IWLA has submitted comments to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s guidance on food recalls. Prior to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) there was no mandated requirements for responsible parties to recall violative food products. Most recalls were voluntarily provided by the food industry.

Under the proposed rule, the FDA and “responsible parties” are given authority to mandate a recall under the circumstances where there is reasonable probability that the products have been adulterated or misbranded. IWLA members have asked for clarification of who is deemed a responsible party—and whether a third-party warehouse has the direct authority to cease distribution and mandate a recall.

The letter argues that there can be several responsible parties throughout the supply chain: Manufacturer to the distributor, retailer, and 3PL. A third-party warehouse does not always have accurate product information or recall testing knowledge for the food products stored at their facilities.

Read the letter. The IWLA Food Council will meet Oct. 21 during the IWLA Council Summit & Regulatory Fly-in in Washington, D.C. A food manufacturer and FDA representative will address the group on this issue and other guidance through the FSMA. Register today.