Time to ACT-UP: update on precautionary allergen labelling (PAL)
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background
Precautionary Allergen (“may contain”) Labelling (PAL) is used by industry to communicate potential risk to food-allergic individuals posed by unintended allergen presence (UAP). In 2014, the World Allergy Organization (WAO) highlighted that PAL use was increasing, but often applied inconsistently and without regulation — which reduces its usefulness to consumers with food allergy and those purchasing food for them. WAO proposed the need for a regulated, international framework to underpin application of PAL. In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations convened an expert consultation to address the issue of PAL, the outputs of which are now being considered by the Codex Committee on Food Labelling (CCFL).
Objectives
To summarise the latest data to inform the application of PAL in a more systematic way, for implementation into global food standards.
Methods
A non-systematic review of issues surrounding precautionary labelling and food allergens in pre-packaged products.
Results
Approximately, 100 countries around the world have legislation on the declaration of allergenic ingredients. Just a few have legislation on UAP. Given the risks that UAP entails, non-regulated PAL creates inconvenience in real life due to its unequal, difficult interpretation by patients. The attempts made so far to rationalize PAL present lights and shadows.
Conclusions
At a time when CCFL is considering the results of the FAO/WHO Expert Consultation 2020–2023, we summarise the prospects to develop an effective and homogeneous legislation at a global level, and the areas of uncertainty that might hinder international agreement on a regulated framework for PAL of food allergens.
Precautionary Allergen (“may contain”) Labelling (PAL) is used by industry to communicate potential risk to food-allergic individuals posed by unintended allergen presence (UAP). In 2014, the World Allergy Organization (WAO) highlighted that PAL use was increasing, but often applied inconsistently and without regulation — which reduces its usefulness to consumers with food allergy and those purchasing food for them. WAO proposed the need for a regulated, international framework to underpin application of PAL. In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations convened an expert consultation to address the issue of PAL, the outputs of which are now being considered by the Codex Committee on Food Labelling (CCFL).
Objectives
To summarise the latest data to inform the application of PAL in a more systematic way, for implementation into global food standards.
Methods
A non-systematic review of issues surrounding precautionary labelling and food allergens in pre-packaged products.
Results
Approximately, 100 countries around the world have legislation on the declaration of allergenic ingredients. Just a few have legislation on UAP. Given the risks that UAP entails, non-regulated PAL creates inconvenience in real life due to its unequal, difficult interpretation by patients. The attempts made so far to rationalize PAL present lights and shadows.
Conclusions
At a time when CCFL is considering the results of the FAO/WHO Expert Consultation 2020–2023, we summarise the prospects to develop an effective and homogeneous legislation at a global level, and the areas of uncertainty that might hinder international agreement on a regulated framework for PAL of food allergens.
Date Issued
2024-10-01
Date Acceptance
2024-08-30
Citation
The World Allergy Organization Journal, 2024, 17 (10)
ISSN
1939-4551
Publisher
Elsevier
Journal / Book Title
The World Allergy Organization Journal
Volume
17
Issue
10
Copyright Statement
© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of World Allergy Organization. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/39381624
PII: S1939-4551(24)00104-2
Subjects
Allergy
Anaphylaxis
ANAPHYLAXIS
ATTITUDES
CHILDREN
Codex
COWS MILK
Food hypersensitivity
Food labelling
Food labelling legislation and jurisprudence
Immunology
Life Sciences & Biomedicine
MANAGEMENT
ORAL FOOD CHALLENGE
PEANUT
Precautionary allergen labelling
Prepacked
PROFESSIONALS
Risk communication
Risk management
RISK-ASSESSMENT
Science & Technology
THRESHOLDS
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
United States
Article Number
100972
Date Publish Online
2024-09-25