There has been a lot of coverage and almost mass assumption that the UK will follow Ireland and regulate that allergens should be detailed on menus and the major driver here is Owen’s Law. But is there a halfway house and what exactly should caterers be expected to do?
Current best practice for loose foods (and drinks) is to signpost all customers to ask about allergens, be allocated an allergen advisor (allergen champion on the team) and have them talk through the dishes and allergen contents and present the customer with written allergen information to enable an informed choice when selecting off the menu.
The legal requirement is for businesses to have an approved overt sign to prompt customers to ask about allergens and the operator is obliged to provide this information that can be verbal only, but it must be verifiable.
Whilst operators fail to observe best practice then the government will regulate, as was the case with Natasha’s Law, and now potentially with Owen’s Law.
For this next round of possible new regulations caterers do have an opportunity to influence this and have their say and you can read the draft guidance here: https://www.food.gov.uk/sites/default/files/media/document/DRAFT-Allergen-Information-for-Non-Prepacked-Foods-Best-Practice-02.pdf
Responses to this consultation should be submitted by 27 November 2024 via the online survey, which you can find by clicking here.
It will change how businesses in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland relay their allergen information to customers with it’s aim to promote written allergen information to become standard and encourage conversations with customers to become part of the business communication method. Certainly, attributes of industry best practice, i.e. Allergen Accreditation and government wants to adapt this too.
It is not onerous, and your say is important. So please get involved!
Without input from the food service sector the FSA will be guided by other contributors that will have well guided intentions but not necessarily easy to implement and cost-effective solutions.
The last time a significant consultation took part in the UK it resulted in the introduction of Natasha’s Law (PPDS) in October 2021, and it introduced the need for a full ingredient listing for all pre-packed goods.
Of course, in the meantime businesses providing Food Allergen Customer Excellence can continue market share gain and profits without the worry and headache of potential claims and risking the health of their customers. It is, however, worth all caterers taking some time out to look through, discuss internally and record that the business has reviewed this as part of its continuous development and regulation awareness.
Julian Edwards, CEO, Allergen Accreditation
