Alison Thorne – Page 2

March 9, 2020June 5, 2020

Free – Food allergy sticker template – Peanuts

The first of a series of Free allergy warning stickers to help you to track the most dangerous of the 14 allergens we all need to track in our dishes and raw ingredients. Our first template “Contains Peanuts” just needs printing onto an A4 sticker sheet and then your staff and you will know exactly where these ingredients end up.

This downloadable document and its content remains the property of The Safer Food Group and any adaptation or changes are prohibited, you have the right to take copies and use this resource for your business or individual needs but in no way are permitted to adapt it as your own or to sell on this item for a profit. This document should be used alongside correct food preparation and hygiene procedure and does not negate your legal responsibilities with regard allergen communications and disclosure. The Safer Food Group take no responsibility for the misuse of this document or bad working practices undertaken by any business or individual using our free resources.

March 9, 2020July 29, 2022

Free – 14 Food allergens poster

The key to successful management of food allergens lies in good communications. Help your staff to recognise the 14 Food Allergens listed by the Food Standards agency by printing this free poster and putting up in your workplace. To use this poster as an online training resource within your company, use the link: https://bit.ly/3JhhJ17

Here’s a list of the 14 listed food allergens that must be declared when used as ingredients:

Nuts – These are tree nuts, cashews, almonds, hazelnuts etc.

Peanuts – These are classed as a ground nut and can cause death to those with severe peanut allergies

Celery / Celeriac – Both a common ingredient in soups and stock cubes

Gluten – Cereals contain gluten. Wheat, rye, barley and oats contain gluten and are commonly used in flour

Crustaceans – Includes crabs, lobster, prawns, shrimp and scampi

Eggs – Both fresh and powdered egg

Fish – Extracts of fish can be a hidden ingredient, for example in sauces

Milk – Dairy products such as butter, cheese, cream and yoghurt

Sesame – Sesame seeds. Sesame is also used to flavour oils

Soya – Used extensively in far eastern cuisine and vegetarian dishes

Sulphur dioxide – Also known as sulphites. Found in foods including dried fruit, soft drinks, cooked meat products, wine and beer

Mustard – Used extensively as a flavouring in processed foods

Molluscs – Includes mussels, whelks, cockles, land snails and squid

Lupin – A flour used in catering, produced from lupin plants

March 4, 2020November 22, 2021

Do volunteers need food safety training?

According to the Food Standards Agency advice on providing food at charity or community events, this depends on whether you provide food on an occasional and small scale basis – in which case you do not qualify as a food business – or on a regular and organised basis – in which case, you may need to register as a food business. In any case, food supplied at any event MUST comply with food law and be safe to eat.

If you are unsure which category you fall into, seek advice from your EHO (contactable via your local council). Don’t be afraid that this will lead to extra red tape – your EHO is there to help and advise you, and responsible planning at the outset may prevent a far more tricky situation if your food sales lead you into legal problems along the line. To give you examples – a scout group selling tea and homemade cake at an annual jumble sale is not likely to qualify as a food business, but a rugby club selling cooked bacon rolls and pies every Sunday morning probably will. The scout group should still make sure that their food and drink is fresh and kept safely, and that they have appropriate allergen information for their cakes – but they won’t need regular checks from an EHO.

All food businesses need to comply with all EU food hygiene law, including those related to food hygiene training and allergen awareness. This means that the person in charge of the event or the catering set up must ensure that anyone preparing or handling food receives ‘the appropriate supervision and training in food hygiene and food allergens, which is in-line with the area they work in and will enable them to handle food in the safest way’ (The Food Standards Agency). This can be ensured by taking accredited training – online courses are often the most cost and time effective route for volunteers, and reputable providers can advise on the correct level of training. It could also be achieved by on-the-job training and supervision by a suitable person on site. Or the volunteer themselves may already have sufficient skills and experience to allow them to undertake the role safely – the person in charge must be able to demonstrate that the skills of each volunteer have been considered and are appropriate for their role.

At the Safer Food Group, we support a number of youth organisations, sports clubs and charities with their food hygiene and allergen training requirements. Our flexible, value for money courses allow organisations to purchase courses on behalf of their volunteers, taking advantage of our bulk purchase prices and allowing learners to undertake the training at a time that fits with their busy schedules.