Industry Response
Food manufacturers and consumer groups are working with the FDA to increase public awareness of the seriousness of food allergen reactions and to ensure that allergens are appropriately labeled in food products.An allergen labeling program and a "code of practice" developed by the National Food Processors Association that calls for listing the eight most common food allergens in "plain language" are among the voluntary efforts being undertaken.
An example of "plain language" is using the word "milk" in a product's ingredient list as well as the less familiar "caseinate" or using "eggs" in addition to "albumin."
Falci says FDA investigators nationwide are being trained how to properly inspect food-processing plants for allergen control procedures. In addition, FDA officials have updated a 1996 notice to the food industry addressing the problem of undeclared allergens in food by recently publishing a compliance policy guide. (For more information on the guide, visit www.fda.gov/ora/compliance_ref/cpg/cpgfod/cpg555-250.htm.)
Falci regularly speaks to food industry gatherings across the country to discuss many allergen topics, including methods being used by some processors to avoid problems related to food allergies.
"Sharing 'best practices' in the industry through workshops is a really good way to get people to talk to each other," Falci says. "This is not a competitive edge issue. This is a safety concept, and sharing these thoughts is helpful to everyone in the industry.
"Altering production scheduling is a practice that can have a huge impact on minimizing the inadvertent introduction of undeclared allergens," says Falci. "Manufacturers who use shared equipment to process foods without allergens can benefit from following a carefully laid out production plan, such as running non-allergen-containing products first, followed by those containing allergens, then a clean-up step."
The payoff? The shared equipment is less likely to contaminate other products with undeclared allergens.
In August, the FDA will sponsor a workshop with the food industry, consumers, trade associations and consumer advocate groups to discuss ways to improve the identification of food allergens within the ingredients list.
Falci says that labeling food allergens in plain language--a source statement simple enough for a child to know if an ingredient is derived from soy or milk, for example--and precautionary food labeling are among the subjects likely to be discussed.
Labeling Policy
The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act requires, in virtually all cases, that all the ingredients of a food be listed on the food label. Two exemptions to the labeling requirements recently have been involved in a number of reported food allergen reactions: the collective naming of spices, flavorings, and colorings; and insignificant levels of additives in a food that do not have a technical or functional effect on the final product. The FDA, however, does not consider food allergens eligible for the latter labeling exemption. The agency also strongly encourages the declaration of an allergenic ingredient in a spice, flavor, or color."While the FDA believes that food processors make a sincere effort to label the ingredients in their food products completely, it's clear from data on food recalls that firms do miss including some allergenic ingredients on their food labels," says Falci.
