When Allergens Slip Through the Net: Preventing Costly Recalls with Smarter Systems
Allergen-related recalls are one of the most preventable — and expensive — risks facing seafood processors today. Across North America, undeclared allergens account for roughly one-third of all food recalls, according to the U.S. FDA and Health Canada. And in seafood, that number can climb even higher due to multi-ingredient products like breaded, flavored, or coated fish and shellfish.
Even when the food itself is perfectly safe, a single labeling or substitution mistake can trigger a full recall. That means lost product, damaged retailer relationships, and the toughest expense of all — rebuilding consumer trust.
How Allergen Recalls Happen in Seafood Processing
Seafood supply chains are complex — products often move through multiple facilities for portioning, breading, flavoring, and packaging. Each hand-off adds a new opportunity for error. The most common root causes include:
- Packaging mix-ups: A nut-free or gluten-free SKU gets labeled with the wrong packaging, or a flavor variant containing allergens gets packed under the wrong label.
- Supplier substitutions: A coating mix or seasoning is sourced from an alternate supplier or plant without the same allergen certifications.
- Manual tracking: When allergen data lives in spreadsheets or handwritten logs, even one typo (a zero mistaken for an “O”) can break traceability.
In an environment where ingredients, packaging, and secondary processing steps all overlap, one small oversight can lead to a large-scale recall.
Where Things Break Down
Most allergen-related recalls fall into two categories:
- Compliance errors — A substitute ingredient or supplier is used without confirming allergen documentation or certification status.
- Transactional errors — The wrong item, packaging, or lot number is picked or used on the floor, and the mistake isn’t caught until after production.
Manual systems and siloed data make it nearly impossible to spot these issues before product is released.
How Technology Prevents Allergen Recalls
Modern food software and process control tools give seafood companies a proactive way to manage risk across the supply chain:
- Scanning and validation – Barcode validation ensures the right ingredient, coating, or packaging is used for each SKU. If something doesn’t match, the system flags it instantly.
- Allergen attribute tracking – Supplier records and certifications are stored digitally, so buyers can quickly verify substitutes or cross-check allergen claims before approving an order.
- Lot-to-finish traceability – Track allergen data through every transformation — from bulk fillets to breaded portions to retail packs — so you can isolate affected lots fast if a recall is required.
- Real-time visibility – With connected data across purchasing, production, and QA, everyone works from the same version of truth.
Together, these tools turn traceability from a compliance requirement into a competitive advantage — reducing waste, recall exposure, and risk.
Building a Culture of Prevention
Technology is only as strong as the people using it. Training production and warehouse teams on traceability, allergen control, and barcode scanning ensures your digital checks actually work in practice.
Every scan, every label, and every purchase order plays a role in keeping consumers safe — and keeping your brand trusted.
Looking to strengthen allergen control in your seafood operation?
CAI helps seafood processors connect their systems, digitize traceability, and build the operational resilience needed to prevent costly recalls. To learn more, book time with one of our seafood experts