An FDA import alert is a notice to US import staff that shipments of a product, or from a named firm, appear to break US law and may be detained without physical examination. The burden then shifts to the importer to show each shipment is compliant.
Import alerts are public on the FDA website. You can search them by country, product and firm name, so you can check a supplier before you place an order.
How import alerts work
- Detention without physical examination: shipments covered by an alert can be held at entry on the strength of past problems alone.
- Red list: firms and products named as subject to detention.
- Green list: firms that have shown compliance and are exempt from detention under that alert.
- Product-wide alerts: some alerts cover a product from a whole country, not only named firms.
- Hazard-based alerts: alerts exist for problems such as pesticide residues, Salmonella and filth, among others.
How to check a supplier
- Open the import alerts section of the FDA website.
- Search by country, choose India, and browse the alerts for your product type.
- Search the processor's legal name and any trading names or past names.
- Open each relevant alert and read the red list for your supplier's name and address.
- Check the FDA's published import refusal data for the firm as well, since refusals can come before an alert.
- Ask the supplier for its FDA food facility registration number and confirm the name and address match.
Reading what you find
A supplier on a red list is a serious warning. Your goods would likely be detained, and you would have to prove compliance at your own cost, shipment by shipment. Ask why it was listed, what has changed, and whether it has applied for removal.
A firm can be removed from an import alert by petitioning the FDA with evidence, which usually includes a series of compliant shipments tested by a qualified lab and proof of corrective action. Check the FDA's current guidance for what it expects.
A clean search does not prove a supplier is safe. Traders may ship under several names, and a new firm has no history. Use the search as one check among many, alongside an audit of the factory.
Related US checks
Foreign food facilities that make, process, pack or hold food for the US must register with the FDA. US importers also have duties under the Foreign Supplier Verification Program. See what US FDA facility registration is and the FSVP rule for US importers.
How we help
We check FDA import alerts and refusal records for every processor we shortlist, under all its known names. We confirm its facility registration before you place a US order. Ask for a free sourcing review.