Safe Method – Food Hypersensitivity (Updated February 2024)

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SAFE METHOD: FOOD HYPERSENSITIVITY

'Food Hypersensitivity' is a term used to describe food allergy, intolerance and Coeliac disease. It is important to know what to do if you serve a customer who has a food hypersensitivity, because these allergies can be life-threatening. By law, you must tell your customers if certain food allergens are in the food you prepare (see the list contained in the Cross contamination section of SSFB). You also need to refer to and complete the ‘Managing Food Allergen information’ pages in the Management section of the SFBB pack. All of the FSA’s information, guidance and templates are available on the FSA website.
IMPORTANT: Ensure all of your team have had Allergen Training. The FSA Website provides an Allergen and Intolerance Course for your team to complete. (See Training Confirmation Form)

SAFE METHOD: FOOD HYPERSENSITIVITY - DELIVERY & COLLECTION (Updated Feb 2024)

SAFETY POINT: Make sure, at the point of delivery, you label the food and check you have all the ingredient information you need from the supplier.

SAFE METHOD: FOOD HYPERSENSITIVITY - PREPARATION (Updated Feb 2024)

SAFETY POINT: 1. Make sure you do not contaminate foods for an allergic consumer while you are preparing food for them. 2. Check the labelling information to make sure that any ingredients used to prepare the dish do not contain the food they are allergic to, including oils, dressings, glazes, sauces and garnishes. 3. If the labels of any of the ingredients you are using to prepare that dish say they may contain certain food allergens or are not suitable for certain food alergy sufferers, you need to let the customer know and ask them if they still wish to order. 4. When you have been asked to prepare a dish that does not contain a certain food, make sure work surfaces and equipment have been thoroughly cleaned first. Make sure staff wash their hands thoroughly before preparing the dish. You should also have separate preparation boards and equipment dedicated to allergy-free meals. 5. If you make a mistake when preparing a dish for a customer with a food allergy, do not just remove the ingredient containing the allergen from the dish and still serve the food - start from scratch with fresh ingredients. 6. Remember: unlike bacteria, allergens are always present in the food and cannot be removed or destroyed by cooking. WHY? This helps to prevent small amounts of the food that a person is allergic to getting into the dish accidentally, which could prove fatal. HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOOD FOR ALLERGIC CUSTOMERS?

SAFE METHOD: FOOD HYPERSENSITIVITY - STORAGE (Updated Feb 2024)

SAFETY POINT: It is important to make sure all foods are labelled clearly listing the allergens in the food, fully covered, resealed or placed into sealed containers if needed and any food spillages in storage areas/equipment are cleaned up quickly. Make sure you clearly label containers with the ingredients. WHY? Allergens can easily be transferred from one food to another meaning allergen-free foods can become contaminated and no longer allergen- free. This poses a risk to a customer with a food allergy being served food and suffering an alergic reaction. HOW DO YOU STORE FOOD ONCE OPENED?

SAFE METHOD: FOOD HYPERSENSITIVITY - SERVICE & TAKE AWAY ORDERS (Updated Feb 2024)

SAFETY POINT: Cross contamination of a food allergy customer’s orders can take place during transport from your business to the customer’s home and during service. You should take steps to prevent contamination such as keeping the food for the customer with an allergy separate, labelled and covered well. During service, it is also important to ensure that the right meal is served to the correct person. WHY? If a food allergy customer’s order is contaminated with allergens, they could suffer an alergic reaction. HOW DO YOU PREVENT CONTAMINATION FROM ALLERGENS IN TAKE AWAY ORDERS?

THINK TWICE!

Which ingredients can cause a problem? You must provide information about allergens to your customers if they are used as ingredients in the food and drink that you provide. You can find further information on the FSA website, but an example list is included in the Cross Contamination section of your SFBB. Remember the Ingredients, Recipes and Menus sections of your Chefsbk can help you automate and simplify the management of allergen information for your team.

MANAGING FOOD ALLERGEN INFORMATION (Updated Feb 2024)

How you handle allergens is important for food safety and to keep your customers safe. It is a legal requirement for food businesses to provide accurate information about the allergenic ingredients used in the food and drink they serve. You also need to refer to and complete the ‘Food Allergies’ pages in the Cross Contamination section of your SFBB pack. Since October 2021, any business that produces prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food is required to label it with the name of the food and a full ingredients list, with allergenic ingredients emphasised within the list.

CUSTOMER INFORMATION (Updated Feb 2024)

1. PPDS food must carry the name of the food and full ingredients labelling on the packaging, with allergens emphasised clearly. WHY: Customer with hypersensitivities (allergy, intolerance and Coeliac Disease) need to know this information so they can make safe food choices to avoid a reaction. 2. For loose foods, such as meals served in a restaurant, you can provide allergen information: • in writing e.g. allergen matrix, on a menu or chalkboard • Providing the information orally to the customer (if this method is chosen, a sign must be displayed informing the customer where the information can be found) Staff should know where allergen information can be found (e.g. recipe sheets, food labels) and be able to handle allergen information requests. WHY: There should be a way to check that the information provided is correct and complete. FYI: Technical guidance on food allergen labeling and information requirements, as well as information on the fourteen regulated allergens can be on the FSA website: General background on allergens. Allergen information must be accurate, consistent and up-to date. WHERE DO YOU KEEP ALLERGEN INFORMATION FOR THE FOODS YOU SERVE?

