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Use this guide to identify the regulated allergen categories, understand why the sales context matters and practise the checks your team makes before sharing food information.
This is a practical reference. Follow the current official guidance for your location, products and sales method.
These categories are not a checklist to print on every label.
PPDS, other prepacked food and loose or distance sales have different information requirements.
Ten questions to discuss with your team. Completing them is not an inspection result.
Check the actual ingredients used in your food. The categories below are not a checklist of ingredients to put on every label. Official allergen categories.
| Category | Reference examples |
|---|---|
| Celery | Celery and celeriac |
| Cereals containing gluten | Wheat, rye, barley and oats; identify the relevant cereal |
| Crustaceans | Prawns, crab and lobster |
| Eggs | Egg ingredients |
| Fish | Fish ingredients |
| Lupin | Lupin flour or seeds |
| Milk | Milk ingredients |
| Molluscs | Mussels, squid and oysters |
| Mustard | Mustard ingredients |
| Nuts | Almond, hazelnut, walnut, cashew, pecan, Brazil nut, pistachio and macadamia; identify the relevant nut |
| Peanuts | Peanuts and peanut ingredients |
| Sesame | Sesame ingredients |
| Soya | Soya ingredients |
| Sulphur dioxide and sulphites | Declaration applies above 10 mg/kg or 10 mg/litre, expressed as total SO₂, subject to the applicable rules |
Check the official technical guidance for derivatives, exemptions and naming requirements. Do not infer a finished product's allergens from this table alone. FSA technical guidance.
PPDS rules concern food packed before it is selected or ordered in the relevant direct-sale setting. Read the dedicated PPDS guide before choosing a template.
PPDS labelsProducts supplied from one business to another for sale may fall into a different category with additional labelling requirements. Use the official labelling guidance.
Allergen information still matters. Check the rules for how it is communicated, including before purchase and at delivery where applicable.
Information checks belong alongside your food-handling procedures. A label does not replace cleaning, separation or other controls in your food-safety system.
Use the official allergen checklistTen short questions to discuss with your team. This is a practice exercise, not a qualification or compliance assessment.
These links are available without registration. A named reviewer and review date will be added after a real review of this page.
Want to see how recorded allergen information reaches an InstaLabel label? Explore the workflow.
