Catering Industry urged to get serious about food allergies New research from safefood has revealed the need for food businesses to train their staff on food allergies. The research , to be revealed for the first time at a one day cross border conference, ‘Food Allergy – the Facts on a Plate’, shows that some staff in food businesses including sandwich bars, cafés, supermarkets and forecourt shops were unable to give allergy sufferers accurate advice about the food they were ordering. When asked by the Environmental Health Officers who carried out the research, serving staff failed to give accurate advice with one in ten showing no understanding, or awareness of peanut allergy, and only a third showing confidence in the advice they gave.
Across the island of Ireland, 55% of samples which tested positive for peanut protein came with the wrong advice. The research findings come as a one day joint European Union and safefood sponsored conference launches a new pilot cross-border training programme for Environmental Health Officers in the Southern and Western Health & Social Services Board areas in Northern Ireland and the North Eastern and North Western HSE areas in the Republic of Ireland.
Funded by safefood and the European Union INTEREG IIIA programme through CAWT (Co-operation and Working Together), the training programme will enable Environmental Health Officers to better advise and support their local food businesses while also providing them with the tools to cascade the training to those businesses. It is hoped that if the pilot is successful, that this innovative training could be made available to Environmental Health Officers across the island.
Dr Ian Leitch, Project Manager for the conference and training programme for safefood and CAWT said: “Food allergy symptoms can range from runny eyes and itchy skin to, in extreme cases, breathing difficulties and a dramatic drop in blood pressure known as anaphylactic shock, which can be life threatening. Those living with food allergies need to be able to accurately assess the risk of eating any food and failure to provide them with accurate information can lead to a potentially life threatening reaction. We are urging food businesses to know their products and their ingredients, and become aware of the foods that are mostly likely to trigger a reaction such as peanuts, nuts and seeds. Vitally, staff should be able to give accurate advice to consumers with allergies. The training programme we are launching will help Environmental Health Officers on both sides of the border address all these issues with their local businesses.”
The ‘Food Allergy - The Facts on a Plate’ conference takes place on 8th February and will include presentations from Professor Jonathan Hourihane, Professor of Paediatrics and Child Health at Cork University Hospital and local chef, Andy Rea of the Mourne Seafood Bar in Belfast as well as representatives for support organisations, Allergy NI, the Irish Anaphylaxis Campaign and Allergy Action UK. Conference delegates will also hear from parents living with children with allergies.
Across the island of Ireland, 55% of samples which tested positive for peanut protein came with the wrong advice. The research findings come as a one day joint European Union and safefood sponsored conference launches a new pilot cross-border training programme for Environmental Health Officers in the Southern and Western Health & Social Services Board areas in Northern Ireland and the North Eastern and North Western HSE areas in the Republic of Ireland.
Funded by safefood and the European Union INTEREG IIIA programme through CAWT (Co-operation and Working Together), the training programme will enable Environmental Health Officers to better advise and support their local food businesses while also providing them with the tools to cascade the training to those businesses. It is hoped that if the pilot is successful, that this innovative training could be made available to Environmental Health Officers across the island.
Dr Ian Leitch, Project Manager for the conference and training programme for safefood and CAWT said: “Food allergy symptoms can range from runny eyes and itchy skin to, in extreme cases, breathing difficulties and a dramatic drop in blood pressure known as anaphylactic shock, which can be life threatening. Those living with food allergies need to be able to accurately assess the risk of eating any food and failure to provide them with accurate information can lead to a potentially life threatening reaction. We are urging food businesses to know their products and their ingredients, and become aware of the foods that are mostly likely to trigger a reaction such as peanuts, nuts and seeds. Vitally, staff should be able to give accurate advice to consumers with allergies. The training programme we are launching will help Environmental Health Officers on both sides of the border address all these issues with their local businesses.”
The ‘Food Allergy - The Facts on a Plate’ conference takes place on 8th February and will include presentations from Professor Jonathan Hourihane, Professor of Paediatrics and Child Health at Cork University Hospital and local chef, Andy Rea of the Mourne Seafood Bar in Belfast as well as representatives for support organisations, Allergy NI, the Irish Anaphylaxis Campaign and Allergy Action UK. Conference delegates will also hear from parents living with children with allergies.
