If you have food allergies or shop for someone who does, you’re used to scrutinizing food labels to determine whether products are safe for consumption. Unfortunately, US allergen labeling rules are needlessly complex and ambiguous, leading many consumers to make assumptions about what the label is actually telling them.
Take the following three-question quiz to see if your skills need a tune-up, and let us know in the comments section if anything surprised you.
Question 1
The Top 9 allergens are peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, soy, wheat, fish, crustacean shellfish, and sesame requiring special labeling.
Given that knowledge, which of the following ingredients requires special labeling?
A — Peanut oil
B — Coconut Sugar
C — Oysters
D — Glucose syrup derived from wheat
E — None of the above
Companies should not be allowed to just list “SPICES” as a general category. I’m allergic to Cinnamon and it is common to be listed under spices.
When I write companies and ask if Cinnamon is included in the spices, they act as if I am trying to copy their ingredients. Even when I have stated that I am allergic to cinnamon.