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Allergen advisory statements for wheat: do they help US consumers with celiac disease make safe food choices?

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 70, pages 1341–1347 (2016)Cite this article

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In 2004, the Congress of the United States amended the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act to require foods under the labeling jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to state in plain English on the product label when an ingredient in a food is or contains any of eight major allergens.1 Allergens that must be named are wheat, milk, eggs, soybeans, peanuts, tree nuts, Crustacean shellfish and fish. These allergens can be included in either the ingredients list (for example, glucose syrup from wheat) or a separate Contains statement (for example, Contains: wheat). All foods labeled on or after 1 January 2006 must be in compliance.

The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) applies to allergens in ingredients only. It does not apply to allergens that may be in a product unintentionally due to cross contact. Cross contact with allergens may occur anywhere along the food production line from the field where food is grown to the plant where food is processed.2 Manufacturers sometimes use precautionary allergen advisory statements (for example, Made in a facility that also processes wheat) on product labels to alert consumers to food processing practices that may result in cross contact with allergens.2

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References

  1. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-282, Title II). Available at: http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/GuidanceDocumentsRegulatoryInformation/Allergens/ucm106187.htm. Accessed on 21 April 2016.

  2. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Guidance for Industry: Questions and Answers Regarding Food Allergens, including the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (Edition 4); Final Guidance. Available at: http://www.fda.gov/food/guidanceregulation/guidancedocumentsregulatoryinformation/allergens/ucm059116.htm. Accessed on 21 April 2016.

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Acknowledgements

Data used in the analysis was collected as part of an online subscription-based gluten testing service (Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC). No funding was received for the analysis of the data or writing of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gluten Free Watchdog, Manchester, MA, USA

    T Thompson

  2. Department of Clinical Nutrition, MetroHealth Medical Center, Cleveland, OH, USA

    T B Lyons

  3. Mary Rutan Hospital Nutrition, Bellefontaine, OH, USA

    A Jones

Authors
  1. T Thompson
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  2. T B Lyons
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  3. A Jones
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Correspondence to T Thompson.

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Competing interests

Tricia Thompson is the owner/founder of Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC.

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Thompson, T., Lyons, T. & Jones, A. Allergen advisory statements for wheat: do they help US consumers with celiac disease make safe food choices?. Eur J Clin Nutr 70, 1341–1347 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2016.155

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