New labelling and catering allergy laws came in on 13th December, which should help people with allergies to see if their pre-packed or foods in restaurants, bars and cafes are safe for them to eat. I’m not going to reinvent the wheel here as our friends at Foodsmatter have covered it all. But do start here by reading how people reacted horribly to our friend and colleague Ruth from What Allergy when she was interviewed about the new regulations and what they would mean for her – an anaphylactic – on BBC Breakfast. I was staggered by some of the uncaring and ignorant comments!:
Unacceptable Attitudes To Allergies
For more on the new regs themselves, start here:
Restaurants and Pre-Packed Food
Allergen Labelling – how what you see on labels will look from now on.
Note that the top 14 allergens that have to be listed have not changed. But, they now have to be labelled in a consistent fashion and all catered/prepared meals must now list which, if any allergens they contain and if there is a risk of cross-contamination in their kitchens for any of them.
About flippin time!
I’m just glad my main allergies are to things in the top 14, some people are allergic to other foods like garlic, corn etc. which it doesn’t help so much, but it is a good start. As for the attitudes, I think it will take time to change. People were like this about drink drive laws, wearing seat belts, disabled access but we all expect and comply with these things now. Hopefully people will come to accept that those of us with allergies are not making it up, we are not being fussy and it is not ok to eat just a little bit!
Too right, Ruth! Well done for your interview – and the blue top looked nice :). For those of us with corn issues, it is indeed a nightmare and this won’t help us but it will help loads of others!