Frequently Asked Questions

Does the FIC (1169/2011) apply to me?

If you are a food related business then the answer is yes, even if you aren't charging for the food you serve.

That includes restaurants, pubs, takeaways, cafes, shops, mobile caterers, delicatessan, schools, hospitals, butchers and bakeries.

What do I need to do?

You need to have up to date, accurate allergen information for every ingredient and recipe you use.

If a customer asks, you must show them either verbally or in writing any allergens that apply to the food you are serving.

Show this information on your menu, website or in your filing cabinet. You must have this information easily to hand where it is written down.

What if I don't do anything?

You risk an unlimited fine if you fail to comply with the new regulation.

The phrase “Our food may contain…” will no longer be sufficient to ensure you are covered.

Who is The Food Labeller for?

• Food producers who need to meet the new labelling requirements for 2014 for allergen labelling;
• Catering outlets who need to identify allergens in their recipes and want to make healthy recipes; and
• Future needs for nutrition labelling from 2016.

Your label will be legally required to list the allergens

From 13th December 2014, new labelling rules mean you must list ingredients in your food products with information to help people with food allergies. The new requirement is for allergen information to be provided on packed and non packed foods - that means food producers and caterers. Allergens must be shown in bold on the Ingredient list or recipe sheet. The Food Labeller will do this for you.

Very small amounts of allergens such as nuts can cause severe reactions in people with food allergies so it is important that food is clearly labelled.

Based on Annexe IIIa of Directive 2000/13/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (as amended) - list of food ingredients on label that will cause adverse reactions.

Your label will need to list the nutrition of prepacked food

Nutrition labelling is mandatory for most pre-packed foods from 13th Dec 2016.

If you make a nutrition claim, you must supply nutrition information by 13th Dec 2014.

Get started early with the new nutrition labelling.

For food producers and caterers who want to put calories and healthy eating on their menus.

What nutrition information will I need?

You must declare

• energy value in both kilojoules (kJ) and kilocalories (kcal); and
• the grams of fat, saturates, sugars and salt.

You may want to show carbohydrates, protein, mono-unsaturates, polyunsaturates, polyols, starch, fibre.

What does The Food Labeller do?

• allow you to add your recipes or food products to your specifications;
• look at the allergens in your recipe or food product;
• see the nutrition information for your recipe or food product;
• export the data for a food label;
• make a recipe sheet with method, allergens, nutrition to use for catering; and
• look at food product and recip costings.

Don't worry - The Food Labeller does most of the analysis for you.

How does The Food Labeller work?

It uses the UK government database of nutrient analysis of thousands of food ingredients.

Allergens on the database are listed and applied to your recipe or food product.

You add information from your suppliers.

We analyse your recipe against labelling requirements.

The traffic light results are based on government guidelines.