What to do after a food recall or food poisoning

Terms used

• AESAN — AESAN is Spain's national food safety agency, which publishes food alerts and recalls.
• Lote — The lote is the batch number printed on a product, used to see whether it is part of a recall.
• Urgencias — Urgencias is the accident and emergency department of a Spanish hospital or health centre.
• OMIC — The OMIC is the consumer information office run by your town hall, where you can make complaints.

Key rules

• Recalled food: Do not eat or use it, and match the batch number and best-before date to the alert.
• Emergency: For severe or worrying symptoms, call 112 or go to A&E.
• Evidence: Keep leftovers, packaging and receipts if you think you have food poisoning.
• Health lines: Non-emergency health line numbers differ by region, so check your local one.

Stop using the product first

If a food you have is recalled, do not eat or use it. Then check the batch number (lote) and the best-before date on the pack against the alert. Only products that match are affected.

Where to find food alerts

AESAN is Spain's national food safety agency. It publishes food alerts and recalls in a dedicated alerts section on its website. You can follow them through RSS feeds, email subscriptions or its X account. Regional public health departments (salud pública) also publish alerts for their area, and the shop or producer involved often puts up its own notice.

Return or discard the product

Take it back to the shop where you bought it, or follow the instructions in the notice. The seller or producer normally gives a refund or a replacement. A receipt helps, but it is often not needed. If you cannot return it, discard it safely when the notice says so.

If you already ate it and feel ill

Contact a health centre. Keep any leftover food and the packaging, and keep your receipts. They help the authorities trace the problem.

When to get urgent help

Call 112, the national emergency number, or go to A&E (urgencias) if you have any of these:

• signs of dehydration: very dry mouth, little urine, dizziness
• vomiting that will not stop
• blood in the stool or vomit
• high fever or severe abdominal pain
• confusion, blurred vision or muscle weakness, which can point to botulism
• difficulty breathing or swelling, which can be an allergic reaction
• diarrhoea that lasts more than a few days

Babies, small children, pregnant women, older people and people with weak immunity should seek care early, without waiting for symptoms to get worse.

For less urgent worries, many regions run non-emergency health lines, for example 061 in several regions and 024 in some. Numbers vary, so check the one for your region. The Servicio de Información Toxicológica (91 562 04 20) gives poison advice.

Report a suspected food poisoning

You can report to any of these:

• your region's public health service
• your town hall's consumer office (OMIC)
• a health centre or hospital
• AESAN, which accepts notifications and complaints and passes them to the regional authority

Doctors must notify certain outbreaks themselves. Have these details ready:

• the food and brand, and the batch number
• where and when you bought or ate it
• what time you ate it
• your symptoms and when they started
• how many people are affected

Channels and forms differ by region, so ask your local health centre or town hall where to send your report.

The decision guide, checklist and FAQ below cover the same steps in short form.

Choosing between options

Should you seek urgent care or call a health line for suspected food poisoning?

• Call 112 or go to A&E: You have signs of dehydration (very dry mouth, little urine, dizziness), persistent vomiting, blood in stool or vomit, high fever, severe abdominal pain, confusion, blurred vision or muscle weakness, or breathing difficulty or swelling.

• Seek care early: The person is a baby, small child, pregnant, older, or has weakened immunity, even if symptoms seem mild. Diarrhoea lasting more than a few days also needs care.

• Call a non-emergency health line: Symptoms are mild and you want advice. Many regions use 061 and some use 024.

If any severe or worrying sign appears, or the person is in a higher-risk group, get care now. Otherwise call your regional health line for advice.

Checklist

• Stop eating or using the recalled product.

• Return the product to the shop where you bought it, or follow the instructions in the notice.

• Contact a health centre if you already ate it and feel ill.

• Call 112 or go to A&E (urgencias) if your symptoms are severe or worrying.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need my receipt to return a recalled product?

No, a receipt helps but is often not needed to return a recalled product. Take the product to the shop where you bought it, or follow the instructions in the recall notice.

Who can I report a suspected food poisoning case to?

You can report suspected food poisoning to your regional public health service (Salud Pública or Sanidad), your town hall's consumer office (OMIC), or a health centre or hospital. AESAN also takes complaints and passes them to the regional authority.

What details should I have ready when I report food poisoning?

Have the food and brand, batch number, place and date of purchase or consumption, and the time you ate ready. Add your symptoms and when they started, plus how many people are ill.