# FDA Recalls Scraper: Drug, Device and Food | $1/1K (`one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper`) Actor

$1 per 1,000 results, platform usage included. US FDA recalls from the official openFDA enforcement reports: drug, device and food. Class, status, firm, product, reason, dates. Filter by words, firm, class, status, state, date. No key.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper.md
- **Developed by:** [One Dollar Store](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store) (community)
- **Categories:** Other, Business
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $1.00 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## FDA Recalls Scraper: Drug, Device and Food Recalls from openFDA

**$1 per 1,000 recalls. Platform usage included. No rental, no minimum.**

[Open it in Apify Console](https://console.apify.com/actors/QBJyjT5fct7wwggQp/input)

### What it costs

| Recalls | Price |
|---|---|
| 1,000 | $1.00 |
| 10,000 | $10.00 |
| 100,000 | $100.00 |

Plus $0.001 per run. One flat price, platform usage included, so there is no separate compute or proxy bill. A daily run that reads the 40 newest recalls costs $0.041 (40 results plus the run fee), about $1.23 for 30 days. The largest single run is 10,000 recalls.

### Why use it

- **All three FDA recall lists in one place.** Drug, medical device and food and beverage enforcement reports, one row per recalled product, with the recall class (I, II or III), the status, the recalling firm, the reason and the dates.
- **Filters that match how people search recalls.** Words in the product or the reason (for example `listeria` or `undeclared milk`), the company, the class, the status, the state of the firm and a report date range.
- **Newest first.** Rows come sorted by the date the recall appeared in the weekly FDA Enforcement Report, so a scheduled run picks up what is new.
- **Official API, no key.** Data comes straight from the openFDA enforcement endpoints. You do not need an openFDA key or a login.
- **A check link on every row.** `apiUrl` asks openFDA for that exact recall number, so you can confirm any record at the source.

### Quick start

1. Open the actor, pick one or more product types, press **Start**.
2. Or paste this input:

```json
{ "productTypes": ["food"], "classifications": ["Class I"], "searchTerms": ["listeria"], "reportDateFrom": "2025-01-01", "maxItems": 200 }
```

3. Download the results as JSON, CSV or Excel, or read them through the API.

### Use it from code

```bash
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/one_dollar_store~fda-recalls-scraper/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"productTypes": ["food"], "classifications": ["Class I"], "maxItems": 100}'
```

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN")
run = client.actor("one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper").call(
    run_input={"productTypes": ["food"], "classifications": ["Class I"], "maxItems": 100}
)
for item in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(item["reportDate"], item["recallingFirm"], item["reasonForRecall"])
```

### Use it from an AI assistant

Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor and other assistants can call this actor through Apify's MCP server. Add it with this server address:

```
https://mcp.apify.com?tools=one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper
```

Then ask, for example: "List the Class I food recalls from the last three months that mention Salmonella, with the company and the states where the product was sent."

### Switching from another FDA recalls actor

Most FDA recall actors take a search term, a product type and a result limit. Here they are `searchTerms` (a list), `productTypes` (a list, so one run can cover drugs, devices and food) and `maxItems`. The core output fields are `recallNumber`, `recallingFirm`, `productDescription`, `reasonForRecall`, `classification`, `status` and `reportDate`.

### Input

| Field | Type | Default | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|
| `productTypes` | list | `food` | `drug`, `device`, `food`. Each is a separate FDA list. Results come one type after the other, in the order you list them. |
| `searchTerms` | list of text | none | One phrase per line. A recall is kept when its product description or its reason for recall contains any phrase. Not case sensitive. |
| `recallingFirm` | text | none | Company that recalled the product. A part of the name is enough. |
| `classifications` | list | all | `Class I` (most serious), `Class II`, `Class III`. |
| `statuses` | list | all | `Ongoing`, `Completed`, `Terminated`, `Pending`, as first published by the FDA. |
| `state` | text | none | Two letter US state code of the recalling firm, for example `CA`. |
| `reportDateFrom`, `reportDateTo` | text | none | Report dates as `2026-01-31`. The data starts in 2004. |
| `maxItemsPerType` | number | 0 | Optional cap for each product type, so the first type cannot use the whole run. 0 means no extra cap. |
| `apiKey` | text | none | Optional. Your own free openFDA key. Not needed. See Limits. |
| `maxItems` | number | 100 | Total recalls for the run. Minimum 10, maximum 10,000. |

### Output fields

| Field | Meaning |
|---|---|
| `recallNumber`, `eventId` | The FDA recall number (one per product) and the event number that groups products from one recall. |
| `productCategory`, `productType` | `drug`, `device` or `food` (the list the row came from), and the product type as the FDA writes it. |
| `classification`, `status` | `Class I`, `Class II` or `Class III`; `Ongoing`, `Completed`, `Terminated` or `Pending`. |
| `recallingFirm` | The company that recalled the product. |
| `productDescription`, `reasonForRecall`, `productQuantity` | What was recalled, why, and how much. |
| `codeInfo`, `moreCodeInfo`, `productCode` | Lot numbers, dates, UPCs and product codes, when the FDA gives them. |
| `distributionPattern` | Where the product was sent, for example `Nationwide` or a list of states. |
| `voluntaryMandated`, `initialFirmNotification` | Whether the firm acted on its own or the FDA ordered it, and how the firm first told customers. |
| `recallInitiationDate`, `centerClassificationDate`, `reportDate`, `terminationDate` | Dates as `2026-10-07`. The last one is set only when the recall has ended. |
| `address`, `city`, `state`, `postalCode`, `country` | The recalling firm's location. |
| `brandNames`, `genericNames`, `manufacturerNames`, `activeIngredients`, `ndcCodes`, `applicationNumbers`, `routes` | openFDA's own annotation for drugs, when the FDA could match the product. |
| `apiUrl` | A link that asks openFDA for this recall number. |
| `scrapedAt` | When the actor read the record. |

Fields a recall does not have are left out.

### Sample results

Real rows from test runs on 20 October 2026, with long text shortened and some fields left out.

