What if every day, every meal, every bite you feared an allergic reaction or even death?  For the millions of Americans with food allergies, that is their reality. Food allergies are linked to an estimated 30,000 emergency room visits and up to 250 deaths a year in the United States.

According to the FDA, undeclared allergen information is a common cause of product recall. Hy-Vee American Macaroni Salad was pulled from store shelves because the packaging didn’t mention on the label that the product contained milk and wheat products. Whole Foods Market’s Cherry, Blackberry and Peach pies were removed because ‘egg product’ was missing from the label. Nectar Foods Inc. recalled CocoNoNut Cacao-Nectar Bars because they may contain almonds, but this was not noted on the packaging. The list of recalls is extensive, and labeling oversights like these impact consumers directly and personally.

Labeling errors that omit allergy information endanger consumers – and this is totally avoidable. When shoppers buy packaged goods, they should not fear for their consumers’ safety.

So what happens?

No consumer goods manufacturer is trying to hurt anyone. Sometimes the problem is simply in the packaging and artwork development process. Lots of people are involved in reviewing and approving, and so, it’s easy to think that lots of eyes on a package will equal high quality of information. 

However, simple mistakes such as proofreading, typos and omissions can occur because the more people there are in the approver group, the less accountable any one of them actually feels for the approval. Review quality can be diluted because of the number of people involved, and as a result, it can be unclear who is actually accountable for the activity.

This behavior is similar to what Robert Cialdini, PhD identifies as the Bystander Effect: when individuals in a large group perceive that they are each bystanders and therefore not totally or directly accountable for decisions made.

Packaging Digest recently published an article on this topic titled, Own it: How more effective packaging approvals can help you avoid a recall by Jackie Leslie, our Director, Process Consulting. Her article helps explain why sometimes mistakes are made, despite quality processes that are in place. Read the article to dive deeper into the psychology of getting artwork right.