What is the allergy disclaimer?
Allergens: Attention customers with food allergies. Please be aware that our food may contain or come into contact with common allergens, such as dairy, eggs, wheat, soybeans, tree nuts, peanuts, fish, shellfish or wheat.
How do you let customers know about allergens?
Businesses can tell you about allergens in one of two ways:
- Businesses can provide allergen information in writing, for example on a menu or on a ticket near the food; or.
- They can actually tell you what’s in their food.
Is it a legal requirement to ask about allergens?
Food businesses need to tell customers if any food they provide contain any of the listed allergens as an ingredient. Consumers may be allergic or have intolerance to other ingredients, but only the 14 allergens are required to be declared as allergens by food law.
What does it mean may contain?
The label simply means that while the labelled product isn’t supposed to contain the allergen, the manufacturer can’t be sure it doesn’t. They can’t be sure there hasn’t been cross-contamination during preparation.
Can you state that you don’t know if an allergen is present?
Under the guidelines: You can no longer state that you don’t know if an allergen is present. You can no longer state that all foods “could” contain allergens.
Should you avoid may contain?
While you could eat ‘may contain’ products safely without realising the warning, avoid doing so. These products can contain harmful allergens and can be life-threatening.
What is a food allergen notice?
A food allergen notice (alternatively called a food allergy statement in the US) is a written acknowledgement of potential allergens that are used in a restaurant’s kitchen. Usually, this statement will list one or more food allergens, as well as instruct customers on how to ask for more information about those dishes that might contain them.
Should restaurants provide written allergen statements for diners with food allergies?
With the growing incidence of food allergies, restaurants should provide written allergen statements for diners with sensitivities. Photo credit: Flickr user Dan4th Nicholas. Making a customer sick is every cook’s worst nightmare—especially when the illness is caused by an allergic reaction to an ingredient that wasn’t supposed to be there.
Which allergens will you declare?
The allergens that we will always declare are: Peanuts Tree nuts Egg Milk Fish Crustaceans Mullusks Wheat Soybeans Sesame seed We will also provide information through the use of a so-called ‘may contain’ statement.
Do you declare allergens on the packaging?
However even when it is not required by local regulation, if there is a risk to allergic consumers due to the presence of a major allergen in a product, we will declare its presence on the packaging of that product. The allergens that we will always declare are: