumers; the media; and other
interested parties, such as state and local health officials.
Views on the usefulness of the agencies' efforts to communicate with
the public differ, according to the officials and organizations we
interviewed. For example, a California State health official expressed
concerns that the frequency of recall press releases can overwhelm the
public. Nevertheless, the official thought that press releases from a
government entity are given more weight by consumers and the media than
press releases issued by individual food companies; hence, that USDA-
issued press releases may have greater impact than company-issued press
releases (for FDA-regulated foods).
Public interest groups presented a different view. According to the
Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Consumer Federation
of America, most press releases are not useful to consumers because the
releases lack the specificity, such as store locations, that consumers
need to help them determine whether they purchased the food that is
being recalled. According to these officials, if industry and
government want consumers to avoid eating a recalled food, information
about the recall should be prominently displayed in the grocery stores
that sold the food. We identified some stores that voluntarily provide
additional information to help consumers, including a membership
warehouse that uses member information from its "shoppers' club" to
directly contact its customers who purchased a recalled food.
According to USDA and FDA officials, the agencies generally do not have
the authority to publicly name the retail stores that are selling a
recalled food because the information is considered confidential
business information. For example, USDA provided a distribution list of
the recalled beef products to the California Department of Health
Services during the December 2003 recall of beef potentially
contaminated with BSE.[Footnote 23] Although California could use the
list to help its inspectors ensure that the meat was removed from store
shelves, the state had to agree not to publicly identify the stores and
restaurants where the recalled beef was sold. USDA and FDA officials
told us that they plan to look into additional options to help
consumers identify recalled foods in their homes.
Even if the agencies could disclose store locations, consumers may
still not be able to identify the recalled food. As USDA pointed out,
consumers may have difficulty identifying a recalled food because
packaging may change at different points in the distribution chain,
especially for such foods as ground beef, which may be mixed with other
meat or further processed into prepared foods such as frozen lasagna,
canned ravioli, or ready-to-eat sandwiches. In such instances,
recalling companies may not know how their downstream customers have
processed or distributed these foods.
Other Government Agencies Have Recall Authority Not Available to USDA
and FDA for Food That May Better Protect Consumers:
Government agencies that regulate the safety of other products, such as
toys and automobile tires, have recall authority not available to USDA
and FDA for food and have had to use their authority to ensure that
recalls were conducted when companies did not cooperate. These recall
authorities may facilitate faster recalls and better protect consumers.
Agencies that have recall authority for other products include the
following:
* FDA, for infant formula, human biological products, medical devices
and radiation-emitting electronic products, human drugs, animal drugs,
and medicated animal feeds;[Footnote 24]
* the Consumer Product Safety Commission, for many consumer goods; and:
* the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, for motor vehicles, motor vehicle equipment, child
safety seats, and tires.
In addition, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has recall authority
for foods sold in Canada.[Footnote 25]
Table 2 compares USDA's and FDA's food recall authority with the
authority of agencies responsible for recall programs of other products
we examined, and appendix VI provides additional information for the
programs we examined.
Table 2: Recall Authority of Selected Government Agencies:
Agency: USDA;
Products covered: Meat, poultry, egg products;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: No;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: No;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans: No;
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
[B].
Agency: FDA;
Products covered: Foods not exclusively regulated by USDA;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: No;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: No;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans: No;
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
[B].
Agency: FDA;
Products covered: Infant formula;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: Yes;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: Yes;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans:
Yes;
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes.
Agency: FDA;
Products covered: Human biological products;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: Yes;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: Yes;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans:
Yes[C];
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes.
Agency: FDA;
Products covered: Medical devices, radiation-emitting electronic
products;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: Yes;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: Yes;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans:
Yes;
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes[D].
Agency: FDA;
Products covered: Human drugs;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: Yes;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: No;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans: No;
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes.
Agency: FDA;
Products covered: Animal feed;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: No;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: No;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans: No;
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
[B].
Agency: FDA;
Products covered: Animal drugs, medicated feeds;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: Yes;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: No;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans: No;
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes.
Agency: Consumer Product Safety Commission;
Products covered: Consumer goods[E];
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: Yes;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: Yes;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans:
Yes[F];
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes.
Agency: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration;
Products covered: Motor vehicles, motor vehicle equipment, child safety
seats, tires;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: Yes;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: Yes;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans:
Yes[G];
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes.
Agency: Canadian Food Inspection Agency;
Products covered: Food;
Requirement to notify the agency when a company identifies a
potentially unsafe product: No;
Authority to issue a mandatory recall order[A]: Yes;
Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans:
Yes[H];
Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment:
Yes.
Source: GAO analysis of applicable laws and regulations.
[A] For the purposes of this report, we define a "mandatory recall
order" to include the requirement to remove, repair, replace, or refund
the cost of a defective or unsafe product.
[B] Not applicable because no recall requirements exist.
[C] FDA's recall authority for licensed biological products is found in
section 351(d) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. § 262(d))
and has not been elaborated on in implementing regulations.
[D] FDA's authority to assess civil monetary penalties depends on the
nature of the device violation. For example, penalties are authorized
only for significant or intentional failures to file required reports.
21 U.S.C. § 333(g)(1).
[E] The Consumer Product Safety Commission's jurisdiction does not
cover tobacco, motor vehicles and related equipment, pesticides,
firearms, aircraft, boats, food, drugs, medical devices, or cosmetics.
15 U.S.C. § 2052(a)(1) (definition of "consumer product").
[F] While the manufacturer, retailer, or distributor may choose to
repair, replace, or refund the cost of the defective product, the
Consumer Product Safety Commission may require submission of a plan
"satisfactory to the Commission, for taking action—." 15 U.S.C. §
2064(d).
[G] While the manufacturer may repair, replace, or refund the cost of
defective products, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
may order a manufacturer to take a specific action if the
manufacturer's remedy is determined to be inadequate. 49 U.S.C. §
30120(e).
[H] The applicable Canadian statute is general and there are no
implementing regulations. This information is largely based on our
discussions with Canadian officials.
[End of table]
As table 2 shows, in contrast to USDA and FDA, the other agencies we
examined, and FDA with regard to some products, have authority to order
recalls and to be notified about unsafe products. Specifically, they
have authority to (1) require a company to notify the agency when it
has distributed a potentially unsafe product; (2) order a recall; (3)
establish recall requirements; and (4) impose monetary penalties, or
seek fines or imprisonment, if a company violates the recall
requirements. These authorities are discussed below:
* Requirement that a company notify the agency when the company
identifies a potentially unsafe product. Companies manufacturing or
selling products regulated by some of the agencies we reviewed are
subject to stringent notification requirements. For example, companies
that manufacture consumer products, such as toys or appliances, must
notify the Consumer Product Safety Commission immediately, generally
within 24 hours of obtaining information that reasonably supports the
conclusion that a product could create an unreasonable risk of serious
injury or death, such as a toy that poses a choking danger to children.
Also, if a manufacturer of infant formula has information indicating
that the formula it processed does not contain the required nutrients
or is otherwise adulterated, the manufacturer must promptly notify FDA.
* Authority to order a company to conduct a recall if the company
refuses to do so voluntarily. Several agencies can order a company to
conduct a recall if the company refuses to do so voluntarily. For
example, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, after determining that
there are reasonable grounds to believe that a product poses a risk to
public health, can order anyone selling, marketing, or distributing the
food to conduct a recall. The Canadian agency rarely has had to use its
recall authority. Agency officials told us that, as of April 2004, the
agency had used its mandatory authority for eight recalls since 1997.
For the period of 1997 through 2003, the agency reported that Canadian
companies had conducted 1,890 recalls.[Footnote 26] Likewise, FDA has
authority to order recalls of unsafe biological products and medical
devices and has used this authority in the past.
* Authority to establish recall requirements or approve recall plans,
including direct notification to consumers. Some agencies we reviewed
have authority to establish recall requirements, such as requiring
direct notification to consumers or prescribing a recall plan if
voluntary efforts are insufficient. For example, the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration may require companies to speed up a
recall or renotify owners, purchasers, and dealers in a manner
prescribed in regulation if it determines that the initial notice was
not effective. FDA has authority to review the terms of a company's
recall plan for recalls of medical devices to ensure that the way the
company proposes to fix the problem sufficiently addresses the risk. If
FDA determines that the company's recall plan is insufficient, FDA can
prescribe a recall plan that may include repairing the device,
replacing it, or refunding its cost. Also, if FDA determines that a
device recall is warranted, it must specify a timetable for the recall
and require periodic reports. In addition, for infant formula, a
recalling firm must submit to FDA in writing an evaluation of the
hazard, a recall strategy, and all recall communications.
* Authority to impose monetary penalties or seek fines or imprisonment
if a company violates recall requirements. Most agencies we examined
have the authority to impose civil monetary penalties or seek fines or
imprisonment when companies either refuse to conduct recalls or fail to
follow recall requirements. For example, failure to obey an FDA order
to recall a biological product that poses an imminent hazard to public
health could result in monetary penalties of $100,000 or more.
Similarly, the Consumer Product Safety Commission can impose monetary
penalties of $7,000 for each product violation, up to $1.65 million for
related violations, if a company fails to notify the commission
promptly, in accordance with the applicable law and regulations.
Officials in FDA, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, as well as Canadian
officials, told us that companies generally cooperate in recalls.
Nonetheless, the agencies have had to use the additional authority in
some instances to ensure that recalls are conducted promptly and
completely.
USDA and FDA officials told us that while they believe companies
generally cooperate with food recalls, they recognize that in some
instances, recalls can be particularly challenging. For example, when
the food company has gone out of business or when the company is
located overseas.
Conclusions:
USDA and FDA are responsible for ensuring the safety of the food
supply. While we recognize that they have limited recall authority, we
believe the agencies can do better in carrying out their food recall
programs. Consumers may be vulnerable to serious illness,
hospitalization, and even death, in part, because of weaknesses in
USDA's and FDA's programs for monitoring companies' recalls of unsafe
food. Although no single weakness may be directly linked to serious
health consequences in the recalls we examined, these weaknesses may
have contributed to the lengthy recall of unsafe food and,
consequently, to relatively little recovery of the food.
USDA and FDA could address these weaknesses--lack of time frames for
company actions, ineffective use of their data systems to monitor and
manage recalls, a verification system that does not ensure the
timeliness and completeness of a recall, and potentially ineffective
consumer notification--by modifying their existing programs. Indeed,
with its new risk-based, scientific verification procedures, USDA has
taken positive steps to improve its verification processes--the
agencies' primary method for ensuring an effective recall. FDA
continues to rely on a flawed process.
We are also concerned about the quality of data in FDA's Recall
Enterprise System--its official recall data system. FDA continues to
maintain information about food recalls in its unofficial data system.
The two systems do not contain the same information, which raises
questions about the validity and reliability of the official system and
reports FDA issued to Congress. Moreover, FDA's investment in
developing the Recall Enterprise System will not be entirely realized
until the agency fully implements it as the sole system for collecting
and managing recall data.
We believe that addressing the problems we have identified could raise
the likelihood that recalled food will be removed from the marketplace
more promptly and completely. However, these corrective steps, while
necessary, will still leave fundamental vulnerabilities because the
agencies lack specific recall authority available to other agencies
with consumer safety responsibilities. Although we did not identify any
instances in which companies refused to carry out a food recall, such
refusal is possible, as Canada's experience has indicated. As in
Canada, USDA and FDA may not need this authority for most recalls, but
if enacted, it would be available when needed.
