Why Allergen Awareness Matters

A guest in a hotel restaurant asks whether the sauce contains nuts. A parent asks whether the school lunch has egg in it. A worker in a remote camp tells the canteen that he cannot eat wheat. Each of these people is trusting the answer they get with their health, and sometimes with their life.

For a person with a food allergy, a small amount of the wrong food can cause a serious reaction. The food may look and taste completely normal. The only protection is accurate information and careful handling by the people who prepare, serve and sell food.

What this course builds on

The Food Safety Level 1 course gives a short outline of allergens: what an allergy is, an example list of allergens, and the rule "never guess". This course goes much deeper. It covers how allergies, intolerances and coeliac disease differ, how to recognise a severe reaction, where allergens hide in ingredients, what allergen information the law can require, how to stop allergens spreading between foods, and how to handle a customer's request from the order to the table.

General food safety, such as bacteria, temperatures and personal hygiene, is not repeated here. It belongs in Food Safety Level 1.