Member Matters

FSANZ releases latest statistics on food recalls

21 May 2025

FSANZ’s latest analysis of food recall statistics shows an upward trend in the average annual number of recalls over the last decade to 86 per year. 

Undeclared allergens continue to be the leading cause for food recalls, making up almost half (48%) of all incidents over the past five years (2020 – 2024), followed by microbial contamination (20%). Other causes included the presence of foreign matter, secondary fermentation, chemical contaminants, biotoxins, and packaging faults. 

Milk was identified as the most common undeclared allergen followed by tree nuts, wheat/gluten and eggs. Most allergen recalls were due to the presence of a single undeclared allergen, however, 20% of were due to the presence of multiple undeclared allergens. 

In terms of the types of food most frequently recalled, mixed and/or processed foods and bread and bakery products topped the list followed by fruit and vegetables, confectionery and dairy products. 

When it comes to corrective actions taken by food businesses, staff training was the most commonly reported measure (18%), followed by amending handling procedures (14%) and altering product labels (15%). Most food business reported undertaking more than one corrective action. 

Access recall-related resources on the FSANZ website, along with information on how to recall food.