Food Allergens are a constant in professional kitchens, and as we navigate the busy holiday season, make sure that you and your staff are up to date of the FDA Big 8 Allergens as well as any local regulations that may be in place in your area. When it comes to food allergies, first and foremost our goal is to keep our customers safe. This begins with knowing what the Big 8 Food Allergens are:
- Milk
- Soy
- Eggs
- Wheat
- Fish
- Shellfish
- Tree nuts
- Peanuts
Our big concern is cross-contact – so how can we keep our customers safe? Excellent cleaning and sanitizing, employee knowledge (what are the ingredients? How and where do we prepare this food? Can we safely make this for the customer?), and allergen awareness are skills everyone needs to have. Check out the FDA website about food allergies for more about the specifics of each one, details about labels and how to interpret them, as well as information about what to do if someone is experiencing a severe food reaction.