Matters for Congressional Consideration:
To ensure that USDA and FDA have information and authority so they can
act quickly to remove potentially unsafe food from the marketplace and
can better protect consumers, we propose that Congress consider
legislation that would:
* require a company to notify the responsible agency when it becomes
aware that a food it has distributed is unsafe and:
* give USDA and FDA authority to (1) issue a mandatory recall order,
(2) establish recall requirements, and (3) impose monetary penalties or
seek fines or imprisonment for failing to follow food recall
requirements.
Recommendations for Executive Action:
To ensure that companies promptly and effectively recall foods that may
cause serious illness or death, we are making the following five
recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture and the Commissioner of
FDA:
* revise agency guidance to recalling companies to include specific
time frames for notifying their customers, removing recalled food from
the marketplace, and providing the agencies with the names and
locations of customers that received the food;
* use agency data systems to routinely generate reports for recall
program managers so that they may monitor ongoing recalls and oversee
recall timeliness and effectiveness;
* track in their recall data systems the dates that companies (1) start
and finish notifying their customers, (2) provide the agency with the
lists of customers that received the food, and (3) start and finish
recovering the recalled food;
* track in their data systems the dates that the agencies start and
finish verification checks; and:
* work jointly to determine what, if any, additional approaches are
needed for alerting consumers about recalls.
We also make the following four recommendations to the Commissioner of
FDA:
* revise guidance to agency staff to include risk-based time frames for
completing verification checks promptly;
* develop a sound methodology for district staff to verify that
companies have quickly and effectively carried out recalls;
* when tracking the amount of food recalled and recovered for
individual recalls, use the same units of measure to facilitate
calculations of the recovery rate; and:
* direct the recall staff to use FDA's Recall Enterprise System as the
sole data system to capture recall information, manage food recalls,
and generate reports to Congress.
Agency Comments and Our Evaluation:
We provided USDA and FDA with a draft of this report for review and
comment. We also provided segments of the draft describing their
respective recall authority and rules to the Consumer Product Safety
Commission, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the
Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
USDA stated that the report was generally factually correct. However,
it characterized as "alarmist" the report's statement that "Consumers
may be vulnerable to serious illness, hospitalization, and even death
because of weaknesses in USDA's and FDA's programs for monitoring
companies' recalls of unsafe food." We recognize that the cause of the
illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths was contaminated food not the
agencies' programs. However, because the public is relying on USDA and
FDA to protect consumers from potentially unsafe food, it is important
that the agencies' recall programs be as effective as possible. As our
report points out, two large recalls in 2003 were associated with
nearly 100 hospitalizations or serious illnesses and 8 deaths. Both of
those recalls, monitored by USDA, were expanded to more and more
customers and, therefore, it took some time to locate and recover the
food. USDA's Inspector General reported that during one of the two
recalls, USDA's field staff took longer than 4 months to complete their
verification checks. The Inspector General's report concluded that the
department did not identify and correct problems with the recall to
maximize recovery and take enforcement actions--potentially exposing
consumers to unsafe meat. USDA further said that it believes the new
procedures adopted on May 24, 2004, will address most of the observed
weaknesses we found in its food recall program. As our report
discusses, the new procedures do provide a statistical, risk-based
method that will provide greater assurance that downstream customers
are aware of recalls and that they have followed instructions for
removing food from the marketplace, and the procedures include time
frames for USDA to complete its verification checks. While the new
procedures should improve USDA's verification of recalls, it is
premature to tell whether they will address any other weaknesses we
found in USDA's recall program. Thus we continue to believe that our
recommendations--for (1) time frames for recalling companies' actions-
-to encourage prompt recalls--and companies' disclosure of the
locations where they sent the food, (2) using routinely generated
management reports from the official recall data system, (3) tracking
critical dates, or (4) working with FDA on how best to alert consumers
about recalls of food that can cause serious illnesses--are needed to
further strengthen the safety of the food supply by providing for a
more effective food recall system. Finally, USDA said the report
implies that the Consumer Product Safety Commission's and the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recall authorities and
procedures offer better protection to consumers but does not discuss
how long those agencies work with companies before they announce
recalls. We did not independently evaluate the effectiveness of the
other agencies' recall programs nor did we imply that they were faster
or better. Our point in discussing those programs is to show that they
(1) have additional recall authority not available to USDA and FDA for
food and (2) have had to use their recall authority. We also note that
USDA has supported, as recently as late 2000, proposed legislation that
would have given the department the additional recall authority that
those other agencies have at their disposal, if and when they need it.
FDA stated that our report did not demonstrate that FDA recalls were
lengthy because of system inefficiencies or that weaknesses in FDA's
recall process resulted in little recovery of food. We believe our
report accurately presents the current recall system's performance. The
report describes significant inefficiencies and weaknesses in FDA's
verification process that resulted in delays in identifying and
correcting problems in the recalls we examined. For example, in 3 of
the 10 recalls we examined, FDA took longer than its 20-day target for
completion of verification checks. In addition, FDA noted that,
"companies are encouraged to initiate action as soon as possible and
strongly encouraged to issue press releases within 24 hours of deciding
to recall a product." FDA further stated that its expectation of a
recalling firm is immediate notification, timely removal, and timely
disposal. While such statements are appropriate, we did not find that
they were effective. Furthermore, FDA asserts that we did not present
evidence to support our point that information in its unofficial recall
database is inaccurate. Our concern is twofold. First, maintaining two
separate recall databases is an inefficient use of resources,
especially when FDA cited resource limitations as a factor for not yet
incorporating routine management reports in its Recall Enterprise
System. Second, since we identified inconsistencies in the information
in the two systems, the validity and reliability of the official system
is in question. FDA agreed with our recommendations regarding using the
Recall Enterprise System to generate routine management reports and
eliminating the duplicative recall database. However, it disagreed with
our recommendation regarding the need for specific time frames for
companies' actions and noted that it would be difficult to specify such
time frames. We believe time frames are critical to reinforce the
urgency with which companies need to act, particularly for Class I
recalls where even 1 day's delay can result in additional serious
health consequences. Also, FDA sees limited utility in our
recommendations for recording the dates of company and agency actions
in its Recall Enterprise System. We continue to maintain that these
dates are essential for FDA to effectively monitor ongoing recalls and
assess actions to improve the timeliness of recalls.
USDA's written comments and our more detailed responses to them are in
appendix VII. FDA's written comments and our responses are in appendix
VIII. In addition, USDA, FDA, the Consumer Product Safety Commission,
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the Canadian
Food Inspection Agency provided technical comments, which we
incorporated into the report as appropriate.
As agreed with your offices, unless you publicly announce the contents
of this report earlier, we plan no further distribution until 30 days
from its issuance. At that time, we will send copies of this report to
interested congressional committees, the Secretary of Agriculture, the
Commissioner of Food and Drugs, and other interested parties. We will
make copies available to others upon request. In addition, the report
will be available at no charge on GAO's Web site at
[Hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov].
If you or your staff have any questions about this report, please call
me at (202) 512-3841. Key contributors to this report are listed in
appendix IX.
Signed by:
Lawrence J. Dyckman:
Director, Natural Resources and Environment:
[End of section]
Appendixes:
Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology:
This report (1) examines the extent to which the U.S. Department of
Agriculture's (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA)
recall programs protect consumers from unsafe foods and (2) compares
USDA's and FDA's authority to conduct food recalls with the recall
authority of agencies responsible for the safety of other consumer
products, such as toys, medical devices, and automobiles. This report
also provides information on USDA's and FDA's efforts to identify and
recall foods associated with the December 2003 cow infected with bovine
spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), otherwise known as mad cow disease,
found in Washington State (see app. II) and information on a 2002
recall of ground beef by a ConAgra plant in Greeley, Colorado (see app.
III).
To determine the extent to which USDA and FDA recall programs have
adequately protected consumers from unsafe foods, we studied the
agencies' recall procedures and analyzed in depth agency actions during
20 recent recalls--10 from USDA and 10 from FDA. The 20 we selected
were ongoing in fiscal year 2003 and were Class I recalls--that is,
those with the potential to cause serious illness or death. We
systematically selected recalls in order to cover (1) a wide range of
food products, (2) different types of contaminants, and (3)
geographical locations. Priority was given to large recalls of foods
that were widely distributed. However, recalls were not randomly
selected and therefore are not statistically representative of all food
recalls conducted in fiscal year 2003. In reviewing these 20 recalls,
we examined USDA and FDA documents, including verification records, and
interviewed company and agency officials responsible for monitoring
them. In addition, we obtained USDA and FDA aggregate recall data for
2003 and examined the reliability of information in those systems. We
also analyzed data from USDA's recall database and relied on FDA to
extract similar data from its recall data systems. We obtained the
computerized files for these recalls and summarized the Class I recalls
by year. Additionally, we interviewed USDA and FDA district and
headquarters officials responsible for maintaining their recall data
systems to determine how they collect recall information and add it to
their data systems.
To understand whether consumers are adequately informed of food recalls
and to get perspectives on measures that could affect the timeliness
and effectiveness of recalls, we interviewed representatives from the
food industry; trade associations; and consumer advocacy groups,
including Costco, the American Meat Institute, the Center for Science
in the Public Interest, and the Consumer Federation of America. To
determine the amount of product recovered per year for USDA, we relied
on agency data to compare the pounds of product distributed with the
pounds of product recovered. To calculate the amount of product
recovered for FDA in 2003, we compared the database fields for "product
distributed" and "product recovered" for those recalls with identical
units in the database fields.
To compare USDA's and FDA's authority to conduct food recalls with the
recall authority of agencies responsible for the safety of other
consumer products, such as toys, medical devices, and automobiles, we
reviewed and compared FDA's and other agencies' statutes and
regulations. We identified the agencies that have mandatory recall
authority by conducting literature and Internet searches and by asking
officials at USDA and FDA. We also reviewed the transcript of
proceedings from the December 12, 2002, USDA public meeting "Food
Safety and Inspection Service Public Meeting--Improving the Recall
Process." We selected the following agencies and products, which
account for a substantial share of major consumer goods:
* FDA, for infant formula, human biological products, medical devices
and radiation-emitting electronic devices, human drugs, animal feed,
animal drugs, and medicated feeds;
* Consumer Product Safety Commission, for many consumer goods; and:
* Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, for motor vehicles, motor vehicle equipment, child
safety seats, and tires.
In addition, we included the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, which has
regulatory responsibility, including mandatory recall authority, for
food sold in Canada. We did not include the following agencies because
they have a narrower scope: the U.S. Coast Guard, for boats, boating
equipment, and floatation devices; the Environmental Protection Agency,
for pesticides and emission control devices; and the Department of
Housing and Urban Development, for manufactured housing.
To conduct our comparison, we first focused on USDA's and FDA's
authority to detain and seize unsafe food and then reviewed laws
authorizing other agencies to require companies to take specific recall
actions. We also examined the laws requiring manufacturers and other
companies to notify the appropriate agency when they become aware of
unsafe products. To gain insight on how different authorities are
applied in practice, we interviewed agency officials, using a standard
set of questions, from USDA's Food Safety Inspection Service; FDA's
Centers for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Biologics Evaluation and
Research, Devices and Radiological Health, Drug Evaluation and
Research, and Veterinary Medicine; the Consumer Product Safety
Commission; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; and the
Canadian Food Inspection Agency. We compared the results of the legal
review and interviews to identify authority and related legal
requirements of other agencies helpful in the administration of recalls
that are not available to USDA and FDA for food recalls.
To examine the voluntary recall of beef products associated with the
December 2003 discovery of an animal infected with BSE, we analyzed the
distribution lists USDA collected from companies and the verification
checks it conducted to develop a diagram illustrating the location and
volume of recalled beef that reached different levels of the
distribution chain. We compared the distribution lists and verification
checks to identify how many customers listed on the distribution lists
did not receive the recalled beef and the number of customers not
listed on distribution lists that received the recalled beef. We
interviewed USDA and FDA staff involved with the recall to understand
the timing of recall actions and the challenges encountered during the
recall.
