Food allergy labels should be expanded, study suggests

A new study has recommended that allergen warning labels in the UK and the EU be expanded to include additional foods such as goat’s milk and pine nuts.

Currently, regulations mandate that 14 major allergens, including eggs, fish, milk and cereals containing gluten, must be highlighted on food packaging.

The latest study, published in the journal Clinical and Experimental Allergy, analysed 2,999 cases of food-induced anaphylaxis. The cases were reported to the Allergy Vigilance Network in France from 2002 to 2023.

Of these, 413 cases were linked to eight emerging allergens not subject to mandatory labelling. The cases resulted in two deaths.

According to study author Dominique Sabouraud-Leclerc, these foods are responsible for at least 1% of food anaphylaxis cases.

The researchers specifically highlighted four foods – goat and sheep milk, buckwheat, peas and lentils, and pine nuts – for inclusion in mandatory allergen labelling.

This is because of their “frequency, severity, recurrence and potential for hidden exposure”, they said.

The recurrence rate ranged from 7.3% for peas and lentils to 56% for goat and sheep milk.

Additional foods flagged for caution include kiwi, apple, beehive products and alpha-gal, found in red meat.

The study noted the incidence of food-induced anaphylaxis has risen in countries such as the US, the UK, and Australia, with a lifetime prevalence estimated between 1.6% and 5.1% in the US.

In children, peanuts remain the primary trigger for anaphylaxis in many countries, including in Europe, with cow’s milk, cashew, hen’s eggs and hazelnut also significant, according to the European Anaphylaxis Registry.

For adults, wheat flour, shellfish, hazelnut and soy are the most common allergens causing severe reactions.