Labelling food products

You must emphasise 14 allergens in ingredient lists under the EU Food Information to Consumers Regulation. These common substances can cause allergic reactions or intolerances in some people. The rules cover anything made from these allergens (except sulphur dioxide/sulphites at low levels).

The 14 allergens to declare are:

• cereals containing gluten (wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, kamut or their hybridised strains)
• crustaceans
• eggs
• fish
• peanuts
• soybeans
• milk
• tree nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecan nuts, Brazil nuts, pistachio nuts, macadamia nuts)
• celery
• mustard (except behenic acid with a minimum of 85 % of purity and obtained after two distillation steps used in the manufacturing of the emulsifiers E 470a, E 471 and E 477)
• sesame seeds
• sulphur dioxide and sulphites above 10mg/kg or 10mg/litre in the food as prepared
• lupin
• molluscs

Declaring allergens

For prepacked food, you must include and emphasise the names of any of the above allergens in the ingredients list. Emphasis can be done using bold text, a different font, contrasting colour or underlining, as long as it clearly stands out from the other ingredients.

If there is no ingredients list, you should include a clear 'contains...' statement for the relevant allergens. If the allergen is already clearly identified in the name of the food, you do not need to repeat it elsewhere, but you must still ensure the consumer is not misled.

If you include an allergy advice box, you can direct the consumers to the ingredients list, but you should not create confusion by presenting inconsistent allergen statements.

Precautionary allergen labelling (‘may contain…’)

If an allergen is not intentionally used, but there is a risk of cross-contamination, you may include a precautionary allergen statement such as a 'may contain...' warning. This is not a legal requirement, but it is widely used to communicate a residual risk where it cannot be eliminated.

You should only use precautionary allergen labelling when you have assessed the risk of allergen cross-contamination and cannot adequately control it through segregation, cleaning, scheduling or supplier controls. Excessive or blanket use can reduce consumer trust and may lead to unsafe decision-making by allergic consumers.

Read more about this in the FSA's food allergen labelling and information requirements technical guidance.

Exemptions from allergen declaration

Some processed derivatives may be exempt from allergen declaration in specific circumstances (for example, wheat-based glucose syrups and fully refined soybean oil). In general, however, there are no broad exemptions: if you use an allergen ingredient, it must be declared and emphasised.

Absence-of-gluten claims

There are specific rules for 'gluten-free' or 'very low gluten' claims. Foods labelled ‘gluten-free’ must contain no more than 20 mg/kg (20ppm)  gluten. Foods processed to reduce gluten content may be labelled ‘very low gluten’ provided they contain no more than 100ppm gluten. 

Allergen information on loose foods

Loose foods include food sold without packaging, food packed after a consumer orders it, and food served in catering settings such as restaurants, cafés or takeaways.

Food business operators have the flexibility to provide allergen information for non-prepacked food by any means, including orally by a member of staff. No matter how information regarding allergenic ingredients is provided, it must be easily accessible and accurate.

For loose foods:

• you must provide information about allergens used as ingredients
• you must make allergen information available in writing or provided by staff
• you can use logos or symbols when accompanied by words and numbers on menus

If you are providing allergen information orally, you should clearly signpost to where consumers can find this information. For loose foods, allergen information must be easily accessible, accurate, consistent and verifiable.

Allergen information on prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food

PPDS food – that is food made and packed on the same premises where sold - must carry full labels. You must show on the packaging:

• name of the food
• full ingredients list
• allergenic ingredients emphasised (eg in bold, italics or a different colour font)

For more information, see the FSA's guidance on allergen labelling for PPDS food.

Some foods, such as meat, eggs or wine, must also meet marketing standards for food and drink products, which set additional rules on labelling and product descriptions.