Recalls

The National Capital Poison Center will post important local recalls on its Facebook page. Call the poison center right away at 1-800-222-1222 for a possible poisoning from a recalled product. 

Check these web sites for up-to-date information about recalled foods, medicines, cosmetics, and consumer products. Note you can sign up to receive alerts about the recalled products from these websites.

• www.RECALLS.gov. This site is a single stop for recalls by U.S. government agencies. It provides links to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Food and Drug Administration, Department of Agriculture, Environmental Protection Agency, National Highway Transportation Services Administration, and U.S. Coast Guard.  

• U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. CPSC regulates thousands of consumer products.  The website allows you to check for recalls by product name, company name, and general product category.  Check www.cpsc.gov for recalls about:

• Toys

• Cribs and other children’s furniture

• Jewelry

• Lead in paint, toys, jewelry, clothing, and household items

• Medicines and products with faulty child-resistant packaging

• Hobby products

• Products that release carbon monoxide

• Many other consumer products if they do not meet safety standards.

• U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA regulates food (except meat, poultry, and products made with eggs), medicines, medical devices, cosmetics, and tobacco products.  The web site allows you to search for recalls. Also, you can check the tabs labeled All Recalls, Food, Drugs, Animal Health, Biologics, Medical Devices, or Cosmetics. Here are examples of the recalls available from www.fda.gov:

• Contaminated foods, for example peanut butter with Salmonella, whole (shell) eggs with Salmonella, sprouts or cheeses with Listeria, or products with fragments of foreign bodies.

• Foods recalled because they don’t contain a correct list of ingredients; these can be risky for people with allergies.

• Prescription medicines with the wrong ingredients.

• Dietary supplements that contain prescription drugs.

• Pet foods and medicines that don’t meet safety standards.

• Contaminated cosmetics.

• U.S. Department of Agriculture. USDA regulates meat, poultry, and processed egg products, among many other activities. Examples of USDA Food Safety Recalls include:

• Contaminated fresh, frozen, and canned meats.

• Contaminated products containing meat or eggs, e.g. chicken salad, egg salad, soup, sausage, and prepared foods.

• Foreign bodies found in prepared products with meat or eggs.

• Meat or egg products with incorrect labels; this could be a problem for people with allergies.