Natasha’s Law
“Natasha’s Law” is a change to UK legislation about labelling food and drink. Currently if you prepare and pack food for sale in the same unit or building, the labelling required is minimal. In my opinion, this was taken advantage of by Pret a Manger when they sold a baguette to Natasha Ednan-Laperouse. Pret labelled their products as an independent business would. This was within the law at the time. Natasha suffered an allergic reaction and died in 2016.
What are the changes?
From 1 October 2021, “PrePacked food for Direct Sale” (PPDS) will need to have a label with a full ingredients list with allergenic ingredients emphasised within it.
PPDS food will have to clearly display the following information on the packaging:
- name of the food,
- full ingredients list, with
- allergenic ingredients emphasised (for example in bold or italics). For a list of the allergens, go to my blog here.
As the law is now, the information must be accurate. Business owners have to share allergen information with their customers in an accurate manner, and ensure that their customer facing teams know where to find the information.
What do I need to do now?
Ensure that you have accurate information available to share with your customers. If you produce pre packed food for distribution, the law currently requires you to fully label each pack as delivered to the final consumer. If you are producing food for sale in your premises, such as cafes and restaurants, you must signpost the consumer to the allergens in your products. This can be via menus, or signposting people to ask your team.
Keep up to date with changes in legislation via the Food Standards Agency sign up here.
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The full legislation is here.
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