Data Sources & Methodology

Primary data source

All recall data on Civic Data is sourced from OpenFDA, a free public API maintained by the US Food and Drug Administration. OpenFDA provides programmatic access to official FDA enforcement records, including recalls, market withdrawals, and safety alerts.

We do not create, edit, or supplement recall records. Every field displayed on a recall page — product description, reason for recall, classification, distribution pattern, lot numbers — is reproduced directly from the corresponding OpenFDA record.

Data categories

FDA Food Recalls

Sourced from the OpenFDA food/enforcement endpoint. Covers recalls from the FDA Human Foods Program, including packaged foods, beverages, dietary supplements, and infant formula. Historical coverage begins approximately 2004.

FDA Drug Recalls

Sourced from the OpenFDA drug/enforcement endpoint. Covers prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, and biologics. Historical coverage begins approximately 2004.

FDA Device Recalls

Sourced from the OpenFDA device/enforcement endpoint. Covers medical devices, diagnostic equipment, and radiation-emitting products.

Update frequency

Recall detail pages are cached and re-fetched from OpenFDA every 24 hours via Next.js Incremental Static Regeneration (ISR). Listing and category pages follow the same 24-hour revalidation cycle. The OpenFDA database itself is updated by the FDA on a rolling basis — typically within days of a recall being announced.

For time-sensitive health decisions, always verify against the official FDA recalls page, which is updated in real time.

What we add

Beyond displaying raw OpenFDA data, Civic Data adds the following:

• Full-text search across product descriptions, company names, and recall reasons
• Filtering by classification (Class I / II / III), status, and date range
• Brand pages aggregating all recalls for a given company
• Category pages grouping recalls by product type
• Reason pages grouping recalls by contaminant or defect type
• Classification pages with plain-English explanations of what each class means
• FAQ sections on every recall page answering common questions about the recall
• Structured data (JSON-LD) for search engine rich results

Limitations & disclaimer

Civic Data is an independent site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the US Food and Drug Administration or any government agency.

Recall data may be delayed by up to 24 hours relative to OpenFDA, and OpenFDA itself may lag the FDA's internal systems. Some records in the OpenFDA database contain incomplete or inconsistent fields — this reflects the source data and is not an error introduced by this site.

This site is for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for official FDA guidance. For health or safety emergencies related to a recalled product, contact the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088 or visit fda.gov.