How to Keep Safe in an Era of Increasing Product Recalls?

Maybe you were affected by the recent peanut butter recall, or last year’s pet food recall, or the holiday toys recalled for lead poisoning. Perhaps you take prescription medications that affected you adversely. As a consumer, you may own or have ingested a product that has been — or will be — recalled because of safety issues. Finding out about recalls can be challenging due to the large number of products available and the lack of a consistent method for manufacturers to reach consumers.

So, how do you keep up with all of these product recalls that could be harmful or even fatal? Most people want to know as soon as possible whether they could be in harm’s way because of a recent purchase. The news media will typically cover such episodes but is it fast enough to get the word out? There are options. You can register your new product if it is a consumer good or check out the company’s website or blogs.
The downside to surfing websites is you have to keep returning to them for updated information. That’s why the government’s electronic notification system is so handy — you can sign up for all notifications, or you can specify a particular type of recall. Once you’ve signed up, you’ll receive an e-mail asking you to confirm your subscription by replying to the message. Whenever a product manufacturer or a government agency issues a recall, you’ll immediately receive an alert. If you want a blanket subscription — where you get all recall e-mails from the CPSC, FDA or USDA — go to www.recalls.gov and type your e-mail address in the boxes shown. If you suspect that you have become ill or harmed by a product, you may report an adverse event online directly to the agency through this website that has links to all agencies governing recalls. While some manufactures have a toll free number to report an adverse event, we encourage you to report directly on line too.

Another great way to keep abreast of recalls is Twitter and blogs. If you tweet, use hashtags such as #recalls, #FDA, #,food, #pharma and #foodsafety to keep abreast of the current tweets. Blogs such as http://recallnotification.blogspot.com are a good resources too. A product recall situation can be an opportunity to demonstrate a high level of commitment to your customer.

National manufacturers of food & beverage, consumer products and pharmaceuticals rely on the Pearl’s own Carenet to handle adverse event reporting during a recall. Carenet’s 300- seat capacity call center staffed by trained medical professionals provides adverse event reporting outsourcing services to companies that need additional support during a crisis. In addition to adverse event reporting, Carenet’s staff of registered nurses, dietitians and highly-trained general operators provide consumer affairs support to the food and pharmaceutical industries for consumer information toll free lines and patient recruitment. The firm’s collective experience provides the ability to respond quickly with acute knowledge and sensitivity to your customers in the event of a product recall or adverse event situation. Call us at 503.228.3217 or visit www.academicnetwork.com.