Product Recall Trends in 2015

What are the latest trends on product recalls in the United States? Stericycle ExpertSOLUTIONS writes an interesting and informative quarterly report on this data, and its detail on the first quarter of 2015 is here.

Consumer Products. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has been proactive in recent years with consumer product regulations and recalls, particularly those relating to children’s products. In the first quarter of 2015, there were 57 consumer product recalls. The leading hazards were burns, entanglement and injury. Consumer product recalls were most common with safety products, personal use items, home furnishings and fixtures, and HVAC equipment.

Pharmaceutical/Drug. There were 44 recalls of pharmaceuticals in the first quarter, involving 1.7 million units. Pharmaceutical recalls were the lowest per quarter tracked since 2012. Recalls were also smaller in scope. Eighty percent of the pharmaceutical recalls were nationwide. Twenty-eight companies were involved in a pharmaceutical recall.

Medical Device. There were 252 recalls of medical devices in the first quarter of 2015. These affected 82.5 million units. Sixty percent of the recalls in the first quarter affected medical devices sold in the U.S. and at least one other country. Thirty companies had two or more recalls.

Automotive. The automotive industry has been on an accelerated pace for recalls for the past year. There were more automotive recalls than ever in 2014, and that momentum has continued. In the first quarter, the 182 automotive recalls averaged out to about two per day. Airbags were the leading cause of automotive recalls.

Food. Food and Drug Administration recalls have involved more than 19 million food items so far in 2015 in 121 recalls. Ninety-six percent of those food items were classified as a Class I recall, the most serious type. Allergens were the most common cause of foodrecalls. A large spice recall due to undeclared peanut allergens affected 14 companies, over 150 products, and involved both the FDA and United States Department of Agriculture.

Meat and Poultry. The USDA regulates meat, poultry and processed egg products. There were 121 recalls of these products in the first quarter of 2015. As with other kinds of food, undeclared food allergens caused most of the recalls. The prevalence of food allergies and allergic reactions has prompted health officials to call for stricter monitoring of allergens in the U.S. food supply.

For ideas on a recall readiness plan, please see our post here.