New FMI Handbook Shows Food Retailers and Wholesalers How to Prepare for and Manage Product Recalls

WASHINGTON, DC — May 24, 2002 — To help the industry maintain the highest quality and safety within the food supply, the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) presents a new management guide: Product Recalls – Situation Management Handbook.

“This guide offers retailers and wholesalers a tool to help prepare for a recall and to take the steps necessary to manage the situation effectively, including recall communications,” stated Jill Hollingsworth, vice president, food safety programs for FMI. “It is truly an invaluable resource for retail associates.”   
The handbook covers important topics such as:

• Preparing for a recall — understanding the retailer’s role and responsibilities, as well as the role of suppliers; guidelines for product handling; an explanation of the complaint and investigation process; and the establishment of a recall team.
  
• Conducting a recall — a detailed description of the regulatory agencies involved in recalls, the three primary levels of recall classification, and the critical steps in the recall process.
  
• Effective recall communications — communicating key messages to the media and the public.
  
• Interpreting laboratory results — a closer examination of pathogen screening, lab testing and understanding the significance of test results.
  
• Pathogen-specific situations — a look at scenarios created by pathogens such as
  E. coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes and Hepatitis A.

The handbook includes an appendix listing key federal regulatory contacts; a glossary of recall terminology; samples of guarantee letters from suppliers, recall notifications and recall tracking forms; sample forms for recording consumer concerns or complaints; and guidelines for evaluating recall effectiveness checks.

To purchase Product Recalls – Situation Management Handbook ($100 for FMI members, $170 associate members and $200 nonmembers) or for more information, please contact FMI Publication Sales at (202) 220-0723 or www.fmi.org/pub.