Allergen Aware Not Allegen Beware

Allergen Aware – NOT Allergen Beware

We are in the business of providing people with happy memories of their holidays to take away with them. All holiday park operators want to avoid accidents or illnesses, particularly avoidable ones that could spoil a family’s stay or worse.

We have all read shocking stories of people killed by food allergies – particularly nut allergies and now legislation has come in designed to protect those with allergies, so that they can enjoy food while they are out and about, safe in the knowledge that it is safe for them to eat.

Since 13 December 2014, all food businesses must provide allergy information on food sold unpackaged, in for example catering outlets, deli counters, bakeries and sandwich bars. There will also be changes to existing legislation on labelling allergenic ingredients in pre-packed foods.

No doubt your holiday park is already working hard to implement the new law but – particularly for small operators – the job can be an onerous one. Tracking and tracing every ingredient to ensure compliance is time-consuming and this adds costs.

Thankfully there are a number of suppliers to the catering industry who are offering help and support to small and larger businesses in the form of ingredient and allergen tracking, training for staff and even the creation of menus specially for those with food allergies. For many of us, lucky enough not to be affected by food allergies, it may seem strange that it has become such a big issue. In fact, Allergy UK, the leading national charity dedicated to supporting the estimated 21 million allergy sufferers in the UK –

rates of allergy are increasing throughout the world, affecting up to 30-35% of people at some stage in their lives.

This increase was initially seen in countries such as the UK, Europe and USA, but can now be found in all countries undergoing industrial development. The pattern of allergy is also

changing – initially, the increase was in asthma and allergic rhinitis (hay fever). However, recent studies have confirmed a significant increase in the incidence of food allergies, in particular amongst children. In the UK, it is estimated that up to 50% of children are diagnosed with an allergic condition.

Read on to find out ways in which your business might be better prepared.

Pelican Procurement 

Services

To help organisations comply with the new Allergen Labelling Legislation, Pelican has developed a revolutionary new system called Piranha.

Piranha, is a cloud-based system which enables you to monitor and track allergen, nutritional and reference intake (previously known as Guideline Daily Amount) data for every ingredient that is used in your menus. This information is taken directly from suppliers and is updated automatically.

The system will also enable you to:

Share allergen information easily.

You can export your allergen information to a user-friendly PDF we call the Menu Item Allergen Matrix, this can then be printed for your staff and customers.

Quickly cost and monitor menu items in real-time.

The system uses your live purchasing invoice data so an accurate cost can be calculated for every portion you make. Engineer your menu

items to improve margins and achieve your desired GP.

Standardise dishes across the whole organisation.

You can build your menu items, add details of how each is made and even include a photo of the finished dish.

Piranha is available at no additional cost to Pelican customers.

For a free demonstration contact Pelican on 01252 70522 or

Customer quote:

“Piranha is far and away the most useful technological development I have witnessed in recent years! I’m new to the system but so far I’m really impressed with the recipe spec sheets and the event management tool which costs out individual events from the food and the staffing to the laundry and linen.

‘Aside from allowing the team to determine ingredient types, amounts, costs and profit per serving, Piranha saves that most valuable of resources in my business: time.”

Andrew Scott, Managing Director, Scott Hospitality Services

About Pelican

Established 26 years ago, Pelican is a market- leading procurement experts operating to the highest ethical standards.

Pelican provides a wide range of purchasing services and cloud-based spend management systems that enable organisations to achieve considerable cost savings, improve their operational efficiencies and gain complete control and transparency over their finances.

All purchasing is managed by CIPS qualified procurement specialist who follow the best practice and adhere to EU standards.

www.PelicanProcurement.co.uk 01252 705222

Cater Cost

CaterCost sees the new law as an opportunity for the industry rather than a challenge. The company’s Nutritionist Lucinda Dawes says, “For very little effort there is a potentially huge return on investment – tapping into nearly a quarter of the population not currently catered for.” CaterCost is an online menu engineering resource dedicated to supporting the independent caterer.

  • Cloud technology
  • No software to download
  • Mac and Windows compatible

In addition to the benefits of having accurate dish specifications and menus CaterCost gives the facility to link ingredients to nutritional data and flag allergens contained in components of every dish. With the flexibility to select nutritional info from a database of 15,000 ingredients or add precise information from the suppliers ingredients list, CaterCost calculates nutritional composition and allergens through sub recipes, recipes and dishes.

Regency Purchasing Group

Established in 1988, Regency Purchasing Group offers a comprehensive procurement solution for the leisure and hospitality industry.

With over £50m of purchasing annually, the buying group offers increased buying power with low prices, quality produce and exceptional service.

Regency Purchasing Group has agreements with suppliers in all major sectors, including food, drinks, sundries, waste management and much more.

Regency Purchasing Group offers free impartial advice on suppliers, products and systems. Anything from national brands to local produce, along with cost reduction, fixed pricing and national coverage.

