Topic 5 Allergens and intolerances

For a person with an allergy, a few breadcrumbs, a drop of milk or the oil used to fry prawns can cause a serious reaction. It is not enough for food to be clean and well cooked: you must know what is in it, say so correctly and stop anything getting in that should not be there.

Allergy, intolerance and coeliac disease

• Food allergy: the immune system reacts against a food as if it were harmful. It can cause itching, hives, swelling of the lips or throat, vomiting, difficulty breathing and, in some cases, serious reactions. A tiny amount may be enough.
• Intolerance: the body does not digest a substance well, such as the lactose in milk. It usually causes digestive discomfort and depends more on the amount eaten.
• Coeliac disease: according to the Spanish Ministry of Health, it is an immune-based disorder caused by gluten in genetically predisposed people, and it is treated with a gluten-free diet. A person with coeliac disease cannot eat gluten.

As the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) explains it: in an allergy, the immune system reacts against certain substances in food, the allergens; in an intolerance, although the symptoms may look similar, the immune system is not involved in the same way.

For people who work with food the result is the same: if a customer says they cannot eat something, always take it seriously.

The 14 allergens that must be declared

Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Annex II, lists the substances that cause allergies or intolerances and that must be declared:

1. Cereals containing gluten: wheat (including spelt and khorasan wheat), rye, barley, oats and their products.
2. Crustaceans (prawns, king prawns, crabs…).
3. Eggs.
4. Fish.
5. Peanuts.
6. Soybeans.
7. Milk and milk products, including lactose.
8. Nuts (tree nuts): almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecan nuts, Brazil nuts, pistachio nuts and macadamia nuts.
9. Celery.
10. Mustard.
11. Sesame seeds.
12. Sulphur dioxide and sulphites at concentrations of more than 10 mg/kg or 10 mg/litre, expressed as total SO₂.
13. Lupin.
14. Molluscs (mussels, clams, squid, octopus…).

The regulation includes some exceptions for highly refined products (for example, certain glucose syrups or fully refined soybean oils). If you have doubts about an ingredient, check the label and ask your supervisor.

Informing the customer: also for food that is not prepacked

• On prepacked food, allergens are highlighted in the list of ingredients (in bold, in a different font or colour) (Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Article 21). Always read it.
• For food that is not prepacked (food served in bars, restaurants and canteens, or sold loose or packed in the shop itself), allergen information is also compulsory (Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Article 44, and Spanish Royal Decree 126/2015).
• Royal Decree 126/2015 requires the information to be available to the customer before they finish ordering or buying. Staff can give it, but it must be recorded in writing or in electronic form on the premises and be easy to consult.
• There must also be a notice on display saying where to consult the information or that customers can ask the staff, even if the allergens are on the menu (Royal Decree 126/2015, Article 6.5). It is only unnecessary when the allergens are on labels or signs next to each food, or in establishments that serve meals adapted for people with allergies or intolerances.

Avoiding cross-contact in the kitchen

Since 2021, Regulation (EC) No 852/2004 states clearly that equipment, vehicles or containers used for food containing allergens must not be used for food that does not contain them unless they have first been cleaned and checked, at least, for the absence of visible residues (Annex II, Chapter IX, point 9, added by Regulation (EU) 2021/382).

• Prepare the allergen-free dish first, with clean utensils and surfaces, then cover it and set it aside.
• Wash your hands and change your gloves before preparing it.
• Do not share frying oil: oil used to fry battered or breaded food contains gluten, and oil used to fry fish or seafood contains those allergens.
• Do not share toasters, chopping boards, ladles or tongs without cleaning them.
• Keep allergenic foods in closed, labelled containers.
• Removing the allergen from a finished dish does not work: picking the walnuts or croutons out of a salad leaves traces. You must make it again.

Recipes, changes and suppliers

• Every dish should have a sheet with its ingredients and allergens, and the recipe must be followed.
• If you change an ingredient or a supplier (another brand of sauce, bread or cured meat), check its label and update the sheet: one brand may contain allergens that another does not.
• “Gluten-free” can only be used on a food that contains no more than 20 mg of gluten per kilo (Implementing Regulation (EU) No 828/2014). Do not promise it unless your business guarantees it.

If a customer has a reaction

If someone has difficulty breathing, their face, lips or throat swell, or they feel faint after eating, call 112 immediately and tell your supervisor. If the person carries their own emergency medication, help them use it as they have been instructed. Keep the dish and the information about what they ate.

Want to know more about allergens? We have an allergen course, available only in Spanish: Allergen course (in Spanish)