Situations Where a Food Allergen Declaration is Not Required

Situations Where a Food Allergen Declaration is Not Required

A separate food allergen declaration is not required when the name of the food informs the consumer that it consists of or contains a food allergen, e.g., smoked salmon. However, some foods, e.g. fish cakes, can contain a number of allergens not described by the product name and these allergens must be declared.

In order to avoid confusion with such foods, it is advisable to declare all allergens, even those described in the name of the product, e.g., fish cakes, contains: fish, wheat, soya and mustard.

Specific food allergen declarations are not required for foods sold by means of automatic vending machine or automated sales premises. However, the allergen information must be available at the moment of delivery. This could be achieved by a sign on or close to an automated vending machine indicating the allergens in particular products. Note: an automated vending machine accepts payment for a food item while an automated dispensing machine simply dispenses the food or beverage, e.g., coffee, for which payment must be made separately.