```json
[
  {"recallNumber": "H-1403-2026", "productCategory": "food", "classification": "Class I", "status": "Ongoing", "recallingFirm": "Coco G's Snack Foods, Inc.", "productDescription": "Coco G's Courmet Flaming Cheddar Hots, Spicy Cheddar Cheese Popcorn. Packaged in the follo ...", "reasonForRecall": "Potential Salmonella contamination.", "distributionPattern": "IL, WI", "reportDate": "2026-10-07", "state": "WI"},
  {"recallNumber": "D-0586-2026", "productCategory": "drug", "classification": "Class II", "status": "Ongoing", "recallingFirm": "Zep Inc", "productDescription": "Zep, Alcohol Sanitizer Spray, Ethanol 70%, Net Contents 55 Gallons 208 Liters, Made in USA ...", "reasonForRecall": "Microbial contamination of sterile products", "distributionPattern": "US Nationwide.", "reportDate": "2026-06-17", "state": "GA"},
  {"recallNumber": "Z-3118-2026", "productCategory": "device", "classification": "Class II", "status": "Ongoing", "recallingFirm": "C.R. Bard Inc", "productDescription": "Products that contain the Pericare Wipes: SureStep\" Foley Tray System Add-A-Foley Catheter ...", "reasonForRecall": "Due to complaints received indicating presence of contamination on the surface of pericare wipes pro ...", "distributionPattern": "Worldwide - U.S. Nationwide distribution including in the st ...", "reportDate": "2026-09-16", "state": "GA"}
]
```

### Limits

- **Weekly data, not live news.** The FDA publishes the enforcement report weekly and a recall appears only after the FDA has classified it. A recall can be in the news before it is here.
- **Status is as first published.** The FDA does not update it in this data, so an old recall can still show `Ongoing`. Use `terminationDate` when it is present. The FDA can also correct or extend a recall later, so run again to refresh.
- **Not for medical decisions.** The FDA says this data is not meant for public alerts. Check the product and the company at fda.gov before you act.
- **One row per product.** A recall event with five products gives five rows that share an `eventId`.
- **Request limits.** Without a key openFDA allows 240 requests a minute and 1,000 requests a day per IP address. The actor makes about three requests a second and each request carries up to 1,000 recalls, so a normal run uses a handful of requests. Apify runs share IP addresses, so in rare cases the day's allowance may already be used up and the run stops with a clear message. You can add your own free openFDA key in the optional `apiKey` field.
- **Up to 10,000 recalls per run.** Results are saved one at a time. A test run of 1,000 recalls took about two minutes, so 10,000 take about 20 minutes. The default time limit is one hour; if a run reaches it, it stops cleanly and keeps what it has. For a bigger pull, split the search by `reportDateFrom` and `reportDateTo`.
- **Search is by phrase.** `searchTerms` looks at the product description and the reason for recall only; use `recallingFirm` for company names. Spelling must match the FDA's text.
- **Annotation fields are partial.** `brandNames`, `activeIngredients` and the other openFDA annotation fields are set only for some drug recalls. In test runs they were missing on every device and food row.
- **Source text is passed through.** The FDA's own text sometimes holds a replacement character where an accented letter was. The actor does not change it.
- **Coverage.** Products under FDA authority. Meat, poultry and egg products belong to the USDA and are not in it.

### FAQ

**How much does it cost to scrape 10,000 recalls?**
$10, plus $0.001 for each run.

**Do I pay for compute or proxy on top?**
No. Platform usage is included in the $1 per 1,000 price. The openFDA API is read directly, so no proxy is used.

**Where does the data come from?**
From the openFDA drug, device and food enforcement endpoints, run by the US Food and Drug Administration. No key and no login are needed.

**How far back does it go?**
The FDA describes the data as publicly releasable records from 2004 to the present. Use `reportDateFrom` and `reportDateTo` to choose a period.

**How do I get only the most serious recalls?**
Set `classifications` to `["Class I"]`. Class I means the product can cause serious harm or death.

**How do I watch for new recalls?**
Run it once a week on a schedule with `reportDateFrom` set to a week ago, and use `recallNumber` to drop ones you already have. The FDA publishes the report weekly.

**Is it legal?**
The actor reads public data only, with no login. The FDA publishes this data for anyone to use. How you use it is up to you: follow the source's terms and the law where you live.

**Is this an official FDA product?**
No. It is an independent tool. It reads the FDA's public openFDA service, and it is not affiliated with or endorsed by the FDA or the US government.

