By Everett Sizemore
There is no one government agency in charge of issuing recall
notices for all products. Instead, different products fall under
different jurisdictions, each of which is handled by a
completely separate agency. In this article we will explain the
jurisdiction of each of the six major government agencies in
charge of recalling products and issuing recall alerts.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) - http://www.fda.gov:
The FDA is probably most thought of when the word “recall”
comes up. It is obvious that the FDA deals with food and drug
issues, but they are also in charge of testing, monitoring and
recalling medical devices (pacemakers, contact lenses...),
animal feed, cosmetics, and products with the potential to cause
health-related side effects, such as cell phones and lasers.
Although the FDA is in charge of “food,” they also share that
responsibility with the next federal agency…
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) -
http://www.usda.gov:
The USDA was founded by President Abraham Lincoln in 1862, and
has been involved in a variety of agricultural initiatives ever
since. Not only is the USDA steward to our nation's 192 million
acres of national forests, and providing food to children
through school breakfast and lunch programs, but the agency is
also responsible for the safety of meat, poultry (including
egg), milk and fish products. These responsibilities often
encompass the study of pesticide use, which overlaps with the
next governmental recall arm...
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - http://www.epa.gov:
The EPA, in addition to the many other responsibilities
involved in protecting our environment, are charged with the
recalling of products that threaten to harm humans, animals, or
the environment in which we live. For instance, recently the EPA
ordered five national retail chains to recall a brand of spray
confetti string which contained banned hydro chlorofluorocarbons
blamed for depleting the ozone layer. This very same product
could have also been recalled by another government agency,
however, for its highly flammable contents, which are often
sprayed over people at birthday parties near flaming candles.
The agency that would be responsible for this type of recall
is...
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) -
http://www.cpsc.gov:
The CPSC is in charge of protecting the public from
"unreasonable risks of serious injury or death from more than
15,000 types of consumer products under the agency's
jurisdiction". They handle recalls for a host of potentially
dangerous products, from toys with choking hazards to heaters
with propensity to start a fire. Most products with a defect of
some kind will find their way into the CPSC database of recalled
consumer products. But if that product has wheels and an engine,
or is a part of a product that has wheels and an engine, you
might be better off researching at the next governmental
agency...
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) -
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov:
The NHTSA was established to reduce deaths, injuries and
economic losses resulting from motor vehicle crashes. They set
and enforce safety standards for motor vehicles and vehicle
parts, and provide studies and reports on anything related to
motor vehicle use, from tires and seatbelts, to SUVs and cell
phone use while driving. If you want to know if the used car you
just purchased has any defective auto parts, the NHTSA database
is a good start. However, if you just purchased a used boat, the
following agency is better suited for your needs...
US Coast Guard - http://www.uscg.mil:
You probably don’t think of product recalls when someone
mentions the Coast Guard. However, in addition to their duties
to patrol America’s coast line and assist those in distress, the
Coast Guard also tests, reports on, and recalls boats, boating
parts, and marine safety devices like flares and life jackets.
But good luck finding recall information on the Coast Guard’s
website!
As you can see, the responsibilities of each agency overlap to
some degree with other agencies. Furthermore, issuing recall
alerts is only a small part of each organization’s
responsibility. This is why is can be difficult, time-consuming
and frustrating to locate the information you’re looking for
among these six websites. Luckily, this problem has been
remedied by an ex-journalist with a passion for social corporate
responsibility and citizen journalism…
US Recall News – http://www.usrecallnews.com:
US Recall News is a non-governmental website that brings
together recall alerts from each of the six major government
agencies listed above, and separates them into various
categories. The alerts are then archived at the end of each
month, and remain searchable from the website.
About the Author: Everett Sizemore is a journalism graduate of
Bond University. He is the Editor-in-Chief at
http://www.usrecallnews.com and writes the editorial blog about
Recalled Products and Corporate Responsibility.
Source: http://www.isnare.com
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