Do your staff know where to find accurate and up-to-date allergen /ingredient information for the foods you serve?

YES
NO

WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU'VE ANSWERED NO?

Have you trained all your staff in how to handle allergen information requests? have your team updated their training reports to confirm this?

YES
NO

WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU'VE ANSWERED NO?

How often do you review staff training in allergen management? Is it part of your 4 weekly review?

When do you update your labels?

FOR LOOSE FOODS...

, such as meals served in restaurants, if allergen information is not provided in writing, there must be clear signposting letting customers know where to this information if they need it. WHY? Customers need this information so that they can make safe and informed food choices. Customers should let you know if they need allergen information so you can help them make safe food choices. WHERE DO YOU DISPLAY YOUR SIGNPOSTING SO CUSTOMERS KNOW WGHERE TO FIND ALLERGEN INFORMATION?

For loose foods, such as meals served in restaurants,...

... it’s a good idea to give information in the name or description of dishes on the menu, especially if they include the foods listed over the page, e.g. chocolate and almond slice, sesame oil dressing. Remember to update the menu when recipes change. WHY? This helps people with food hypersensitivities to spot which dishes contain certain ingredients. Remember, you still need to have information on all allergenic ingredients available. DO YOU USE DETAILED INFORMATION IN THE NAME DESCIPTION OF DISHES ON THE MENU?

YES
NO

WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU'VE ANSWERED NO?

MENU CHANGES AND 'FREE FROM' DISHES

1. If your menu changes, make sure you change the list of ingredients with allergens for that food or drink and change the ingredients labels for PPDS foods. WHY? If you do not have the correct ingredients listed, customers with food allergies could get the wrong information and could suffer an allergic reaction. 2. If you advertise foods as ‘free from’ , you must take care not to add or contaminate the food with the allergen it is free from. You must also make sure that the environment is free from that allergen and that there is no risk of the food coming into contact with that allergen. WHY? If allergen information or labels state a food is ‘free from’ an allergen, customers may assume there is no risk of allergens coming into contact with that food. Even really small amounts of allergens can be enough to cause an allergic reaction. 3. It is important that precautionary allergen labelling, such as ‘may contain ‘statements, are only used if the risk of allergenic cross contamination is high after a full risk assessment. You can get help with completing a risk assessment either by contacting your Local Authority. DO YOU CHECK IF THE ALLERGEN CONTENT OF DISHES IS UPDATED WHEN YOU CHANGE YOUR MENU? (THIS REVIEW SHOULD BE A STANDARD PART OF YOUR REQUIRED 4 WEEKLY REVIEW).

YES
NO

WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU'VE ANSWERED NO?

Do you make any ‘free-from’ meals or products?

YES
NO

If YES - Where do you keep your risk assessment?

If you intend to use any precautionary allergen labelling, have you completed a full risk assessment?

YES
NO
PRECAUTIONARY ALLERGEN LABELLING NOT USED.

If YES - Where do you keep your risk assessment? If NO - complete a risk assessment, recording its location here.

Deliveries

Check deliveries to make sure you have the correct order and labelling information is provided. WHY? If you receive the wrong order or a different product, there may be different allergens in the food. IF YOU RECEIVE A DIFFERENT PRODUCT WHAT DO YOU DO TO ENSURE YOUR ALLERGEN INFORMATION IS UP TO DATE?

Take Away – phone / online orders

1. If taking phone orders or using a website to advertise and/or take orders, you must be able to let your customers know what allergens are in the food you serve before the order is placed AND at the point of delivery to the customer. WHY? This allows customers with food hypersensitivities to know what is in the food they are ordering so they can choose what is safe for them to eat so they don’t have a reaction. 2. You could put a clear and easy to see statement on your website, printed menus and flyers to tell customers where they can obtain allergen information. HOW DO YOU LET CUSTOMERS ORDERING OVER THE PHONE OR VIA A WEBSITE KNOW WHICH ALLERGENS ARE IN THE FOODS YOU SERVE?

You need to make sure your staff know how to take orders over the phone and/or online for food allergy customers. WHY? If your staff do not know how to take orders over the phone/online for food allergy customers, this could result in the customer being served food which can be harmful to them. ARE YOUR STAFF TRAINED IN HOW TO TAKE ORDERS OVER THE PHONE/WEBSITE FOR FOOD ALLERGY CUSTOMERS?

YES
NO

STAFF TRAINING: TAKING ORDERS BY PHONE OR ONLINE

You need to make sure your staff know how to take orders over the phone and/or online for food allergy customers. WHY? If your staff do not know how to take orders over the phone/online for food allergy customers, this could result in the customer being served food which can be harmful to them. ARE YOUR STAFF TRAINED IN HOW TO TAKE ORDERS OVER THE PHONE/WEBSITE FOR FOOD ALLERGY CUSTOMERS? If not, how will you correct this? If you do already, where is their training recorded?

CLEARLY IDENTIFYING ORDERS TAKEN

You must ensure take away orders for customers with food allergies can be clearly identified. WHY? If a customer with a food allergy cannot easily identify which meal has been prepared for them, they could eat the wrong meal and have an allergic reaction. HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY MEALS PREPARED FOR A CUSTOMER WITH A FOOD ALLERGY AT THE POINT OF DELIVERY?