**Do I need an Apify account?**
Yes. Actors run from an Apify account, and a free account is enough to start: it includes $5 of platform usage every month. You can [sign up here](https://www.apify.com?fpr=ymnoit). This is a referral link and it costs you nothing.

**Is there a limit on the free plan?**
Yes. A run started from a free plan account delivers the first 10 results, then ends with a message and a link to the plans. Any paid plan returns everything you ask for, up to your own limit. The price per result is the same on every plan.

### More from The One Dollar Store

Every actor here costs $1 per 1,000 results, platform usage included. See the whole store: https://apify.com/one_dollar_store

**Health and science**

- [NPI Provider Search](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/npi-providers-search): US healthcare providers from the NPI registry.
- [PubMed Articles Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/pubmed-articles-scraper): Biomedical articles with abstracts and authors.
- [ClinicalTrials.gov Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/clinical-trials-search): Clinical studies by condition, drug or sponsor.
- [Product Recalls Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/consumer-product-recalls-cpsc): US consumer product recalls from the CPSC.
- [Crossref Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/crossref-doi-metadata): Scholarly works by DOI, title or author.
- [EPA ECHO Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/epa-echo-facility-compliance): US facility inspections and violations.
- [NIH RePORTER Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/nih-reporter-grants): US NIH research grants and awards.
- [USGS Earthquakes Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/usgs-earthquakes-scraper): Earthquake events with magnitude and place.
- [CMS Hospital Quality](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/cms-hospital-quality-data): US hospital ratings and quality measures.
- [FDA 510(k) Scraper](https://apify.com/one_dollar_store/fda-510k-device-clearances): Cleared medical devices with applicant and date.

### Changelog

- October 2026: first release.

# Actor input Schema

## `productTypes` (type: `array`):

Which FDA enforcement reports to read. Drug, device and food recalls are separate lists at the FDA. Results come one type after the other, in the order the FDA lists them here.

## `searchTerms` (type: `array`):

Optional. One phrase per line, for example listeria or undeclared milk. A recall is kept when its product description or its reason for recall contains any of the phrases. Not case sensitive.

## `recallingFirm` (type: `string`):

Optional. Name of the company that recalled the product, for example Pfizer or Tyson Foods. A part of the name is enough.

## `classifications` (type: `array`):

Optional. Class I is the most serious (a product that can cause serious harm or death), Class III the least. Leave empty for all classes.

## `statuses` (type: `array`):

Optional. The status as first published by the FDA. The FDA does not change it afterwards in this data, so an old recall can still show Ongoing. Leave empty for all.

## `state` (type: `string`):

Optional. Two letter US state code of the recalling company, for example CA or NY.

## `reportDateFrom` (type: `string`):

Optional. Earliest date the recall appeared in the weekly FDA Enforcement Report, written 2026-01-31. The data starts in 2004.

## `reportDateTo` (type: `string`):

Optional. Latest report date, written 2026-12-31. Leave empty for no end date.

## `maxItemsPerType` (type: `integer`):

Optional cap for each product type, so the first type cannot use the whole run. 0 means no extra cap.

## `apiKey` (type: `string`):

Not needed. Without a key the FDA allows 1,000 requests per day per IP address, which is plenty for most runs. If a run ever reports that the daily limit is used up, paste a free key from open.fda.gov here.

## `maxItems` (type: `integer`):

The run stops after this many recalls in total, newest first. Minimum 10, maximum 10,000.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "productTypes": [
    "food"
  ],
  "classifications": [
    "Class I"
  ],
  "maxItemsPerType": 0,
  "maxItems": 50
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

## `summary` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "productTypes": [
        "food"
    ],
    "classifications": [
        "Class I"
    ],
    "maxItems": 50
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "productTypes": ["food"],
    "classifications": ["Class I"],
    "maxItems": 50,
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "productTypes": [
    "food"
  ],
  "classifications": [
    "Class I"
  ],
  "maxItems": 50
}' |
apify call one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,one_dollar_store/fda-recalls-scraper"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/QBJyjT5fct7wwggQp/builds/ch157QxpMduAlU48o/openapi.json