Abstract / Summary
Firms in the food industry may experience more than one contamination incident over time. In food safety, a key objective for both the food industry and public health officials is to reduce the frequency of such incidents and extend the time between successive foodborne outbreaks. In this study, we present a systematic framework for analyzing recurrent time-to-event data, with a focus on identifying factors associated with the timing of recurrent events. Using data on meat and poultry recalls among publicly traded U.S. firms from 1994 to 2015, we find that both firm- and recall-specific characteristics are associated with overall recall risk and the risk of subsequent recalls. Recall risk increases with firm size but decreases with diversification, firm size among diversified firms, and the severity of prior recalls. Our findings highlight the importance of policies that incentivize firms to respond effectively to food safety incidents.