Aside from finally banning FD&C Red #3 — a dye used in foods and cosmetics that was banned in Europe over 30 years ago because of its potential as a carcinogen — the FDA recently issued guidance changing US labeling requirements for the “Top 9” allergens.
The new guidance expands on the definitions of milk and eggs, two of Top allergens that require special labeling. The definition of “milk” now goes beyond cows’ milk to include milk from goats, sheep, and other ruminants. Likewise, the definition of “eggs” has been expanded from eggs laid by chickens to include those from ducks, geese, quail, and other fowl.
The latest guidance also corrects a mistake the FDA made when it first designated its list of tree nuts in the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA), the legislation requiring the disclosure of top allergens. In doing so, the agency has turned its back on a segment of the food allergy community.
The new guidance shortens the list of foods regarded as tree nuts to almond, black walnut, Brazil nut, California walnut, cashew, filbert/hazelnut, heartnut/Japanese walnut, macadamia nut/Bush nut, pecan, pine nut/pinon nut, pistachio, and English and Persian walnut.
The regulation now notably excludes coconut from requiring allergen labeling. Coconut—a drupe, not a tree nut—never should have been included in the FDA’s original list of tree nuts, as few people were allergic to the food and cross-reactivity with tree nuts was rare.

That said, the FDA’s remedy—now excluding coconut from special labeling requirements—will put those with an allergy to coconut at risk.
To understand how, it’s important to review how top allergens must be disclosed on the label. FALCPA requires food manufacturers to label food products that contain an ingredient or protein from a major food allergen in one of two ways.
The first option for food manufacturers is to include the name of the food source in parenthesis following the common name of the major food allergen in the list of ingredients in instances when the name of the food source of the major allergen does not appear elsewhere in the ingredient statement. For example:
Ingredients: Enriched flour (wheat flour, malted barley, niacin, reduced iron, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, and/or cottonseed oil, high fructose corn syrup, whey (milk), eggs, vanilla, natural and artificial flavoring) salt, leavening (sodium acid pyrophosphate, monocalcium phosphate), lecithin (soy), mono-and diglycerides (emulsifier)
The second option is to place the word “Contains” followed by the name of the food source from which the major food allergen is derived, immediately after or adjacent to the list of ingredients. For example:
Contains Wheat, Milk, Egg, and Soy
Previously, those allergic to coconut could simply scan the ingredient label for a Contains statement mentioning tree nuts, and if such a statement was provided, they could see whether the product contained coconut. That is no longer the case: a consumer with a food allergy who is unaware of the change in regulations will no longer see coconut in the Contains statement and could assume the product is safe for their allergy when it is not.
The FDA would have better served the allergic community by simply designating coconut as the 10th Top allergen. Thus, it would have separated its disclosure from tree nuts while maintaining the same special labeling requirements to protect those allergic to coconut.
What do you think of the FDA’s new guidance? Let us know in the comments section below.
The FDA should look into all the types of soy that are “hidden” that companies do not have to disclose for whatever the reason may be. Perfect example in your label in the article.
“mono-and diglycerides (emulsifier)”
How are mono- and diglycerides made?
Mono- and diglycerides are made by reacting glycerin with fatty acids or triglycerides in the presence of an alkaline catalyst
The products are then purified to obtain a mixture of glycerides, free fatty acids, and free glycerin.
And being the great country we are, cheap… so we derive our glycerin from soy.
Hence that product has soy. An is it on the label stating “contains soy”? Nope.
Coming from someone who has had an allergy to soy for over 30 years.
Is there a timeline when this will happen?
As someone who is allergic to coconut as well as peanuts and tree nuts, this is disheartening. Navigating through labels when you have food allergies can be challenging…and anxiety ridden. I rely on a mixture of what I read, as well as gut feelings. (Am I comfortable with what the label is telling me). Coconut no longer being included in allergen labeling is scary to me. I will be completely eliminating many food items right off the bat.