Food allergies are an increasingly prevalent health condition and can significantly diminish quality of life. Allergen Fact Sheets provide useful, user-friendly information on allergy triggers and ways to manage them more effectively.
The Food Standards Code mandates that prepackaged foods and ingredients containing common allergens be declared. These fact sheets aim to assist food businesses in complying with this mandate.
Allergens in food
Allergies can be a serious and life-threatening condition that triggers the immune system to react adversely to certain proteins found in foods. People who suffer from allergies must avoid certain food items in order to avoid an allergic reaction and continue their daily lives unimpeded by an allergic response.
Food allergy symptoms can be life-threatening and include an anaphylactic reaction, among many others. People allergic to certain foods may also experience skin rashes, digestive difficulties or respiratory ailments as a result.
Food industry stakeholders must provide transparency with regard to which foods contain allergens, and how these allergens are managed in product preparation before sale to consumers, in order to protect customers from an allergic reaction while complying with laws.
Our Food Allergen Chart template makes it easy to record allergens present in your foods and how they’re prepared, keeping track of updates as recipes change or ingredients become available so that customers receive accurate information.
Allergy-free foods can be an ideal solution when dining out or attending events, however it’s crucial that key people (e.g. childcare providers, school staff and the parents of other children your child socialises with) know about your child’s food allergy so they can ensure he or she doesn’t accidentally consume an allergen-containing dish or use utensils that have come in contact with it accidentally.
The 14 named allergens
Allergens can be a significant source of distress for many individuals and are especially hazardous for those living with severe allergies or intolerances. Therefore, all food businesses must abide by applicable allergen regulations and provide accurate information for individuals so they can make educated choices regarding what foods they ingest.
Food businesses must inform customers about 14 allergens when serving food to them, such as celery, cereals containing gluten (wheat, rye or barley), lupin flour and seeds, milk, mustard, peanuts, sesame seeds soya products, sulphur dioxide and sulphites. This list is known as Natasha’s Law and intended to ensure the wellbeing of those with food allergies or intolerances.
As even one of these 14 allergens could cause life-threatening reactions in those with serious allergies, every business must comply with the law to safeguard customer health and wellbeing. This includes clearly labelling pre-packaged food products with ingredients clearly marked for labeling purposes as well as discussing contents with customers upon request to minimise human error in checking processes that could put someone’s life in jeopardy.
Cross-contamination in food preparation
Foodborne bacteria that lead to food poisoning can spread easily between foods, surfaces and equipment, or through utensils such as knives. Cross contamination is one of the primary sources of food poisoning and poses an especially grave risk for those with food allergies or immunocompromised states.
Foodborne illnesses can result from improper storage of raw animal foods above ready-to-eat (RTE) foods in the refrigerator, leading to juices from these raw foods dripping onto and contaminating RTE items; failing to separate ingredients and implements when food preparation (e.g. using one cutting board to chop both chicken and vegetables); as well as inadequate cleaning of surfaces and equipment contaminated by said materials.
Cross-contamination can be avoided by properly segregating ingredients, keeping utensils and surfaces clean, and not touching raw food with hands that have come into contact with contaminated utensils or surfaces. This will ensure the health and safety of all customers, particularly those with food allergies or intolerances. According to the Food Standards Code, all food businesses must clearly label allergens on menus, packaging materials and promotional material. FDA regulation also stipulates that all staff receive proper training on identifying and controlling allergens. Furthermore, inspections and sampling activities are undertaken by them to verify whether major allergens have been properly declared on products as well as having effective controls in place to avoid undeclared allergens during production.
Allergen labelling
Under new EU Regulation 1169/2011, food businesses must display allergen information clearly on product labels, including a list of 14 common allergenic foods and their ingredients. They also must state whether production occurred in an environment shared with allergenic food or whether there are traces of these allergenic products within it – this statement can either be included with ingredient listings or be added as a separate Allergen Information Section.
In this research study, 6 graduate students from Utrecht University were assigned the task of collecting packaged food products in supermarkets and other retailers with particular attention paid to how allergen information, PAL statements or icons were displayed. Photographs were taken of each item so as to analyze phrasing, positioning and layout issues related to allergen information display.
Most label designs did not include an Allergen Information Section; when they did, this often consisted of repeated information from ingredient listings or was marked up differently (such as in bold font). This did not follow the grouping principle of label design which dictates that related topics be presented together and in an organized manner for better information retrieval; hence this resulted in numerous labels having their PALs interrupted or placed after other key pieces of data such as preparation instructions, product description or sustainability statements.
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