According to the FSA’s Annual Report of Incidents, Resilience and Prevention 2025/26, this was a 14% increase on the previous year.

In late June, Asda, Morrisons, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, M&S and Waitrose pulled fresh fruit pots supplied by Prepworld after Salmonella was found in apple and kiwi ingredients, and in July, Waitrose withdrew packs of its Chocolate Chip Brioche Rolls over the risk of hard plastic and metal contamination.

Bon Bons Wholesale also recalled a range of chocolate products across England, Scotland and Wales for undeclared milk and soya.

Point74 pointed out that the reason for the food recalls was different for each product, but the one thing in common was that something went wrong before the product reached the shelf.

Rob Sinclair, CEO of Point74, commented: “Food recalls rarely happen because someone wasn’t trying hard enough. They happen because critical information, such as an ingredient change, a supplier update or an allergen flag, didn’t get captured or communicated properly.

“Every product on a supermarket shelf has a data trail behind it. When that trail has gaps, that’s when things go wrong. And when mistakes are made at this scale, the damage to consumer trust is significant and lasting.”

A breakdown from FSA highlighted that pathogens such as Salmonella, Listeria and E. coli remained the most common hazards, while allergen-related incidents have risen faster than any other category over the past year.

“For an industry already under pressure from rising costs, tighter margins and increasing regulation, getting product data right isn’t a back-office concern, it’s a business-critical must.”

The cost of a recall rarely ends with the product pull, said Point74, highlighting that reputational damage, strained retailer relationships and regulatory scrutiny can follow a brand for years.

The business highlighted the importance of identifying risks earlier during the development process before products reach store shelves.

Sinclair added: “Prevention is always cheaper than recall. The manufacturers who avoid these situations aren’t lucky, they are thorough. They have the right systems in place to catch problems before they become headline news.

“For an industry already under pressure from rising costs, tighter margins and increasing regulation, getting product data right isn’t a back-office concern, it’s a business-critical must.”