By Roger Hancock, CEO of Recall InfoLink
Key takeaways:
- Connected technology is becoming essential: In 2025, food companies accelerated digital adoption to replace siloed systems, improving visibility, traceability, and recall speed — momentum that will continue in 2026.
- Recalls are now a global challenge: Increasingly complex, cross-border supply chains exposed the need for standardized, interoperable recall systems to manage global incidents consistently and effectively.
- How recalls are handled matters more than ever: Consumers are less likely to see recalls as automatic brand failures and more focused on transparency, communication, and accountability — making recall execution a key driver of trust and loyalty going forward.
Food recalls occurred regularly throughout 2025, as companies pulled products for contamination, mislabeling, and undeclared allergen issues. The food industry — historically slow to adopt technology — is finally realizing that siloed systems and inconsistent processes contribute to challenges and inefficiencies during recalls. This past year, the industry shifted towards connected technologies to improve visibility, traceability, and recall responsiveness. That’s great news, but there’s still more work to be done.
Fluctuating tariffs, rising prices, and other pressures in 2025 brought an increased focus on the global food supply. Behind the scenes, this highlighted the need for more interconnected recall solutions across borders. Meanwhile, consumers became more vocal about food safety and recalls, demanding better communication and transparency.
Here’s a look at the biggest food safety and recall takeaways from 2025, and predictions about what’s to come:
Companies look to adopt connected technologies
This year, digital transformation continued to gain traction as more food businesses invested in digital infrastructure to improve data quality, accessibility, and management. These investments are helping companies move away from siloed systems, allowing information to be shared and acted on more easily across teams and trading partners.
When systems remain disconnected, recall management becomes significantly harder. Limited visibility into product movement, inconsistent data, and poor interoperability slow response times and make it difficult to identify exactly where affected products are located. This complicates recall efforts, increasing public health risks.
Food brands are also beginning to rely more on innovative technologies to flag potential safety risks in advance, successfully preventing breaches and subsequent recalls. Tools for environmental and pathogen monitoring make it easier for food businesses to intervene before contaminated products reach the retail level.
Prediction for 2026: More food businesses will invest in technologies that improve recall management and responsiveness. These will enable integrated digital systems that can empower companies to work more collaboratively and efficiently with trading partners to prevent, detect, and resolve food safety issues.
Global connectivity has to be addressed
The global supply chain has been in the spotlight this year, thanks to a new administration, political tensions, fluctuating tariffs, and rising prices. These pressures made it harder to ignore how complex, interconnected supply chains increase food safety and recall risks. The global supply chain still operates with a patchwork of regulatory requirements, technologies, and recall protocols, challenges that are compounded when companies use ingredients from multiple countries.
When more than 2.2 million pounds of Korean pork jerky by LSI Inc. were recalled after consumers found pieces of wire in the product, the situation went global, with products being pulled in multiple countries, including the U.S. and Australia. Issues like this demonstrate the interconnectedness of the global supply chain and the pressing need for integrated cross-border recall systems. There’s an urgent need for interconnected, standardized, global recall solutions.
Prediction for 2026: The industry will push for improved standardization and interoperability across borders, driven by the practical need to manage recalls consistently and effectively in a global market.
Consumer expectations are evolving
Typically, recalls are seen as clear brand failures and, in many cases, they still are. Consumers often lose trust in food brands over recalls, with a recent survey finding that 59% of respondents said they’d be hesitant to buy from the same brand again. However, the same survey found a clear tension in consumer sentiment: while 93% of respondents said they are concerned about how often recalls occur, 85% also believe recalls are effective at protecting public health.
Consumers understand that food recalls are increasing, in part, due to sophisticated technologies that can better detect safety and quality issues. Recalls are proof that food safety checkpoints are working as they should, as opposed to brand failures. With public perception shifting, recalls won’t necessarily destroy a brand’s reputation — as long as they handle the situation well.
To this end, companies are beginning to leverage new ways to communicate with consumers. QR codes on packaging and loyalty programs are both gaining momentum as ways to get targeted, real-time information in the hands of affected consumers.
Prediction for 2026: Consumers will pay closer attention to how food businesses handle recalls, and brand loyalty will increasingly hinge on how those events are managed. Consumer expectations will drive better recall communication, not only looking for honesty, transparency, and compassion, but also evidence that the brand is taking responsibility. This includes fixing the issues that caused the recall, working proactively to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future, not placing blame, etc.
Food safety must remain a bipartisan issue
As the new administration made major changes across many areas, it became evident that food safety must be prioritized across party lines. Fortunately, food safety and consumer protection rebounded as essential, with hope for positive changes coming from the chaos.
Prediction for 2026: Improvements around recall data sharing and consumer communication will be a focal point, with increased public-private collaboration and the use of tech tools to help reduce risks and protect public health moving forward. The FDA’s upcoming Food Traceability Rule will continue to drive positive changes, even though its deadline has been extended to 2028.
Overall, recall management is moving in the right direction, and the industry is poised for more advances in 2026. In the coming year, expect to see the adoption of more connected technologies, a focus on global integration, more innovative communication tools, and other modern solutions that will facilitate faster, more effective response to food risk.
Roger Hancock, CEO of Recall InfoLink, is one of the world’s foremost experts on recalls, with experience that spans the retail, tech, data, regulatory, and supply chain.
Recall InfoLink, makes recalls faster, easier, and more accurate across the supply chain to protect consumers and brands. As the only company focused entirely on recalls, Recall InfoLink’s solutions drive immediate action, streamline the recall process, and simplify compliance. Roger is also a steering committee member of the Alliance for Recall Ready Communities.
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