Food allergies and catering

If someone is allergic to a food or ingredient, their immune system can react to the food and cause allergic symptoms. If someone has a severe food allergy this can cause a life threatening reaction.

There are a growing amount of different foods that can cause allergies; some commons foods that can cause problems are peanuts, shellfish, milk, eggs, and sesame seeds.

When someone is allergic to foods they must be careful what they eat. Pre -packed foods now must have labels to show the presence of ingredients that may cause a reaction. When eating out at a restaurant or takeaway a person will not know the ingredients or the recipe that has been used. They will need to ask the staff working at the food business if the meal contains the ingredient they are allergic to. Sometimes only a very small amount of the substance can cause a problem.

The 'advice for caterers on allergy and intolerance' leaflet contains more detailed information on how a catering business can help to safely offer foods to people with allergies and provide them with the information they will need. You can download this from the file attachments table below.

More details on food allergies can be found on the Food Standards Agency website.

Advice for caterers on allergy and intolerance guidance leaflet [69.9KB]