To develop information on the 2002 recall of ground beef by a ConAgra
plant in Greeley, Colorado, we reviewed USDA's recall file and other
documents on the recall. We also met with the department's Office of
Inspector General and reviewed the Inspector General's September 2003
report.[Footnote 27]
We conducted our review from May 2003 through August 2004 in accordance
with generally accepted government auditing standards.
[End of section]
Appendix II: Federal Actions Associated with the Discovery of an Animal
in the United States Infected with BSE:
On December 23, 2003, USDA announced that a cow in the state of
Washington had tested positive for BSE--commonly referred to as mad cow
disease. This appendix describes the actions USDA took to recall the
meat and the actions FDA took with respect to FDA-regulated products,
such as animal feed and cosmetics, made from rendered parts of the
animal.
Beef Recall Was Triggered by a BSE-Positive Sample from One Cow:
On December 9, 2003, the recalling company slaughtered 23 cows. USDA,
in accordance with its BSE surveillance policy at the time, took a
sample of 1 cow that was unable to walk, although the condition of the
tested cow is now disputed. USDA did not process the sample in its
Ames, Iowa National Veterinary Services Laboratory in an expedited
manner because the cow did not show symptoms of neurological disorder.
USDA test results indicated a presumptive positive for BSE on December
23, 2003.
Recall Begun in December 2003 Was Completed in March 2004:
On December 23, 2003, after learning about the positive BSE test, USDA
headquarters notified the Boulder District Office, which is the field
office with jurisdiction over the recalling firm. The Boulder District
began gathering information about the recalling company's product
distribution. Field staff telephoned the recalling company and were on-
site at 7:00 p.m. The Boulder District initially thought 3 days of the
recalling company's production would have to be recalled, but further
examination of facility cleanup and shipping records revealed that it
was only necessary to recall 1 day of production. USDA recall staff
convened at 9:15 p.m. and discussed the science related to BSE and
whether the recalling company's cleanup practices were sufficient to
limit the recall to 1 day of production. Following USDA's determination
to conduct a Class II recall--that is, the beef posed a remote
possibility of adverse health consequences--USDA contacted the
recalling company to discuss recall details and the press release. The
press release and Recall Notification Report were released that
evening.
On December 24, 2003, USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
sent inspectors to the recalling company's primary customers to obtain
secondary customer distribution lists and product shipping records.
USDA conducted 100 percent verification checks for this recall--it
contacted every customer that received the recalled meat. This level of
verification checks is well above the percentage of checks conducted by
USDA district offices for the Class I recalls we reviewed.
On December 26, 2003, USDA began checking the primary and secondary
customers of the recalling company that it was aware of, although the
entire product distribution chain was unknown. During the checks, USDA
tried to determine if the product was further distributed, and it used
verification checks to acquire distribution lists for secondary and
tertiary customers of the recalling company.
Verification checks continued until February 25, 2004. Three USDA
districts conducted these verification checks. The Boulder District
coordinated the checks and assigned checks to the Minneapolis District
Office for customers in Montana and to the Alameda District Office for
customers in California. USDA required that 100 percent of the primary
checks, 50 percent of the secondary checks, and 20 percent of the
tertiary checks be conducted on-site. According to USDA, more than 50
percent of the secondary checks were actually conducted on-site. FDA
officials helped conduct verification checks. According to USDA, the
recall took a long time to complete because USDA contacted each
customer at least twice. USDA first contacted each customer to conduct
the check and again to verify product disposition.
On February 25, 2004, the Boulder District concluded that the recall
was conducted in an effective manner. On March 1, 2004, USDA's Recall
Management Division recommended that the agency terminate the recall,
and USDA sent a letter to the recalling company to document that USDA
considered the recall to be complete.
Recall Was Complicated by Inaccurate Distribution Lists and Mixing of
Potentially Contaminated and Noncontaminated Beef:
USDA used distribution lists and shipping records to piece together
where the recalled product was distributed. According to USDA, one of
the recalling company's three primary customers was slow in providing
its customer list. USDA could not begin verification activities for
that primary customer without this list. Furthermore, some customers of
the recalling company provided USDA with imprecise lists that did not
specify which customers received the recalled product. As a
consequence, USDA could not quickly determine the scope of product
distribution and had to take time conducting extra research using
shipping invoices to determine which specific customers received the
product.
Even when USDA determined the amount and location of beef, the agency
still had trouble tracking the beef in certain types of establishments,
such as grocery store distributors. USDA could not easily track the
individual stores where those distributors sent the beef because of
product mixing and the distributors' record-keeping practices.
Generally, distributors purchase beef from multiple sources, mix it in
their inventory, and lose track of the source of the beef they send to
the stores that they supply. To deal with this problem, USDA first
identified the dates when recalled beef was shipped to the distributors
and then asked for a list of the stores that were shipped any beef
after those dates. Consequently, some stores were included in the
recall that may never have received recalled beef.
The recall was also complicated by repeated mixing of recalled beef
with nonrecalled beef, thereby increasing the amount of meat involved
in the recall. The recalling company slaughtered 23 cows on December 9,
2003, and shipped those and 20 other carcasses to a primary customer on
December 10, 2003. The recalling company's carcasses were tagged to
identify the slaughter date and the individual cow. The primary
customer removed the identification tags and mixed the 23 recalled
carcasses with the 20 nonrecalled carcasses. Because the carcasses
could not be distinguished, the recall included all 43 carcasses at the
primary customer. After one round of processing at the primary
customer, the meat from the carcasses was shipped to two other
processing facilities. Both establishments further mixed the recalled
meat from the 43 carcasses with meat from other sources. In all, the
mixing of beef from 1 BSE-positive cow resulted in over 500 customers
receiving potentially contaminated beef.
Imprecise distribution lists and the mixing of recalled beef combined
to complicate USDA's identification of where the product went.
Specifically, on December 23, 2003, USDA's initial press release stated
that the recalling company was located in Washington State. Three days
later, on December 26, 2003, USDA announced that the recalled beef was
distributed within Washington and Oregon. On December 27, 2003, USDA
determined that one of the primary customers of the recalling firm
distributed beef to facilities in California and Nevada, in addition to
Washington and Oregon, for a total of four states. On December 28,
2003, USDA announced that some of the secondary customers of the
recalling company may also have distributed the product to Alaska,
Montana, Hawaii, Idaho, and Guam, for a total of eight states and one
territory.
On January 6, 2004, over 2 weeks from recall initiation, USDA
determined that the beef went to only six states--Washington, Oregon,
California, Nevada, Idaho, and Montana--and that no beef went to
Alaska, Hawaii, or Guam. To reach that conclusion, USDA used the
distribution lists, shipping records, and sales invoices that it
received from companies to piece together exactly where the recalled
beef may have been sent. The lists showed that 713 customers may have
received the recalled beef; 6 of those may have received beef from more
than one source. USDA determined that 176 customers on the lists did
not actually receive recalled beef, including the customers in Guam and
Hawaii. USDA's review also indicated that recalled beef was probably
not shipped to Alaska or Utah, and USDA checked 2 retailers in Alaska
and 3 retailers in Utah to confirm that was the case. In total, USDA
conducted verification checks on 537 of the 713 customers on the lists.
USDA's initial checks identified an additional 45 customers that may
have received the recalled beef that were not included on the
distribution lists, for a total of 582 verification checks. Figure 4
summarizes USDA's verification efforts during the recall.
Figure 4: USDA's Recall Verification Checks by Location and Customer
Type for Meat Associated with the Animal Infected with BSE:
[See PDF for image]
Note: USDA checked 15 primary, 40 secondary, and 526 tertiary customers
plus the recalling company, for a total of 582 verification checks.
[End of figure]
USDA's press release stated that the recall involved 10,410 pounds of
beef products, and the USDA recall coordinator for this recall told us
that downstream processors mixed the recalled beef with nonrecalled
beef, for a total of more than 38,000 pounds of beef that was
distributed at the secondary customer level. According to USDA
officials involved with the recall, the precise amount of meat that was
sold at the retail level is unknown because retailers at the tertiary
level further mixed nonrecalled meat with potentially contaminated
meat. USDA told us that more than 64,000 pounds of beef was ultimately
returned or destroyed by customers, and that, because of the mixing, it
was not able to determine how much of the original 10,410 pounds of
recalled beef was contained in the 64,000 pounds that were recovered.
FDA's Role in USDA's Recall:
Parts of the BSE-infected animal slaughtered on December 9, 2003, were
not used for food, but they were sent to renderers to be separated into
raw materials, such as proteins and blood. Rendered materials are used
for many purposes, including cosmetics and vaccines. FDA has
jurisdiction over renderers.
When USDA learned of the BSE-infected cow on December 23, 2003, the
agency immediately notified FDA. On December 24, 2003, FDA sent an
inspection team to a renderer that handled materials from the BSE cow.
Inspectors confirmed that the parts of the slaughtered BSE positive cow
were on the premises. FDA later identified a second company that
potentially rendered material from the slaughtered BSE cow. Both
renderers agreed to voluntarily hold all product processed from the
diseased cow and dispose of the product as directed by FDA and local
authorities.
On January 7, 2004, 15 containers of potentially contaminated, rendered
material (meat and bone meal) were inadvertently loaded on a ship, and
on January 8, 2004, the ship left Seattle, Washington, for Asia. The
renderer initiated steps to recover the shipped material, so it could
be disposed of as directed by FDA and local authorities. The ship
carrying the material returned to the United States on February 24,
2004, and the material was disposed of in a landfill on March 2, 2004.
On January 12, 2004, FDA asked both renderers to expand their voluntary
holds to rendered materials processed from December 23, 2003, through
January 9, 2004, because they may have rendered some recalled meat or
trim that was recovered from retail establishments. Both renderers
agreed to the expanded product hold. In total, FDA requested that
renderers voluntarily hold approximately 2,000 tons of rendered
material. FDA confirmed that none of the potentially contaminated,
rendered material entered commerce, because FDA accounted for all
rendered material. FDA reported that no recall was necessary because no
product was distributed commercially by the rendering companies.
USDA and FDA Worked Together on the Recall:
USDA and FDA worked together in two ways. First, both agencies notified
each other if their investigations yielded any information about
products within the jurisdiction of the other agency. For instance,
when conducting the second round of verification checks, USDA tracked
the disposition of the product to renderers and landfills and notified
FDA when the product went to renderers. Second, FDA officials helped
conduct verification checks. FDA conducted 32 of the 582 verification
checks (approximately 5 percent) for the USDA recall. Officials from
both agencies indicated they regularly interacted and shared
information. Table 3 outlines the agencies' actions.
Table 3: Detailed Timeline of USDA, FDA, and Company Actions Related to
the Discovery of an Animal Infected with BSE:
Date: 12/9/03;
USDA recall actions:
* USDA samples cow for BSE;
Company actions:
* BSE cow is slaughtered.
Date: 12/11/03;
USDA recall actions:
* Sample is sent to Ames, Iowa, for BSE testing;
Company actions:
* Recalling company sends carcasses to primary customer for processing.
Date: 12/12/03;
Company actions:
* Primary customer sends meat products to two other primary customers
for further processing.
Date: 12/12 - 12/23/03;
Company actions:
* Other primary customers distribute recalled product to secondary
customers;
* Secondary customers distribute recalled product to tertiary
customers.
Date: 12/23/03;
USDA recall actions:
* BSE test results are presumptively positive;
* Recall meeting;
* Initiation of voluntary recall;
* Press release;
FDA actions:
* FDA notified of BSE test results;
* FDA dispatches investigation teams.
