It is reported that in Australia approximately 10% of infants, 4-8% of children and 2% of adults are allergic to a food.

A food allergy is a reaction of an immune system to a substance (usually a protein) that is harmless for other people. Symptoms of allergic reaction range from mild to severe and may include hives, swelling of lips, eyes or face, vomiting, loss of consciousness and in severe cases death.

The occurrence of food allergies is on the rise and food businesses need to be increasingly aware of this risk and have strategies in place to manage it.

An Allergen management plan should be part of any responsible food business.

This is particularly important for schools, where children, in absence of their parents, are especially vulnerable to suffer an allergic reaction.

Absolute Food Safety offers range of services to help food businesses to manage allergens:

• Risk assessment and incident investigation – assessment of possible sources of incidents, weaknesses and opportunities to improve
• Allergen management plan development – after the risk is assessed, a proper written management plan that is easy to follow is vital to ensure the risk is controlled
• Continuous improvement, monitoring and auditing – once the management plan is in place it is important to make sure that it is working and there are no weak links
• Training – success of any management plan lies in efficient training of all the stakeholders.

We have helped number of food businesses, including schools, to assess the risk and establish a proper allergen management practices to ensure that they safely cater for people with food allergies. Contact us today to discuss any questions you might have.