Food Safety Focus | Labels and Recalls

Hello All! 

I hope this message finds all of you and your families safe and well.

Last week we discussed Sesame Seeds being added to the allergen list, starting January 1, 2023 and a little about recalls.  This week I’ve provided a sample from the FDA of what a recall due to improper labeling can look like:

Mrs. Miller’s Homemade Jams Issues Voluntary Recall due to an undeclared soy allergen. Fredericksburg, OH (May 09, 2022) Mrs. Miller’s Homemade Jams in Fredericksburg OH is voluntarily recalling its Smokey BBQ Bacon Jam and Spicy Chili Bacon Jam, packaged in 9 oz glass jars. 

You can find out locations and more information by using the following link:

https://www.fda.gov/safety/recalls-market-withdrawals-safety-alerts/mrs-millers-homemade-jams-issues-voluntary-recall-due-undeclared-soy-allergen

Some sites recoup products from time to time and may even change case pack sizes for the customer, going from smaller to larger or larger to smaller pack sizes.  All this needs labels attached to cases and even though labels we use may come from the customer or the customer’s instructions we are still responsible for looking at the label and making sure it has the right information printed on it.  The more we get into changing cases or pack sizes, the more we will need to be aware of what labels will require and we don’t want a recall to happen from a label we placed on a case.

Recalls affect everyone in the supply chain, so it’s a good idea to be aware and also ready to track products if needed.  Annual “mock” recall and trace tests are a great way to help us to stay sharp.  We need to be able to track every case that goes through our hands and link customer information to ours throughout the process.  We will talk more about that next week.

Thanks, for all that you do every Day!

Justin

Food Safety Manager

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Author: Trish Metts