Kroger Advocates Rapid Recall Exchange for Suppliers

The Kroger Co. has stepped up as the first national retail chain to encourage its suppliers to subscribe to the Rapid Recall Exchange, an online service that standardizes and accelerates food and product recalls and withdrawals.

Developed by GS1 US in collaboration with the Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA), the Rapid Recall Exchange is the industry’s only online standardized recall notification system. Through consistent forms and processes, retailers receive the same complete information, including product images and handling instructions, when a recall is issued.

Noting the system’s consistent, timely accurate recall data, Dr. Payton Pruett, Kroger’s VP of corporate food safety, said, “The need for speed is crucial in recall situations and this will help us be more efficient in removing recalled product from our shelves and communicating with our customers about recalls.”

The Cincinnati-based largest traditional grocery retailer in the nation is asking all suppliers to subscribe to the recall exchange by July 1, 2010. Suppliers using the Rapid Recall Exchange can provide all critical recall information in one communication — 24 hours a day, seven days a week — to alert retailers quickly, which in turn enables them to remove recalled products swiftly and reach out to customers about recalls in a timely manner.

As an industry leader in recall communication efforts, Kroger — which operates 2,468 supermarkets and multi-department stores in 31 states under two dozen local banner names — is among the retailers that employ customer loyalty databases to notify customers via register receipts and phone calls about recalls of products they may have purchased. Kroger has a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week process in place to coordinate recalls, and works quickly and effectively to remove from sale products that have been recalled or withdrawn.

For more information about recalls, visit http://www.kroger.com/recalls.
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