Undertaking a full free assessment of your procurement activity, the company’s specialist buying group team will report back our findings and recommendations with no obligation to buy. There are no contracts or restrictions and all direct supplier relationships are maintained.

“Each of our suppliers holds databases based on product codes and all allergen information is available based on those codes and what the customer purchases. This database is massive as one food supplier holds over 30k products alone so all info is bespoke. We develop menus based on GP, volume sellers, best practice and overall commercial advice,” says Ben Hoskin, National Sales Manager.

 See below for the 14 Allergens List and some things to watch out for on the label. (as supplied by CaterCost)Peanuts

Label: Ground Nuts, Beer nuts, Monkey nuts, Nut meat, Arachis oil, Kernels, Mandelonas, Peanut protein

  • Look out for: Peanut oil, Peanut butter, Hydrolisedplant/ vegetable protein. Cake, pudding, cereal bar. Marinades, Dressings, Sauces – satay, enchilada, gravy, Chilli FenugreekNuts

Label: Almonds, Walnuts, Pecan, Brazil, Cashew, Macadamia, Pistachio, Pine Nuts, Nut Oil

Look out for: Chocolate spread, Nut butter, Chocolates, Salad dressings, BBQ sauce, Pesto, Cereals, Crackers, Desserts, Baked goods

  • Milk

Label: Casein, Whey, Lactoalbumin, Lactose, Lactulose, Lactoferrin, Lactoglobulin, Milk protein hydrolysate

Look out for: Milk, Milk powder, Buttermilk, Butter, Ghee, Yoghurt, Cream, Ice Cream, Cheese, Custard, Margarine, Chocolate, Instant Mash

  • Soy/Soya

Label: Soy flour, Soya Milk, Soya nuts, Soy oil, Soybean, Soy protein, Textured vegetable, protein, Edemame, Bean curd, Tofu, Vegetable starch, Vegetable gum

Look out for: Soy milk, Soy oil, Soy sauce, Tamari sauce, Teryaki sauce, Miso, Bean sprouts, Canned tuna, Surimi

  • Celery

Label: Celery salt, Celery stalk, Celery leaf, Celariac, Celery seed

Look out for: Vegetable juice, Spice mixes, Curry, Soup, Marmite, Bouillon, Processed meat products, Sausages, Prepared Salads, Savoury snacks

  • Sulphur Dioxide (sulphites)

Label: E220 -228, Potassium bisulphite or metabisulphite, Sodium bisulphite, Dithionite, Metabisulphite, Sulphiting agents and sulphurous acid

Look out for: Cooking wine, Juices, Canned frozen and dried fruit, Tomato puree/pulp/vinegar Colourant in some meat

  • Eggs

Label: Albumen, Conalbumin, Dried and powdered egg, Globulin, Livetin, Lysizyme, Ovobumin, Ovomucin, Ovotransferrin, Slico-albumate, Vitelin

Look out for: Meringue, Mayonnaise, Pasta, Marzipan, Marshmallow, Salad dressing, Tartare Sauce, Hollandaise, Cakes and baked products, Egg glazed pastry, Some ice cream, Some custard

  • Mustard

Label:, Mustard seed, Mustard leaves, Mustard flour, Mustard oil, Sprouted mustard seeds, Mustard powder

Look out for: Sausages and processed meat products, Spice mixes, Marinades, Soups, Sauces, Chutney, Ketchup, Piccalilli, Salad dressing, Indian food

  • Cereals containing Gluten

Label: Wheat, Durum wheat, Semolina, Spelt, Kamut, Eincorn, Faro, Barley, Rye, Oat, Malt, Couscous

Look out for: Bread, Baked goods, Baking mixes, Pasta, Crackers, Cereals, Condiments, Chocolates, Sauces

  • Fish

Label: Anchovy, Bass, Cod, Sardine, Haddock, Plaice, Pollock, Salmon, Tuna, Turbot, Whitebait

Look out for: Salad dressing, Num Pla, Worcestershire Sauce, Barbecue Sauce, Soups, Pizza, Dips, Gelatine, Relishes, Flavourings

  • Sesame

Label: Benne, Benne Seed, Gingelly, Gingelly oil, Sesame seeds, Sesame oil

Look out for: Bread, Crackers, Toasts, Dips, Hummus, Chutney, Tahini butter, Dressings, Marinades, Soups, Sauces

  • Lupin (EU common)

Label: Lupine, Lupin flour, Lupin seed, Lupin bean

Look out for: Baked goods, Pastries, Waffles, Pancakes, Pasta, Vegetarian meat substitute

  • Crustaceans

Label: Shrimp, Prawns, Crab, Crayfish, Lobster

Look out for: Pealla, Chinese products, Prepared sauces, Soups, Fried rice, Fish paste, Num Pla

  • Molluscs

Label: Oysters, Snails, Squid (calamari), Scallops, Mussels, Clams and cockles

Look out for: Ethnic Food, Soups, Sauces

March 24, 2015

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