A food allergy is when the body’s immune system reacts unusually to specific foods. Although allergic reactions are often mild, they can be very serious. 

Any individual could have an allergy or intolerance to other ingredients, but only 14 allergens are required to be declared as allergens by food law. Flip the cards to see what those 14 allergens are:

Some of the most common symptoms of food allergies are…

In the most serious cases, a person may have a severe allergic reaction.  

Anaphylaxis, will develop suddenly, get worse quickly and can be life threatening. 

The symptoms may be similar to the more common symptoms but they may also include:

Medicine

Insect stings

General anaesthetic

Latex found in gloves or condoms

Medicine

If someone is having an allergic reaction, follow these steps:

1. Lie the person down flat, unless they are unconscious, pregnant or having breathing difficulties.
2. Call the emergency services and describe what is happening. Explain that it could be anaphylaxis.
3. Remove the trigger, if possible.
4. Send someone to wait outside for the ambulance.

Food should have the ingredients listed on the label and when serving and preparing food you should have allergy information available for the person eating the food.

If a person asks if a certain ingredient is in the food, you must check the ingredients, allergy information and what has been used to cook and prepare the food. You must never guess!

Allergen labelling

There are a number of ways in which allergen information can be given. Prepacked foods refer to any food put into packaging before being placed on sale, while non-prepacked food (loose food) is unpackaged food. Different allergen labelling rules apply depending on how the food is provided. 

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Food intolerance

Food intolerance isn’t the same as a food allergy because an allergic reaction does not take place and it is not life threatening, unlike an allergy.

People with food intolerance may have symptoms such as diarrhea, bloating and stomach cramps caused by difficulties digesting certain substances.  The symptoms will usually occur several hours after eating the food.