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California Walnuts | Essential Food for Health

Nut Allergies: Information for Foodservice Operators

Food allergies are a serious food safety concern. Approximately 2% of adults and 5% of infants and young children suffer from food allergies.  Eight foods/food groups account for 90% of the food allergies in the U.S. Approximately 0.6% of adults have an allergy to tree nuts, but we do not know how many of these people are allergic to walnuts.

Major Food Allergens

  • Milk
  • Eggs
  • Fish (e.g. bass, flounder, cod)
  • Seafood (e.g. crab, lobster, shrimp)
  • Tree nuts (e.g. almonds, walnuts, pecans)
  • Peanuts
  • Wheat
  • Soybeans

Allergen Labeling Law

On January 1, 2006, the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) of 2004 took effect. The law requires that food manufacturers identify the presence of the eight major food allergens on food labels.

As a foodservice professional, you need to know that the FALCPA labeling law does not directly apply to foodservice operations. As an amendment to the Food, Drug, & Cosmetic Act, the FALCPA targets packaged foods regulated by the FDA. However, there are two points worth noting:

  • If you pre-package foods and offer them for sale (e.g. take-home entrees or salads), you are subject to labeling requirements. If a customer asks for a take-home box or doggie bag, though, you are not.
  • As a restaurant owner or manager, you are the key resource for clients who consume your meals. Without access to package labels, clients depend on you, your staff and your menus to answer questions about food ingredients.

Cross-Contact

A key term in the food allergy arena today is cross-contact, or contamination of one food with an allergy-causing ingredient from another food. Cross contact in the food allergy world is the quite similar to cross contamination in the food sanitation world. It may occur during manufacturing or in food handling. Foodservice professionals need to be alert to this hazard in the foodservice environment. For example, chopping walnuts on a cutting board that is also used for chopping pears for a salad is a cross-contact concern for customers with a walnut allergy who order the pear, gorgonzola and walnut salad without walnuts.

Advice for Foodservice Professionals Who Use Walnuts

In addition to paying attention to cross-contact issues, clearly identify the presence of walnuts in your products by stating “walnuts” on your menus and menu boards.  Very few of your customers will have a true walnut allergy, but for those who do, they will appreciate having access to information that helps them make a “safe” food choice.