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Food Allergies: Challenges and Opportunities for Food Service

Know your ingredients

Take-home messages

  • Outsourced food items such as mayonnaise and desserts can contain "hidden" allergens.
  • Most allergic reactions in restaurants are caused by hidden ingredients.
  • Maintaining a loose-leaf notebook with ingredients is a useful way to know exactly what each dish contains.

The only way to be able to assure diners that a dish is safe is to know what's in it. That's easy if you make everything from scratch. It's harder if you use some pre-prepared ingredients such as sauces, dressings, or outsourced baked goods or desserts.

As part of your food allergy response plan, review the ingredients in every dish you prepare, from starters to desserts. If the recipes include outsourced foods, carefully check the ingredients labels. You may be surprised to discover that egg substitutes still contain small amounts of eggs, for instance, or that veggie burgers and deli meats often contain dairy products.

If you change suppliers of outsourced food items, remember to re-check the ingredients. For instance, you can request that your suppliers have a documented allergen control program in place, and a letter guaranteeing that purchased ingredients are free of undeclared allergens must accompany all supplier shipments. It's also a good idea to work with a supplier who ships the most common allergenic foods in clearly marked, sealed containers and be physically separated from non-allergens. Receiving personnel should visually inspect all shipments for damaged containers and spillage.

Maintain a binder with a complete ingredient list for each item on your menu. When a new item is added, add a new entry. The notebook can also include alternative recipes for dishes that substitute non-allergenic foods.