How to check a foreign supplier's FDA history before you buy
Last updated 2026-10-30
Before you place an order with a new foreign food or supplement supplier, it is worth knowing what FDA has already published about it. Everything below is public and free.
1. Get the supplier’s FEI
FDA tracks facilities by FDA Establishment Identifier (FEI), not by company name. Names are spelled many ways, and one company can have several sites. Ask the supplier for the FEI of the facility that makes your product.
2. Check the records FDA publishes
- Import alerts: lists of firms whose products FDA may detain without physical examination (the “red list”). Published on FDA’s Import Alerts pages, by alert.
- Import refusals: shipments FDA refused entry, with FDA’s charge. Published monthly in FDA’s Data Dashboard.
- Inspections: FDA inspection dates and classification: NAI (no action indicated), VAI (voluntary action indicated) or OAI (official action indicated).
- Warning letters and other compliance actions.
- Recalls: FDA Enforcement Reports.
FDA’s Firm/Supplier Evaluation Resources search covers several of these. Import alert lists are published separately and name firms by name and address, so they take a manual check.
3. Record what you found
The Foreign Supplier Verification Programs (FSVP) rule asks importers to consider a foreign supplier’s compliance history, including FDA warning letters and import alerts (21 CFR 1.505), to re-evaluate when they learn new information, and to keep records. Dietary supplement importers have modified requirements (21 CFR 1.511), and very small importers a simpler path (21 CFR 1.512). Keep a dated copy of what you checked, where, and when.
4. Read the records carefully
- No records does not tell you about the supplier’s products; many suppliers have never been inspected.
- A refusal is FDA’s decision about one shipment, not a court finding.
- Records under a similar name may belong to a different firm. Match by FEI and address.
SupplierTrail does steps 2 and 3 for you: check a supplier and get a free dated evidence report with links to FDA’s records. This guide is general information, not legal advice.