Monday, the USDA announced its recalling nearly 10,000 pounds of ground beef in the midwest because of possible E. coli contamination. It's just the latest in a string of recalls this summer and it has a lot of people wondering: what's with all the recalls? When do you really need to be concerned?

From the eggs those chickens are pumping out to some of the deli meat you guy at Wal-Mart, the USDA has been busy this month, recalling foods you probably have in your fridge. And, that is just the beginning - or, rather, the continuation of a year fraught with recalls. Those recalls include nine million Toyotas, enough cribs for every baby born this year and even an effort to recall the entire city council of Kellogg, Idaho over a dispute involving an American flag. Is 2010 the year of the recall? Well, not really.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission, for example, recalled 465 items in 2009. That's down from 563 the year before and about on par with 2007, when 473 products were recalled. That said, when should you be concerned? Your reaction should depend on the type of recall. Some products are recalled because of a real risk, like a choking hazard, and should be returned or thrown away immediately. Some are recalled, though, just because a product may not be effective anymore. Only about 30 percent of people return recalled items; everyone else either ignores the recall or just throws the items away. If food is recalled, don't panic. Most foods are recalled because of the potential for a food-borne illness, not an actual outbreak.

If you want to avoid this whole mess, you can try what Craig Goodwin's family tried.

"For a year," Goodwin explained, "we tried to consume everything local, used, homegrown and homemade."

The Goodwin family experiment led to the Year of Plenty blog and a lifestyle change. They tore out most of their yard and put in a vegetable garden. They got five chickens who lay about two dozen un-recalled eggs every week.

"Mostly, we know the farmers we're buying food from," said Goodwin. "If we have a problem, if we get sick, we just call em up and say 'hey, I got sick' - we don't have to recall a billion eggs, we go straight to the source."

That source also includes buying meat and whatever produce they don't grow from the farmer's market. It's a lifestyle change - one that costs a little extra money. But, Goodwin says it's money well spent.

"The current recall is an example the cost of cheap eggs," said Goodwin. "We think we can get two dollars for a dozen eggs and that's what the cost is. But, one of the costs is things like this - when you have thousands of chickens in one place, you're going to have disease and bacteria."

And, while you can't grow your own car - or your own city council, for that matter - you can rest assured: the rash of recalls doesn't mean the world is falling apart. It just means you might have to check those labels a little more closely.