Food allergies are a serious public health risk that can range from digestive distress and skin irritations to anaphylactic shock and even death. Learn how to identify allergenic materials both inside and outside the home.
Food businesses must comply with food law in providing allergen information for both prepacked and non-prepacked foods, and provide it at two different points between placing their order and taking delivery of their order.
Food Allergens Charts
Food allergies are a serious threat, leading to severe reactions that can be life-threatening. Nine foods account for most food allergy reactions: milk, egg, fish, shellfish (including crustaceans), tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and soy. Each must be clearly identified on ingredient lists as being allergen-containing either within parentheses following its main name or immediately after it in a “contains” statement.
Your business could use all or a combination of these ingredients, making it essential to keep a food allergy chart at all times in your facilities. This chart will allow staff members to inform customers properly.
Your HACCP food safety plan requires that you implement processes to monitor food handling processes to prevent cross-contamination during preparation and service; additionally, an allergen matrix can serve as a selling point to customers with food allergies who might otherwise feel intimidated about dining out; keeping this chart updated and visible may reassure these diners; having an online version may also be useful if customers feel more at ease reaching out directly to staff about allergens on your menu.
Keeping Allergen Information Available
Food business operatorss have various methods available to them when communicating allergens to their customers, such as including it in an ingredient list, creating an allergy information section or providing a PAL. However, for best results it is advisable to keep an allergy matrix onsite to help staff members recognize food allergies quickly in order to respond accurately when customer enquiries arise.
Analysis of 288 labels showed an emphasis on allergens was almost 100%; however, their presentation varied drastically; for example PAL, allergen information section, and icons could appear in various parts of visual space, not always adhering to Gestalt principles of grouping or common region display; making it hard for allergy consumers to identify and locate pertinent information quickly and efficiently.
At all times, staff should keep a printed copy of the allergens file with them when taking orders or serving customers. Staff should know where this file can be found and be prepared to give customers specific pages as answers when customers make enquiries relating to allergens; doing this reduces customer inquiries which require staff answering from memory, thus decreasing risk for unexpected reactions. It is also wise to clearly mark any menu item which might contain allergens as “may contain” or containing traces of them on it.
Keeping Allergen Charts Updated
An ingredients list spreadsheet is an effective way of keeping track of menu items and their allergens, with easy downloads available through food management software or websites such as Food Tracks. Once created, make sure it corresponds with labels from suppliers so your staff knows exactly what you’re serving – this helps prevent any miscommunication between employees serving each item versus what may actually be served!
The official European Food Information and Analysis Centre list of major food allergens includes eight foods – milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat and soybeans – but these aren’t the only ingredients which may cause an allergic reaction; such as sulphites and preservatives as well as flavourings, artificial colours and additives such as MSG can cause reactions too.
Though highlighting allergenic ingredients was standard practice, other presentations of this information could vary significantly. A separate allergen information section was typically present on most private label products and could repeat or adapt the list from the ingredient list while including an icon for display purposes.
Some labels displayed icons to indicate whether a product was free from milk and gluten, however these were generally from retailers 2 and 3 private label products and not other brands. Due to the inconsistent presentation and variety of locations at which this information could be found on labels background, identification and retrieval by allergic consumers proved challenging.
Keeping Allergen Charts Available Online
Allergens are protein molecules that can trigger life-threatening allergic reactions, including anaphylactic shock – where blood pressure drops and airways constrict, cutting off oxygen from reaching vital organs – leading to loss of consciousness and potentially death. Epinephrine injection and fluid administration may be required as treatment, so it’s essential that your team understands each allergen including their common names as well as scientific names for an accurate allergy matrix.
Food allergy matrices must be easily accessible to all staff members. One effective approach is posting it in an obvious location where everyone can view it; alternatively you could pin or print copies out for each team member individually. Another option would be integrating an allergy matrix directly into your menu via apps like Apicbase that automatically populate online ordering pages and kiosks with this information.
Allergens can be found in many foods and products, with some identified by scientists as leading to most allergic reactions while others cause lesser issues. Based on research, 14 allergens have been listed officially based on this evidence; however, other proteins responsible for inducing allergies that do not appear enough on this official list to qualify as significant hazards have not been included; examples include those from trees, grasses and pollen; fungi; as well as those found on stinging insects themselves.
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