Date: 12/24/03;
FDA actions:
* FDA inspects Renderer 1;
* FDA determines some rendered material from Renderer 1 is intended for
Indonesia;
* FDA discovers some material may have been sent to Renderer 2;
* Renderer 1 agrees to hold remaining rendered material;
Company actions:
* Recalling company contacts primary customers;
* Primary customers contact their customers.
Date: 12/25/03;
USDA recall actions:
* USDA receives confirmation from reference lab in England that cow in
question is BSE positive.
Date: 12/26/03;
USDA recall actions:
* Verification checks begin;
* USDA announces recalled product in Washington State and Oregon;
FDA actions:
* FDA begins process of comparing records to ensure all products from
Renderers 1 and 2 are accounted for;
* Renderer 2 agrees to hold all material that may have been derived
from BSE cow. None of the rendered material has been distributed.
Date: 12/27/03;
USDA recall actions:
* USDA announces recalled product was distributed in Washington State,
Oregon, California, and Nevada;
FDA actions:
* FDA issues statement confirming that the rendering plants that
processed all of the nonedible material from the BSE cow have placed a
voluntary hold on all of the potentially infectious product, none of
which had left the control of the companies and entered commercial
distribution.
Date: 12/28/03;
USDA recall actions:
* USDA announces recalled product was distributed in Washington State,
Oregon, California, Nevada, Montana, Idaho, Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam.
Date: 12/29/03;
USDA recall actions:
* Food Safety and Inspection Service determines that the recalled meat
products were distributed to 42 locations, with 80 percent of the
products distributed to stores in Oregon and Washington State.
Date: 12/31/03;
FDA actions:
* FDA offers assistance to USDA to complete recall verification checks.
Date: 1/6/04;
USDA recall actions:
* USDA determines recalled product was only distributed in Washington
State, Oregon, California, Nevada, Montana, and Idaho.
Date: 1/8/04;
FDA actions:
* FDA is notified by the renderer that some of the rendered material on
hold from Renderer 1 was inadvertently shipped to Asia. Renderer 1
commits to isolate and return the rendered material;
Company actions:
* Rendering company notifies FDA of shipment of product on hold.
Date: 1/12/04;
FDA actions:
* FDA advises Renderers 1 and 2 that they may have rendered meat or
trim subject to recall from retail stores;
* FDA requests Renderers 1 and 2 to place all rendered material from
December 23 to January 9 on hold;
* FDA determines neither renderer had shipped rendered material
manufactured after December 23, 2003.
Date: 2/9/04;
FDA actions:
* All rendered material was disposed of in landfill, except material
shipped to Asia.
Date: 2/24/04;
FDA actions:
* Ship carrying rendered material returns to U.S. port.
Date: 2/25/04;
USDA recall actions:
* Verification checks complete;
* USDA Boulder District Office concludes recall is effective.
Date: 3/1/04;
USDA recall actions:
* Recall is closed.
Date: 3/2/04;
FDA actions:
* FDA observes disposal in landfill of remaining rendered material.
Source: GAO analysis of USDA and FDA information.
[End of table]
[End of section]
Appendix III: Information on a 2002 Recall of Ground Beef by a ConAgra
Plant in Greeley, Colorado:
This appendix provides general information about the recall of 18
million pounds of ground beef and beef products because of possible
contamination with E. coli O157:H7 by the ConAgra Beef Company
(ConAgra) plant in Greeley, Colorado, beginning in June 2002. USDA's
Office of Inspector General evaluated the effectiveness of the
department's management and oversight of the recall, issuing a report
in September 2003.[Footnote 28] As a result, we did not independently
analyze the department's actions during this recall.
Beginning in June 2002, at least 46 people in 16 states became ill from
contaminated meat. An epidemiological investigation by the Colorado
Department of Public Health and Environment and the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, confirmed that about 23 of those illnesses
around Colorado were from the same genetic strain of E. coli, which
linked the illnesses to the same source of contamination. Later testing
confirmed that beef from the ConAgra plant was the source of that
contamination.
On June 30, 2002, ConAgra officials agreed to a voluntary recall of
354,200 pounds of ground beef that the company identified as having
been produced on May 31, 2002. FSIS's subsequent review of ConAgra
records showed that beef from the plant had been testing positive for
E. coli O157:H7 from April 12 through July 11, 2002. On July 18, the
company decided to expand the recall to include about 18 million pounds
of ground beef and beef trim. The expanded recall--one of the largest
in U.S. history--included fresh and frozen ground beef products
produced from April 12 through June 29, 2002, and beef trimmings
produced from April 12 through July 11, 2002. The Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention reported that the extent to which the recalled
meat was repackaged and distributed under other labels was unclear,
potentially making it difficult to identify the affected lots of beef
by looking at the package. According to USDA, about 3 million pounds
(17 percent) of the recalled beef was recovered.
USDA's Inspector General noted the following in 2003:
* USDA had imposed no specific requirements that plants keep production
or distribution records, which increased the difficulty USDA had in
tracking the distribution of the ground meat.
* USDA did not review verification checks in time to maximize the
amount of recalled food that could be recovered, and the problems found
during those checks received limited management attention.
* Of the 490 verification checks that USDA conducted, 67 indicated that
companies in the downstream distribution chain had not been notified of
the recall. Although USDA confirmed that ConAgra notified its primary
customers of the recall, the agency took no action in the 67 cases
where it found that those customers had not notified others in the
distribution chain. These checks notwithstanding, USDA district office
managers determined that the recall was a success because to their
knowledge, no one consuming unrecovered product became ill.
* USDA conducted verification checks between July and November, 2002,
months after the recall began, with about 31 percent of checks in July,
42 percent in August, 20 percent in September, and 7 percent in
October. Two checks were performed in November.
[End of section]
Appendix IV: USDA and FDA Actions on the Recommendations We Made in
2000:
As previously discussed in this report, our 2000 report[Footnote 29] on
USDA's and FDA's food recall programs recommended that USDA and FDA
provide guidance to companies with time frames for quickly initiating
and carrying out food recalls that involve potentially serious adverse
health risks, including procedures to expeditiously notify their
distribution chains and alert the public.
Our 2000 report also recommended that both USDA and FDA modify existing
recall data systems to include information on the timeliness of
companies' recall activities so that the agencies could determine
whether companies delay initiating and carrying out recalls. Both
agencies acted on our recommendations by implementing new recall data
systems to help track information about the recalls they monitor. USDA
began using its new system--Recall Web--in January 2001, and FDA began
using its new system--Recall Enterprise System--in November 2002. FDA's
Recall Enterprise System captures information on recalls of all FDA-
regulated products, including food and other products such as medical
devices and drugs. As table 4 shows, FDA implemented more of our
recommendations than did USDA.
Table 4: USDA and FDA Actions on GAO's Recommendations to Modify Recall
Data Systems:
Modify data systems to track the following dates and methods:
Agency: USDA;
Dates: Company found out about problem: No;
Dates requested company to initiate recall: No;
Dates: Company initiated recall: Yes;
Dates: Company notified customers: No;
Dates: Company notified public: No;
Dates: Company completed recall: No;
Methods: Company used to notify customers: Yes;
Methods: Company used to notify public: [A].
Agency: FDA;
Dates: Company found out about problem: Yes;
Dates requested company to initiate recall: Yes;
Dates: Company initiated recall: Yes;
Dates: Company notified customers: Yes;
Dates: Company notified public: Yes;
Dates: Company completed recall: Yes;
Methods: Company used to notify customers: Yes;
Methods: Company used to notify public: No[B].
Source: GAO analysis of the USDA Recall Web and the FDA Recall
Enterprise System.
[A] Regardless of the public notification action taken by the recalling
company, FSIS will generally issue a press release for Class I and
Class II recalls. The agency also will post them on the FSIS Web site.
[B] Although FDA does not track this information in its data system,
companies generally use a press release to notify the public, and FDA
posts recall information on its Web site.
[End of table]
As table 4 shows, USDA did not add fields in its new data system for
most of the fields that we recommended, but its system does record the
date the company initiated a recall and the methods it used to notify
its customers. According to USDA recall staff, its system was designed
to create the letters they use to officially begin and end recalls. The
system does not track the agency's or company's actions. In contrast,
FDA added all but one of the fields we recommended.
[End of section]
Appendix V: Information on the 20 Food Recalls We Examined for 2003:
We analyzed 20 recent recalls--10 from USDA and 10 from FDA. The 20 we
selected occurred in fiscal year 2003 and were among those with the
greatest potential to cause serious illness or death--Class I recalls.
Table 5 presents selected information on those recalls.
Table 5: Selected Information on the 20 Class I Food Recalls We
Examined:
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 107-2002;
Location of facility: Ashville, NY;
Lead district office: Albany;
Recalled food: Fresh ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Approximate amount recalled: 320,000 pounds.
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 001-2003;
Location of facility: Bronx, NY;
Lead district office: Albany;
Recalled food: Chicken frankfurters;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Approximate amount recalled: 26,400 pounds.
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 102-2002;
Location of facility: Augusta, GA;
Lead district office: Atlanta;
Recalled food: Ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Approximate amount recalled: 54,000 pounds.
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 112-2002;
Location of facility: Elberton, GA;
Lead district office: Atlanta;
Recalled food: Fully cooked frozen chicken;
Reason for recall: Hard piece of plastic[A];
Approximate amount recalled: 36,000 pounds.
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 086-2002;
Location of facility: Milwaukee, WI;
Lead district office: Madison;
Recalled food: Fresh and frozen ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Approximate amount recalled: 2,800,000 pounds[B].
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 091-2002;
Location of facility: Milwaukee, WI;
Lead district office: Madison;
Recalled food: Fresh and frozen ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Approximate amount recalled: 568,000 pounds.
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 073-2002;
Location of facility: Minneapolis, MN;
Lead district office: Minneapolis;
Recalled food: Frozen ground beef;
Reason for recall: E. coli;
Approximate amount recalled: 717,000 pounds.
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 090-2002;
Location of facility: Franconia, PA;
Lead district office: Philadelphia;
Recalled food: Fresh and frozen ready-to-eat turkey and chicken;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Approximate amount recalled: 27,400,000 pounds[B].
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 098-2002;
Location of facility: Camden, NJ;
Lead district office: Philadelphia;
Recalled food: Fresh and frozen ready-to-eat turkey and chicken;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Approximate amount recalled: 4,200,000 pounds[B].
Agency: USDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: 008-2003;
Location of facility: Napoleon, OH;
Lead district office: Chicago;
Recalled food: Canned soup;
Reason for recall: Cheese[C];
Approximate amount recalled: 56,000 pounds.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-474/479-3;
Location of facility: Trainer, PA;
Lead district office: Philadelphia;
Recalled food: Crab cakes;
Reason for recall: Milk[C];
Approximate amount recalled: 40,000 pounds.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-433-3;
Location of facility: Conestoga, PA;
Lead district office: Philadelphia;
Recalled food: Ice cream;
Reason for recall: Peanuts[C];
Approximate amount recalled: 14,916 units.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-502-3;
Location of facility: Brooklyn, NY;
Lead district office: New York Downstate;
Recalled food: Salted herring;
Reason for recall: Botulinum spores;
Approximate amount recalled: 2,025 pounds.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-398-3;
Location of facility: Farmingdale, NY;
Lead district office: New York Downstate;
Recalled food: Oregano;
Reason for recall: Salmonella;
Approximate amount recalled: 2,180 pounds.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-463-3;
Location of facility: Salinas, CA;
Lead district office: San Francisco;
Recalled food: Fresh-cut bagged lettuce;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Approximate amount recalled: 5,622 cases.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-207/218-3;
Location of facility: Mukilteo, WA;
Lead district office: Seattle;
Recalled food: Packaged turkey sandwiches;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Approximate amount recalled: 285,700 sandwiches.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-381/383-3;
Location of facility: Auburn, WA;
Lead district office: Seattle;
Recalled food: Alfalfa sprouts;
Reason for recall: Salmonella;
Approximate amount recalled: 32,000 pounds.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-425-3;
Location of facility: Clackamas, OR;
Lead district office: Seattle;
Recalled food: Smoked salmon;
Reason for recall: Listeria;
Approximate amount recalled: 434 pounds.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-185-3;
Location of facility: Battle Creek, MI;
Lead district office: Detroit;
Recalled food: Packaged breakfast pastry;
Reason for recall: Egg[C];
Approximate amount recalled: 730,000 packages.
