Allergen Awareness
Course Overview
If your business serves or sells food, you need this allergen awareness online course. Food allergies and intolerances affect a significant and growing part of the UK population, and getting allergen information wrong can have serious, even fatal, consequences for customers. Since Natasha's Law came into force in October 2021, businesses selling pre-packed for direct sale (PPDS) food have also faced stricter legal labelling duties, making food allergen training online more important than ever for hospitality, catering and food retail staff.
Course Content
Food allergies vs food intolerances
The course starts by explaining the difference between a food allergy and a food intolerance, since the two are often confused despite being medically distinct. A true food allergy involves the immune system and can trigger a severe, potentially fatal reaction called anaphylaxis, whereas a food intolerance causes uncomfortable but non-life-threatening symptoms. Understanding this distinction matters because it changes how seriously a report of a reaction should be taken.
The 14 major allergens
A core part of any allergen management training is knowing the 14 major allergens controlled under UK Food Information Regulations: cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, soybeans, milk, tree nuts, celery, mustard, sesame, sulphur dioxide and sulphites, lupin, and molluscs. The course also covers how food additives can trigger reactions even when they aren't one of the 14 named allergens directly.
Natasha's Law and food allergens and the law
Natasha's Law, in force since October 2021, requires food businesses to provide full ingredient labelling, including a clear allergen list, on any food that is pre-packed for direct sale (PPDS) — food packaged on the same premises it's sold from, before the customer orders it. This closed a gap that had previously left PPDS food less clearly labelled than fully pre-packaged supermarket products. The course covers what this means in practice for kitchens, bakeries and food retail counters.
Why allergen rates are increasing
The course also looks at current thinking on why diagnosed food allergies appear to be rising, covering theories such as the hygiene hypothesis and changes in early-years food exposure, giving staff useful context for why this is a growing rather than static risk.
Cross-contamination risks and practical steps
Beyond labelling, the course covers practical steps to reduce allergen risk day to day: safe food preparation and storage, keeping allergen-free dishes physically separate from those containing allergens, cleaning equipment and surfaces between uses, and staff handwashing to avoid transferring allergens between dishes.
Allergen information for consumers
The course covers how to give customers accurate, confident answers when they ask about allergens, and what businesses should have in place internally and externally to monitor and communicate their allergen control measures, including menu labelling and staff briefing before service.
Who needs this course?
Anyone working in food preparation, service or retail needs allergen awareness training, including chefs, kitchen staff, front-of-house and counter staff, and food business managers responsible for allergen policy.
Course Duration
1-2 hours
Course Certification
Approved by CPD, Gatehouse Awards, Institute of Hospitality & IIRSM
