From October 1st 2021, ‘Natasha’s Law’ will come into force, requiring all food businesses to provide full ingredients labelling on food that has been pre-packed for direct sale.

What is Natasha’s Law?

Teenager Natasha Ednan-Laperouse suffered an anaphylactic reaction to sesame seeds baked into the dough of a baguette she had purchased. There was no mention of ingredients, or allergen information on the packaging and her parents said if there had been, Natasha would not have bought or consumed the sandwich. Since her death, Natasha’s parents, Tanya and Nadim, have successfully petitioned ‘Natasha’s Law’ with a clear vision to help people with allergies. The main purpose of the ‘Natasha Allergy Research Foundation’ is to fund and support pioneering allergy research bringing scientific minds together, working for better medicine to eradicate allergies. Due to their efforts, the government confirmed that stronger laws would be implemented to protect those with food allergies and give them greater confidence in the food they buy.

Who will it affect?

‘Natasha’s Law’ will affect all catering and retail businesses that prepare and package foods for direct sale (PPDS).

The new law will not apply to those outlets where food is made to order for takeaway or delivery. But remember – operators selling food of any type are still required to provide allergen information to customers, whether this is take-away, delivery or eat-in.

What do those establishments with PPDS need to do?

From October 1st 2021, any food prepared and packaged by staff in any catering or retail establishment and put on a shelf, in a hot cabinet or in a refrigerator to be purchased and consumed MUST include a label listing ALL ingredients and allergens. This applies to all outlets of any size; coffee shop, sandwich bars, restaurants and garden centres to hospitals and schools.

Creating a label, listing every single ingredient and allergen for each and every pre-packaged item can be a daunting task, especially for smaller independent businesses. Total Foodservice, with the help of Erudus One, has a simple to use solution that we are proud to offer FREE OF CHARGE to our customers.

Erudus One provides caterers with comprehensive nutritional breakdowns, dietary advice and allergen information on over 20,000 products that caterers are purchasing through one data source.

All Total Foodservice customers can access this data source completely FREE OF CHARGE. Simply email enquiries@totalfoodservice.co.uk or call your local depot to request your free account.