Agency: FDA;
Agency-assigned recall number: F-482-3;
Location of facility: Barberton, OH;
Lead district office: Cincinnati;
Recalled food: Chocolate milk;
Reason for recall: Excessive amounts of vitamins A and D;
Approximate amount recalled: 490 ½-gallon containers.
Source: GAO analysis of USDA and FDA data and documents.
[A] The hard piece of plastic was considered to be foreign material.
[B] This recall was expanded beyond the initial amount. The amount
listed is the final amount of recalled food.
[C] This item is a potential allergen that was not declared on the
food's ingredient label.
[End of table]
[End of section]
Appendix VI: Recall Authority of Selected Government Agencies:
This appendix provides additional explanation of the information
previously provided in table 2. It describes the requirements that
manufacturers and other companies must follow to notify agencies of
unsafe products and the authority of government agencies to recall
products. The regulatory functions and products under the jurisdiction
of each agency are discussed, followed by a description of the
authority each agency has to recall products, including required
notification of unsafe products.
USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service:
USDA's FSIS is responsible for protecting the public from foodborne
illness by administering and enforcing the Federal Meat Inspection Act,
Poultry Products Inspection Act, and Egg Products Inspection Act.
FSIS's jurisdiction covers beef; pork; lamb; poultry; processed eggs;
and other products that contain meat or poultry, such as sausage,
soups, stews, and frozen pizzas or dinners. FSIS inspects individual
products as well as processing plants, tests for various types of food
contamination, establishes facility sanitation requirements, maintains
a system of import inspections and controls, prescribes labeling
requirements, and develops consumer education programs to keep the
public informed on how to properly prepare and store food. FSIS also
monitors the effectiveness of voluntary recalls to remove unsafe meat,
poultry, and egg products from interstate commerce.
FSIS does not have authority to issue a mandatory recall order or
require a company to follow certain recall procedures during a
voluntary recall. Nor are companies required to notify the agency when
they identify a potentially unsafe product. However, if a company
refuses to recall a product believed to be hazardous to the public
health, FSIS may rely on its authority to detain and seize it. If
necessary, FSIS may detain meat, poultry, or egg products for up to 20
days when there is reason to believe they are adulterated or misbranded
and may be used as human food. After this period, a U.S. district court
may be petitioned to authorize USDA to seize and condemn the product.
To encourage cooperation with a voluntary recall, FSIS can withdraw
inspectors or withhold the USDA "inspected and passed" label,
effectively shutting down a manufacturer, according to the Secretary of
Agriculture.[Footnote 30]
FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition:
FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, is responsible for
the safety of food not exclusively regulated by USDA.[Footnote 31] This
includes food such as fruits and vegetables, and infant formula. FDA
shares jurisdiction with USDA on foods such as eggs, (FDA is
responsible for shell eggs while USDA is responsible for egg products),
sandwiches (depending on whether they are open-faced or close-faced)
and soups (depending on the quantity of meat they contain). To ensure
the safety of food under its jurisdiction, center activities include
regulation of certain food production facilities and food labeling and
the approval of food additives. The center also conducts facility
inspections, collects and tests food samples to detect unsafe food,
conducts research on emerging food safety issues, and educates the
public on proper food handling. If an unsafe food under its
jurisdiction enters the market, FDA may request a voluntary food recall
and issue a press release about the unsafe food.
With the exception of infant formula, FDA does not have explicit
authority to order food recalls. Instead, FDA relies on its authority
to detain and seize adulterated or misbranded foods. While adulterated
or misbranded products are subject to seizure through the courts with
the assistance of the U.S. Department of Justice, FDA may detain food
for up to 30 days if it has credible evidence or information that
indicates the food presents a threat of serious adverse health
consequences or death to humans or animals. FDA may also issue
publicity about foods that present a danger to public health. According
to agency officials, companies usually conduct voluntary recalls to
avoid such adverse publicity.
For infant formula, however, FDA can require a manufacturer to conduct
a recall if FDA determines that the formula processed by the
manufacturer presents a risk to human health. An infant formula may
present a risk to human health if it does not provide the required
nutrients or is otherwise adulterated or misbranded. Manufacturers that
have knowledge that reasonably supports the conclusion that their
formula may not contain the required nutrients, or otherwise may be
adulterated or misbranded, must promptly report this information to
FDA, which then will determine whether the infant formula presents a
risk to human health. Reports are also required if there is a
reasonable possibility of a causal relationship between the consumption
of the company's infant formula and infant death. When a company
conducts a recall, it must provide information to FDA by telephone
about the infant formula within 24 hours. Within 14 days after the
recall has begun, the manufacturer must provide a written report to FDA
and at least every 14 days thereafter until the recall is terminated.
The manufacturer also must request each retail establishment at which
such formula is sold or is available for sale to post a notice of the
recall. Failure to comply with the notification, reporting, or posting-
request requirements are prohibited acts punishable by imprisonment, a
fine, or both.
The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response
Act of 2002 includes a number of provisions that establish new
requirements for those engaged in the food business and gives new
authority to FDA to take action to protect the nation's food supply.
These new requirements and powers include registration of food
facilities, administrative detention of food believed to be unsafe,
maintenance of and access to certain records, and notification of food
imports prior to arrival.[Footnote 32]
FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research:
FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research is responsible for
ensuring the safety and effectiveness of biological products, such as
blood and vaccines. The center also regulates human tissue intended for
transplant to prevent the transmission of communicable
disease.[Footnote 33] To achieve its goals, the center reviews and
approves biologics for licensing, inspects the conditions of facilities
manufacturing biological products, regulates biological product
quality, and conducts research to support these programs.
Reports of adverse events associated with biological products can help
identify whether a recall may be necessary. Manufacturers must report
to FDA if they become aware of adverse experiences associated with
their products. Such information may come from a number of sources,
including commercial marketing experience, postmarketing clinical
investigations, and scientific literature. Vaccine manufacturers and
health care providers are also required to report certain reactions
associated with the administration of routinely recommended childhood
vaccines.[Footnote 34]
The Public Health Service Act authorizes FDA to issue an order to
recall a licensed biological product after determining that it presents
"an imminent or substantial hazard to the public health—."[Footnote 35]
Recalls must be carried out in a manner consistent with the FDA order
and pertinent regulations. Violation of the recall requirements could
result in monetary penalties of $100,000 or more per day of violation,
fines, and imprisonment.
FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health:
FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health is responsible for
ensuring the safety and effectiveness of medical devices and preventing
unnecessary human exposure to radiation from electronic products. The
center has regulatory jurisdiction over medical devices, such as heart
pacemakers and electronic thermometers, as well as radiation-emitting
electronic products, such as microwave ovens, infrared alarm systems,
ultraviolet tanning lamps, and lasers. The center evaluates and
approves certain devices for clinical trials and marketing, regulates
manufacturing practices, sets performance standards, conducts
postmarket surveillance of product performance, provides technical
assistance to small manufacturers, and educates the public.
Medical device manufacturers and importers must report device-related
deaths or serious injuries, as well as certain product corrections and
market removals to FDA, and importers must report these events to the
manufacturer(s). User facilities must report deaths that may have been
caused by the use of a medical device to FDA and the manufacturer, if
known. Device-related serious injuries must be reported to the
manufacturer or to FDA if the manufacturer is unknown.
FDA is authorized to order two types of recalls for medical devices: a
"repair, replacement, or refund" order and a recall order.[Footnote 36]
The first type may be initiated if (1) a device presents an
unreasonable risk of substantial harm to the public health, (2) there
are reasonable grounds to believe that the device was not properly
designed or manufactured, (3) there are reasonable grounds to believe
that the risk is not due to improper use or care, and (4) notification
of the risk would not be sufficient to eliminate it.
If a device meets these criteria, FDA may order the manufacturer,
importer, or distributor, or any combination of the three, to submit a
plan to repair or replace the device or to refund the purchase price.
The plan may not include a charge to anyone seeking a remedy, except
manufacturers, importers, distributors, or retailers, where there are
reasonable grounds to believe that the person or entity in question is
eligible for a remedy. It must also provide for reimbursement of the
reasonable and foreseeable expenses associated with obtaining repair,
replacement, or refund. If a plan is unsatisfactory, FDA may prescribe
a plan.
If there is a reasonable probability that a device would cause serious
adverse health consequences or death, FDA must issue an order requiring
the appropriate parties to immediately (1) cease distribution and (2)
notify health professionals and device user facilities of the order and
instruct them to stop using the device. After providing an opportunity
for an informal hearing, FDA may amend the order to require a recall of
the device specifying a time table for completion and periodic
reporting. Such recall orders do not include recall of devices from
individuals, although individuals subject to the risks associated with
the recalled devices are required to be notified.
FDA is authorized to require manufacturers to adopt a method of device
tracking for certain medical devices. According to FDA, this authority
may be used to facilitate recalls. Tracking orders may be issued for
devices (1) that if they failed, would be reasonably likely to cause
serious adverse health consequences, (2) that are intended to be
implanted in the body for more than a year, or (3) that are life-
sustaining or life-supporting and used outside a device user facility.
Failure to comply with requirements or orders could result in penalties
up to $15,000 per violation, not to exceed $1 million for all
violations in a single proceeding; fines; and imprisonment.
FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research:
FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research is responsible for
ensuring the availability of safe and effective prescription and over-
the-counter drugs for the American people. To ensure that drugs are
safe and effective before they reach the market, the center reviews new
drug applications and establishes manufacturing, product quality, and
labeling standards. The center also conducts postmarket drug safety
surveillance, collects samples of and analyzes drugs to help make sure
they are safe and effective, administers a postmarket adverse drug
experience program in an effort to identify potentially unsafe drugs,
and provides consumers with the information they need to use drugs
appropriately and safely.
Unlike foods, drugs must go through premarket approval and must be
determined to be safe and effective before they can be marketed. Even
after they are marketed, questions may arise regarding their safety or
effectiveness. FDA may become aware of such concerns through adverse
event reporting. Generally, manufacturers and others are required to
report serious and unexpected adverse drug events to FDA within a
certain time frame. FDA may use this information to determine whether
particular drugs should continue to be marketed. Those who fail to make
the required adverse event reports are subject to fines and
imprisonment.
While FDA does not have the authority to issue a recall order for drugs
determined to be unsafe or ineffective,[Footnote 37] it may immediately
suspend and propose to withdraw the New Drug Application approval for
such drugs if they are found to constitute an "imminent hazard."
FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine:
FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine regulates the approval,
manufacture, and sale of animal drugs and feeds containing animal
drugs. FDA may become aware of information concerning the safety and
effectiveness of animal drugs and medicated feeds through the reporting
of adverse reactions associated with them. Manufacturers of animal
drugs are required to report serious and unexpected adverse drug events
to FDA within a certain time frame whether administered directly or
through feed. Those who fail to make the required reports may be
subject to fines and imprisonment.
FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine does not have authority to issue a
recall order if any of these products are found to be unsafe or
ineffective. However, the center may propose to withdraw marketing
approval for such drugs or propose to revoke the license of the
medicated feed manufacturer if certain conditions are not met. If the
drug or medicated feed poses an imminent hazard to human health or the
animals for which it is intended, the Secretary of Health and Human
Services may immediately suspend the drug's marketing approval or the
feed manufacturing license.
Consumer Product Safety Commission:
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is charged with
protecting the public from unreasonable risks of serious injury or
death from over 15,000 types of consumer goods. Consumer goods
generally fall under the regulatory jurisdiction of CPSC, with the
exceptions of motor vehicles and motor vehicle equipment, food, human
and animal drugs, aircraft, boats, tobacco, firearms, cosmetics,
pesticides, and medical devices. To help protect consumers from unsafe
products, CPSC develops and enforces product safety standards;
administers recalls--which may include repair, replacement, or refund-
-of certain hazardous products; evaluates the safety of products; bans
unsafe products; conducts research on the safety of products; and
educates consumers.
Companies are required to notify CPSC immediately (generally within 24
hours) after obtaining information that reasonably supports the
conclusion that a product violates a product safety ban or standard,
the product contains a defect that could create a substantial product
hazard or creates an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death. The
staff verifies the defect or hazard and assists the company in
developing a remedy. According to CPSC officials, virtually all recalls
are conducted voluntarily without the need for litigation. If the
commission determines that notification of the public about a product
defect or failure is necessary, and the company does not cooperate, the
law provides for a hearing. After a hearing, CPSC may order the
affected companies to give such notice publicly and through the mail to
manufacturers, distributors, retailers, or individual consumers.
Manufacturers also must notify CPSC if a product is the subject of
three or more settled civil actions or adjudicated civil actions, in
favor of the plaintiff, alleging death or grievous bodily injury--over
a 2-year period. The company must report to CPSC within 30 days of
final settlement or judgment in the third case.
Companies selling goods that a CPSC technical review finds to present
"substantial product hazards" may be ordered to conduct a recall or
develop a plan that provides for repair, replacement, or refund for the
product in question. CPSC is authorized to review and approve any plan.
Products that a U.S. district court determines to be imminently
hazardous are subject to injunction and seizure. In such cases, relief
may include notification of the risk to purchasers, public notice,
recall, repair, replacement, refund, or condemnation. If someone
knowingly fails to comply with the reporting, or a notification or
recall order, CPSC may assess civil monetary penalties of $7,000 per
violation up to $1.65 million for a related series of
violations.[Footnote 38]
Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), an agency
within the Department of Transportation, is charged with a number of
responsibilities, including reducing deaths and injuries resulting from
motor vehicle traffic accidents, establishing motor vehicle safety
standards, administering motor vehicle and highway safety grant
programs, securing and analyzing data to learn about safety trends, and
monitoring the recall of defective products. Its jurisdiction covers
motor vehicles and equipment, including tires and child safety seats.
NHTSA may become aware of problem products either through its own
research or testing, or by notification from manufacturers or
consumers. Manufacturers of motor vehicles or replacement equipment
must notify NHTSA within 5 working days if the manufacturer decides
that its products contain a defect related to motor vehicle safety or
violate a motor vehicle safety standard.[Footnote 39] Owners,
purchasers, and dealers must also be notified within a reasonable time
and are entitled to remedies--which may include repairs, replacement,
or refunds of the defective or noncompliant product--without charge. If
there is insufficient customer response after the initial notification,
NHTSA may order the manufacturer to send out a second notification in a
manner prescribed by regulation. The manufacturer's program to remedy
the defect or noncompliance must be filed with NHTSA, which then makes
it available to the public. If NHTSA decides that a manufacturer has
not reasonably met the remedy requirements, it may order specific
action. Failure to provide notification or a proper remedy may result
in a civil monetary penalty of up to $5,000 for each violation, up to
$15 million in total for a related series of violations.
Canadian Food Inspection Agency:
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), created in April 1997, is
Canada's science-based regulator for food safety, animal health, and
plant protection. Its responsibilities include activities that had been
divided among four Canadian government departments. It is responsible
for the administration and enforcement of 13 Canadian laws and their
respective regulations. Through the delivery of inspection and other
related services, which include inspection of food-processing
facilities, analysis of food samples for impurities, inspection of
international food products and animals, and evaluation of the safety
of animal feeds and vaccines, the agency verifies compliance with these
laws. Critical to the effective delivery of the CFIA's responsibilities
is the ongoing design and development of inspection-related tools and
processes, which include the continual review of regulations and
policies and the implementation of new science-based inspection
methodologies.
The CFIA also coordinates food recalls across Canada and posts
publications of food recalls on its government Web site. According to
agency officials, although companies are not required by statute to
notify the CFIA when they identify potentially unsafe products, the
CFIA encourages and assists companies in the coordination of food
emergency responses on a 24-hour basis. The CFIA Web site also has
manuals and checklists for companies to structure food safety emergency
response policies.
CFIA officials told us that although companies generally cooperate in
recalls, the CFIA has mandatory recall authority that it may use in
cases where cooperation is not forthcoming and a recall must be done
promptly and completely. Section 19 of the Canadian Food Inspection
Agency Act provides that the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food may
order a recall of a particular product where there are reasonable
grounds to believe that the product poses a risk to public, animal, or
plant health. A recall order under this section applies to anyone who
sells, markets, or distributes the product, and violation of a recall
order may result in a fine of up to $50,000 and imprisonment.[Footnote
40]
[End of section]
Appendix VII: Comments from the U.S. Department of Agriculture:
United States Department of Agriculture:
Food Safety and Inspection Service:
Washington, D.C. 20250:
Mr. Lawrence J. Dyckman:
Director, Food and Agricultural Issues:
Natural Resources and Environment Team:
United States Government Accountability Office:
441 G Street, NW:
Washington, DC 20548:
Dear Mr. Dyckman:
In your letter dated August 11, 2004, you requested the U.S. Department
of Agriculture (USDA) written comments on the Draft report GAO-04-693
"FOOD SAFETY: USDA and FDA Need to Better Ensure Prompt and Complete
Recalls of Potentially Unsafe Food." Thank you for the opportunity to
provide comments on the draft report.
We find the draft report generally factually accurate but would like to
offer some general comments on the report as well as the attached
specific comments. On May 24, 2004, the Food Safety and Inspection
Service (FSIS) issued FSIS Directive 8080.1, Revision 4, "Recall of
Meat and Poultry Products" to revise the terminology, responsibilities
and public notification procedures regarding the voluntary recall of
FSIS-inspected meat and poultry products. FSIS is following the new
procedures outlined in the new Directive, and believes that most of the
perceived weaknesses in the Agency's recall efforts have been addressed
by these new procedures.
FSIS Directive 8080.1, Revision 4, includes the general procedures
involved in determining the need for a recall, and actions FSIS expects
a firm to take to ensure that the maximum amount of product is
recovered in the shortest amount of time. The directive includes
effectiveness check procedures by which FSIS inspection program
personnel verify that the recalling firm has been diligent and
successful in notifying and advising consignees of the need to retrieve
and control recalled product, and that the consignees have responded
appropriately. Effectiveness check procedures are risk-based and
dependent on the class of the recall as well as the number of
consignees. The directive also includes closure procedures.
The FSIS recall process in place now is risk-based and cost effective.
Recalls with higher risk to public health receive more agency
verification resources than lower risk recalls. Additional data
collection requirements can be costly to both HIS and industry. Because
recalls are voluntary, FSIS does not have the authority to mandate data
collection requirements for industry. FSIS believes some of the report
recommendations proposing that FSIS gather additional recall data and
generate reports to aid recall management may be a burden to the Agency
and overly prescriptive given the variety of recalls. Recalls can vary
greatly in risk to public health, amount of product, and geographic
scope.
District Recall Officers will be able to manage and monitor FSIS recall
activities with the information provided in Directive 8080.1, Revision
4.
The report should point out more prominently how quickly FSIS does
respond when it receives information, either generated from within or
outside of the Agency, that product that there is reason to believe is
adulterated or misbranded has entered commerce. FSIS typically responds
and has notified the public of recalls within hours of receiving the
information.
General Comments:
1. Page 14, 2nd Paragraph, 2nd Sentence. The draft report states, "As a
result, they [FDA and USDA] did not know how much food is actually
recovered, which the agencies indicate is the purpose of a recall."
FSIS suggests that this statement be clarified. The purpose of a recall
is to remove product that there is reason to believe is adulterated or
harmful from commerce and to alert consumers to potential problems if a
particular product is consumed. The product may be thrown out by a
consumer or destroyed by a consignee, either of which accomplishes the
purpose of a recall by removing product from commerce and protecting
the consumer, but these products would not count as "recovered." The
rate of recovery for perishable meat and poultry products is not the
measure of a recall's effectiveness. The key measure is the percentage
of consignees notified. If consignees are notified, they can act to
ensure the proper disposition of the product.
2. Page 29, 3rd Sentence, Last Paragraph. The draft report states,
"Consumers may be vulnerable to serious illness, hospitalization, or
even death because of weaknesses in USDA's and FDA's programs for
monitoring companies' recalls of unsafe food." FSIS suggests that this
statement be removed altogether from the report. This is an alarmist
statement. It is a poor assumption, unsubstantiated with any factual
evidence that monitoring of a recall is related to consumer
vulnerabilities.
3. Page 25, 2nd Sentence 1st Full Paragraph. The draft report states
"These recall authorities may facilitate faster recalls and better
protect consumers."
* The report implies that the Consumer Product Safety Commision's (CPSC)
and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSB)
authorities and procedures offer better protection to the consumer. The
report assumes that if the Agency had those authorities it would better
serve the public. The report should fully discuss how long the NHTSB
and CPSC work with companies before they or the company announces a
recall.
* The report should include a substantive comparison between
effectiveness of recalls conducted by USDA and recalls conducted by
these other agencies.
* The report accurately describes the Agency's power to detain and
seize product, however the report does not elaborate on how mandatory
recall authority would better protect consumers than the authority
FSIS currently has to detain product believed to be adulterated if a
firm refuses to recall.
The report should examine the possibility that if USDA had mandatory
recall authority, this may include some form of administrative
procedure or appeal process which could conceivably slow the recall
process. The report states that GAO did not identify any instance where
companies refused to carry out recalls.
4. Page 24, 1st Sentence 3rd Paragraph. The draft report states
"According to USDA and FDA officials, the agencies do not have the
authority to publicly name the retail stores that are selling a
recalled food, because the information is considered confidential
business information." GAO should include a statement that FSIS is
currently considering our options in this regard.
Please find enclosed additional specific USDA comments on the draft
report.
Sincerely,
Signed by:
Ronald F. Hicks:
Assistant Administrator:
Office of Program Evaluation, Enforcement and Review:
Enclosure:
The following are GAO's comments on the U.S. Department of Agriculture
letter received August 31, 2004.
GAO Comments:
1. USDA believes the new recall directive adopted May 24, 2004, will
address most of the observed weaknesses we found in its food recall
program. As the report already noted, the new directive does provide a
statistical, risk-based method that will give greater assurance that
downstream customers are aware of recalls and that they have followed
instructions for removing food from the marketplace, and the directive
includes time frames for USDA to complete its verification checks.
However, although the directive includes general procedures to, among
other things, determine the need for a recall and the actions the
agency expects the company to take to ensure maximum recovery in the
shortest amount of time, the procedures do not provide specific time
frames as guidance to the companies. In particular, the new directive
does not address our recommendations that USDA (1) set time frames for
recalling companies' actions--to encourage prompt recalls--including
time frames for companies to disclose the locations where they sent the
food, (2) use routinely generated management reports from the official
recall data system, (3) track critical dates, and (4) work with FDA on
how best to alert consumers about recalls of food that can cause
serious illnesses. While the new directive should improve USDA's
verification of recalls, we believe it is premature to say whether it
will address any other weaknesses we found in USDA's recall program.
2. USDA believes that our recommendations regarding additional data
collection and report generation may be a burden to the agency, overly
prescriptive, and costly to industry and USDA. We continue to believe
that our recommendation is sound. Our review of specific recalls
disclosed that inspectors generally are already capturing the
additional data, such as the dates that the company started and
completed the recall, in their paperwork. Our recommendations would
have USDA systematically capture this information and other critical
information in its Recall Web database to help the department better
manage its recall program. With respect to routine management reports,
both headquarters and district offices need routine reports to carry
out their oversight responsibilities. Now that recalls are run and
coordinated directly from the district offices, under the May 2004
procedures, it is particularly important for headquarters to be able to
monitor the recall activities of USDA's 17 different district offices
to ensure the new procedures are uniformly implemented. Finally, with
respect to the cost to industry, companies are already legally required
to maintain distribution information. Our recommendation speaks to
instances where USDA district staff told us they received broad
customer lists instead of the specific locations where the recalled
food was sent.
3. We recognize that USDA uses press releases and Web postings to
notify the public after it learns about a recall. Our recommendation
that USDA and FDA work jointly to determine what, if any, additional
approaches are needed for alerting consumers addresses the situation in
which consumers may not see the press release or Web posting and
therefore may consume recalled food that is in their home.
4. We agree that the purpose of a recall is to remove potentially
harmful food from commerce and alert consumers to potential risks of
consumption. Consequently, the report defines "recovery" to include
food that is returned or disposed of by firms in the distribution
chain. That is, food that is removed from commerce. We revised the
report to reflect that the recovery rate is an important indicator of a
successful recall, rather than the purpose of a recall. As we note in
the report, we remain concerned about how effectively the agencies are
alerting consumers to potentially harmful foods that may be in their
homes.
5. We recognize that the cause of the illnesses, hospitalizations, and
deaths was contaminated food, not the agencies' programs. However,
because the public is relying on USDA and FDA to protect consumers from
unsafe food, it is important that the agencies' recall programs be as
effective as they can. As appendix III discusses, USDA's Inspector
General reported that during one of the two recalls we mentioned that
involved illnesses and deaths, USDA's field staff took longer than 4
months to complete their verification checks. The Inspector General's
report concluded that the department did not identify and correct
problems with the recall to maximize recovery and take enforcement
actions--thereby potentially exposing consumers to the unsafe meat.
Therefore, we believe our report's presentation is fair and consistent
with the facts.
6. With respect to the recall authority of other agencies, we sought to
show that other agencies have recall authority and have had to use that
authority. We did not evaluate those recall programs nor did we imply
that they were faster or better. For example, FDA currently has
explicit recall authority for infant formula and certain other products
that the agency regulates and has had to use that authority. In
comments on our August 2000 report on USDA's and FDA's recall programs,
USDA told us that it has supported proposed recall legislation that
specifically included "civil penalties, mandatory recall authority,
mandatory notification—when contaminated meat or poultry may enter the
market." USDA noted that, for the most part, the voluntary system works
but that mandatory authority would provide "an insurance policy
guaranteeing that consumers will be protected from potentially
dangerous meat or poultry without delay." Moreover, because the
President has identified the food supply as at risk for intentional
contamination, such authority is important. Finally, USDA's suggestion
that mandatory recall authority could conceivably slow the recall
process was not raised as an issue by any of the agencies we cite.
Rather, they saw their recall authority as a useful tool--not a
replacement for voluntary recalls--when companies are slow or
uncooperative and consumers are at risk.
7. We revised the report to include a statement that USDA is
considering additional options to help consumers identify recalled
foods in their homes.
[End of section]
Appendix VIII: Comments from the Food and Drug Administration:
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES:
Food and Drug Administration:
Rockville MD 20857:
August 27, 2004:
Lawrence J. Dyckman:
Director, Food and Agricultural Issues:
Natural Resources and Environment Team:
United States Government Accountability Office:
441 G Street, NW:
Washington, DC 20548:
Dear Mr. Dyckman:
Please find the enclosed comments from the Food and Drug Administration
on the GAO draft report entitled, FOOD SAFETY: USDA and FDA Need to
Better Ensure Prompt and Complete Recalls of Potentially Unsafe Food,
(GAO-04-693). The Agency provided technical comments directly to your
staff.
We appreciate the opportunity to review and comment on this draft
report before its publication as well as the opportunity to work with
your staff in developing this report.
Signed by:
Lester M. Crawford, D.V.M., Ph.D.
Enclosure:
General Comments by the Department of Health and Human Services' Food
and Drug Administration on the Government Accountability Office's Draft
Report, FOOD SAFETY. USDA and FDA Need to Better Ensure Prompt and
Complete Recalls of Potentially Unsafe Food, (GAO-04-693):
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) appreciates the opportunity to
review and comment on the Government Accountability Office's (GAO)
draft report.
In FDA's opinion, by its study and draft report, the GAO has not
demonstrated that Class I recall actions were lengthy due to system
inefficiency, or that weaknesses in the FDA food recall process have
resulted in little recovery of food. The GAO has demonstrated only that
FDA did not have data fields in its database to record time for
completion of recall verification (audit) checks by the Agency.
The most significant stage of a recall is the initial action taken by
the recalling firm to notify its consignees and the public of the
product recall and have the product removed from the marketplace. FDA
investigators and/or district office recall coordinators routinely work
directly with management of food companies conducting recalls of
potentially hazardous foods (particularly Class I recalls). They review
and comment on recall notifications, recall strategy, and firm press
releases. They know when and how firms are conducting their recall
notifications. This information is recorded in and transmitted to FDA
headquarters via the Recall Enterprise System (RES) and additionally
via email and telecommunications as warranted by the situation.
Companies are encouraged to initiate actions as soon as possible and
strongly encouraged to issue press releases within 24 hours of deciding
to recall a product, often with the understanding that if the firm does
not issue timely press, FDA will. It is true that the FDA recall
guidelines do not provide time frames for companies on recall
initiation and termination; it is also true that FDA expectations of a
recalling firm are immediate notification, timely removal, and timely
disposal. For Class I recall situations, recall notification and
product removal or correction has for the most part been timely.
The recall completion date, according to GAO's statement, was found
missing on only 20 percent of the recall records reviewed. The date of
completion is tracked, but that field may not have been filled in with
the completion date in all recall records. The failure to include such
a date in the database is not necessarily an indication that the recall
wasn't monitored appropriately. This date is a reflection of the time
that the firm has taken to complete all action related to the recall
effort, including the physical recovery or disposition of all recalled
product. The time varies considerably depending on such factors as the
type of product, disposition requested by the recalling firm, and
distribution and recovery channels.
GAO's draft report makes reference to FDA's official database and a
separate database maintained by the Center for Food Safety and Applied
Nutrition (CFSAN). FDA's centers have for many years each maintained
their own recall databases. They are categorized by fiscal year and
recalls "classified" during the fiscal year have historically been the
counts of recalls, which have been reported to Congress and the public.
There is no evidence to support that information recorded in the CFSAN
database is inaccurate. The Agency recently developed, and on November
15, 2002, implemented, an agency-wide database referred to as the
Recall Enterprise System (RES). In order to have the database as
complete as possible including historical data, FDA directed the
contract designer of RES to develop an application to migrate
information from a pilot database which was the forerunner of RES. The
pilot system did not contain all the data fields that were built into
RES, not all FDA centers worked in the pilot:
database and the data migrated was not identical, but clear to FDA
staff working with it. The RES did not have a "reports" capability
built in at the time of the GAO request for data. GAO requested and was
provided a copy of the complete database, including the pilot database
data.
It was our understanding that GAO had some difficulty interpreting the
mixed data in RES and the means to extract it. When it was brought to
FDA's attention that GAO was having difficulty resolving numbers from
RES, we recommended that GAO use numbers from CFSAN's Access database.
A review of RES data, using the identical parameters of the CFSAN
Access database, finds the information and numbers equivalent.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EXECUTIVE ACTION:
To ensure that companies promptly and effectively recall foods that may
cause serious illness or death, we are making the following five
recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture and the Commissioner of
FDA:
1) Revise agency guidance to recalling companies to include specific
time frames for notifying their customers, removing recalled food from
the marketplace, and providing the agencies with the names and
locations of customers that received the food.
FDA Comment:
Specifying workable timeframes for these actions are difficult because
of the vast differences in the types of food processors and products,
in the sizes of the companies, and in the distribution practices and
patterns. Such timeframes, because they would not be mandatory, and may
serve no better purpose than the current procedure, which is to have
recall notifications and press (for Class I recalls) issued as soon as
possible, usually within 24-48 hours of learning of the problem and the
need for recall. Firms are also advised via a Notification of
Classification Letter that "... it is equally important to assure that
all returned merchandise is promptly inventoried, handled, and stored
in such a manner as to assure its separation from acceptable materials
so it will not inadvertently be used or shipped." The letter also
states, "We ... urge you to immediately begin making plans to destroy
or recondition it to bring it into compliance with the law."
The establishment of artificial time frames for firms conducting
voluntary recalls would not necessarily provide any quicker action.
2) Use agency data systems to routinely generate reports for recall
program managers to monitor ongoing recalls and oversee recall
timeliness and effectiveness.
FDA Comment:
FDA agrees that data systems should be used to routinely generate
reports for recall program managers. Such reports for district and
headquarters managers are expected to be available by the end of fiscal
year 2004. However, it should also be noted that it is primarily the
FDA district recall coordinators who manage recalls and who use both
(RES) and recall folders containing pertinent documents, such as copies
of recall notices, letters, press releases, analytical data, and
verification reports daily in the processing, tracking, and monitoring
of each recall.
3) Track in their recall data systems the dates that companies (1)
start and finish notifying their customers, (2) provide the agency the
lists of customers that received the food, and (3) start and finish
recovering the recalled food.
4) Track in their data systems the dates that the agencies start and
finish verification checks.
FDA Comment:
FDA does not see the added consumer safety value in establishing
additional fields in RES to record when a firm completes notification
to its customers, the date that the district office receives the
distribution information, or information documenting when audit checks
are assigned and completed. Typically, recall notifications regarding
food are handled promptly, at the initiation of the recall, and that
date is recorded in RES. Additional date recording provides little more
than a reporting statistic that the agency believes is of limited
utility in protecting public health, while providing additional
recordkeeping burdens. If such information is needed, the information
can typically be found in the recall file.
5) Work jointly to determine what, if any, approaches are needed for
alerting consumers about recalls.
FDA Comment:
FDA and FSIS continue to work together on an ongoing basis at both the
national and district levels to coordinate recall efforts to assure
that American consumers have one of the safest food supplies in the
world.
We also make the following four recommendations to the Commissioner of
FDA:
1) Revise guidance to agency staff to include risk-based time frames
for completing verification checks promptly.
2) Develop a sound methodology for district staff to verify that
companies have quickly and effectively carried out recalls.
3) When tracking the amount of food recalled and recovered for
individual recalls, use the same units of measure to facilitate
calculations of the recovery rate.
4) Direct the recall staff to use FDA's Recall Enterprise System as the
sole data system to capture recall information, manage food recalls,
and generate reports to Congress.
FDA Comment:
FDA is planning a review of recall operations and application of
quality systems principles and controls. Guidance can be provided to
FDA field personnel to request comparable unit information regarding
recovered products. However, often multiple products in multiple size
containers and multiple size shipping cases are a part of the same
recall. Data available at recovery sites for industry may not have
individual product or case breakdown. FDA is moving forward as rapidly
as possible to complete all aspects of the RES so that it can eliminate
duplicative recall data entry and can provide sole source reports for
the agency management of recalls, reporting of recall statistics, and
reporting to Congress.
The following are GAO's comments on the Food and Drug Administration
letter dated August 27, 2004.
GAO Comments:
1. FDA believes that Class I recall actions were not lengthy because of
system inefficiency, and that the relatively small percentage of
recalled food that is recovered is not a result of weaknesses in FDA
food recall processes. While we do not believe that these are the sole
reasons why FDA's recalls may be slow or result in low recovery, we do
believe that its system and processes are contributing factors. As FDA
pointed out, the most significant stage of a recall is the initial
action the recalling company takes to notify the public and its
customers to have the food removed from the marketplace, with the
assistance of FDA investigators and/or district recall coordinators.
However, FDA staff from several district offices told us that companies
sometimes conduct recalls without contacting FDA and therefore without
the benefit of FDA assistance. Our report does note that FDA encourages
companies to initiate promptly when deciding to recall a product and
that companies usually agree to carry out recalls. That
notwithstanding, FDA staff told us that, in some instances, they had to
place considerable pressure on companies before they "voluntarily"
conducted the recall. In addition, as our report points out, FDA's
verification process serves a critical function in recalls--to identify
and correct problems with recall notification and product removal--a
process that does not consistently meet FDA's timeliness guidelines.
2. As FDA states, the recall completion date reflects the amount of
time that the recalling company took to complete all actions related to
the recall effort. We agree that this time can vary significantly
depending on the particular circumstances of the recall. However, we
continue to believe, as we stated in our 2000 report, that it is
important to document the completion date as an important indicator for
FDA's recall managers to assess the overall promptness of company
actions to protect consumers from unsafe food in the marketplace.
3. We did not assess the reliability or validity of the unofficial
database maintained by FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied
Nutrition. However, we are concerned that the information in FDA's
official database--the Recall Enterprise System--was not the same as
information in the center's database. FDA comments state that the
differences we found are the result of information in the pilot
database that preceded the Recall Enterprise System. We did not compare
information in the pilot database. Rather, we compared information in
the Recall Enterprise System and the center's database for such dates
as when the recalls started and when they were classified by risk. We
continue to believe that these differences reflect potential weaknesses
in the reliability and validity of FDA's official recall database.
4. FDA believes that it would be difficult to specify workable time
frames to companies, and that such time frames may serve no better
purpose than current procedure to have recall notifications and press
releases issued as soon as possible. We continue to believe that more
specific time frames are needed as guidance to industry. This is
particularly important for Class I recalls, which pose serious health
risks, where even a day's delay may have adverse health consequences.
FDA also states that firms are advised about time frames via a letter.
However, for the 10 recalls we examined in detail, FDA sent this letter
between 26 and 213 days after the company initiated the recall.
According to FDA officials, it is commonly FDA's practice to send the
letter at the end of the recall. Therefore, we do not believe the
letter serves as a timely means of instructing the recalling company to
act quickly.
5. We agree that data should only be captured if they provide useful
information to recall program managers. As FDA states, "the most
significant stage of a recall is the initial action taken by the
recalling [company] to notify its [customers]—of the product recall and
have the product removed from the marketplace." We therefore believe
that the Recall Enterprise System should capture those critical dates
so field staff can monitor ongoing recalls and headquarters recall
managers can determine how much time elapses between critical steps of
the recall process and take steps to reduce time frames, to the extent
possible.
6. FDA believes that data available on recalled food may not include
individual product or case breakdown. While capturing details about the
amount recalled and amount recovered may not always be possible, we
believe that FDA field staff should be instructed to take care that,
when such information is available, it be captured in the Recall
Enterprise System using comparable units.
[End of section]
Appendix IX GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments:
GAO Contacts:
Lawrence J. Dyckman, (202) 512-3841
J. Erin Lansburgh, (202) 512-3017:
Staff Acknowledgments:
In addition to those named above, Terrance N. Horner, Jr; Julian
Klazkin; Lynn Musser; Jennifer Popovic; Julia A. Roberts; Carol
Herrnstadt Shulman; Joseph Thompson; and Jonathan Weiss made key
contributions to this report.
(360313):
FOOTNOTES
[1] Homeland Security Presidential Directive/HSPD-9, Defense of United
States Agriculture and Food (Jan. 30, 2004).
[2] GAO, Food Safety: Actions Needed by USDA and FDA to Ensure That
Companies Promptly Carry Out Recalls, GAO/RCED-00-195 (Washington,
D.C.: Aug. 17, 2000).
[3] See, for example, the SAFER Meat, Poultry, and Food Act (H.R. 3547)
and the Consumer Food Safety Act of 2003 (H.R. 1496). In addition,
legislation was introduced to provide USDA with authority to order
recalls for food served in the school meals programs (S. 506/ H.R.
1551).
[4] The Department of Defense may also coordinate recall
responsibilities with respect to foods purchased to feed military
personnel and their families.
[5] USDA classifications are in the Food Safety and Inspection Service
Directive 8080.1, Revision 4. FDA recall classifications are provided
in 21 C.F.R. § 7.3(m)(2004).
[6] The number of food recalls each year has ranged from 260 to 519
over the past decade, with an average of 335 recalls a year for that
period.
[7] USDA refers to its verification checks as "effectiveness checks,"
whereas FDA refers to them as "audit checks."
[8] Disposition of a recalled product may include actions such as
relabeling, reworking (e.g., further cooking to sell as food or
rendering to sell as fertilizer or animal feed), or destroying the food
(e.g., disposing of food in a landfill).
[9] Pub. L. No. 107-188, 116 Stat. 594(2002).
[10] Administrative Detention of Food, 69 Fed. Reg. 31660 (June 4,
2004)(to be codified at 21 C.F.R. §§ 1.377 et seq.).
[11] 21 U.S.C. § 350c(b).
[12] In the preamble of the proposed regulations, FDA stated that it
intends to make this process as simple as possible for both domestic
and foreign facilities. FDA has proposed that covered entities would be
required to maintain specific information in their files, but the form
or type of records maintenance system would not be specified. The
proposed regulations would, if finalized, require companies to provide
FDA with information within specified time frames about the immediate
previous source and subsequent recipient of all food. See Establishment
and Maintenance of Records Under the Public Health Security and
Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002, 68 Fed. Reg. 25188
(proposed May 9, 2003)(to be codified at 21 C.F.R. §§ 1.326 et seq.).
[13] Pub. L. No. 103-62, 107 Stat. 285(1993).
[14] We calculated the total recovery rate by dividing the total pounds
recovered by the total pounds recalled in each year. The first complete
year that USDA recorded pounds recovered was 1988.
[15] To calculate the average fiscal year 2003 recovery rate, we
averaged rates for individual recalls. For FDA, we included in our
analysis 86 of the 153 recalls started in 2003 that had been completed
by the end of February 2004 and for which FDA recorded the same unit in
the fields for "quantity distributed" and the "quantity recovered/
number of units corrected." For the remaining recalls, FDA was missing
data in one or both fields, or the fields had different units. For
USDA, we were able to include in our analysis 75 of the 77 fiscal year
2003 recalls, because USDA recorded both the quantity distributed and
the quantity recovered in pounds.
[16] E. coli O157:H7 is a virulent strain of E. coli bacteria.
[17] USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service Directive 8080.1, Revision
4, Attachment 3, May 24, 2004.
[18] Had the goal for the Class I recalls been in place during 2003,
USDA would have met it for 1 of the 10 recalls that we examined for
which USDA conducted checks.
[19] FDA's guidance to its staff is provided in chapter 7 of its
Regulatory Procedures Manual, March 2004 edition, effective May 6, 2004
(http://www.fda.gov/ora/compliance_ref/rpm/default.htm). Additional
industry guidance is also provided in regulation (21 C.F.R. §§ 7.40-
7.59).
[20] 68 Fed. Reg. 25188, see footnote 12.
[21] 21 C.F.R. § 7.42(b)(3)(i)-(v)(2004).
[22] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, Food
Safety and Inspection Service: Effectiveness Checks for the 2002
Pilgrim's Pride Recall, Report No. 24601-03-Hy (June 2004).
[23] According to USDA, distribution lists obtained from a firm
recalling a meat or poultry product are considered proprietary
information protected from public disclosure. However, a USDA
regulation authorizes limited disclosure, under certain conditions, to
states and other federal government agencies to verify removal of a
recalled food. 9 C.F.R. § 390.9(2004).
[24] Some human biological products are approved for use through "new
drug" applications and are treated as human drugs for recall purposes.
Likewise, some human drugs are licensed under the same procedures as
human biological products and are treated as human biological products
for recall purposes.
[25] In April 1997, regulatory responsibility for food safety in Canada
was consolidated into a single agency, the Canadian Food Inspection
Agency.
[26] These recall counts are for the Canadian fiscal years 1997-98
through 2002-03. The Canadian fiscal year runs from April 1 through
March 31.
[27] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, Great
Plains Region Audit Report: Food Safety and Inspection Service:
Oversight of Production Process and Recall at ConAgra Plant
(Establishment 969), Report No. 24601-2-KC (September 2003).
[28] U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, Food
Safety and Inspection Service.
[29] GAO, Food Safety: Actions Needed by USDA and FDA to Ensure That
Companies Promptly Carry Out Recalls, GAO/RCED-00-195 (Washington,
D.C.: Aug. 17, 2000).
[30] Testimony before the House Agriculture Committee, January 21,
2004.
[31] FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition also has
regulatory responsibility for cosmetics, medical foods, and dietary
supplements.
[32] Pub. L. No. 107-188, 116 Stat. 594, §§ 303, 305-07(2002).
[33] FDA has issued regulations that apply to human tissue
establishments or persons engaged in the recovery, screening, testing,
processing, storage, or distribution of human tissue. Human tissue
determined to be in violation of these regulations may be recalled. 21
C.F.R. § 1270.43(2004).
[34] FDA has proposed to require adverse event reporting for human
tissue products. See Current Good Tissue Practice for Manufacturers of
Human Cellular and Tissue-Based Products; Inspection and Enforcement,
66 Fed. Reg. 1508 (proposed Jan. 8, 2001)(to be codified at 21 C.F.R.
pt. 1271). The agency is working on the final rule.
[35] 42 U.S.C. § 262(d)(1).
[36] Electronic products are treated separately and subject to repair,
replacement, or refund if they have a safety defect relating to the
emission of electronic product radiation or fail to comply with certain
performance standards. Failure to comply with the applicable
requirements may result in penalties as large as $300,000.
[37] For human drugs regulated using a biologics license application,
FDA has express statutory recall authority. However, FDA has not
developed implementing regulations.
[38] Maximum civil monetary penalties were last revised for inflation
in 1999 and are required to be revised again later in 2004. See Notice
of Adjusted Maximum Civil Penalty Amounts, 64 Fed. Reg. 51963(1999); 15
U.S.C. § 2069(a)(3).
[39] Manufacturers of motor vehicles or motor vehicle equipment must
notify NHTSA within 5 working days after determining to conduct a
safety recall or other safety campaign in a foreign country on vehicles
or equipment that are identical or substantially similar to ones sold
in the United States. 49 U.S.C. § 30166(l).
[40] The applicable Canadian statute is general and there are no
implementing regulations. This information is largely based on our
discussions with Canadian officials.
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