Allergens labeling on French processed foods – an Oqali study

Abstract

The French Observatory of Food Quality (Oqali) aims at collecting all nutritional data provided on labels of processed foods (nutritional information and composition), at branded products level, in order to follow nutritional labeling changes over time. This study carries out an overview of allergens labeling frequencies by distinguishing allergens used in recipes from those listed on precautionary statements, for the fourteen allergen categories for which labeling is mandatory according to European legislation. 17,309 products were collected, between 2008 and 2012, from 26 food categories. Products were classified per family and type of brand (national brands, retailer brands, entry‐level retailer brands, hard discount, and specialized retailer brands). Allergenic ingredients were identified from ingredients lists and precautionary statements. 73% of the 17,309 products studied contained at least one allergen in their ingredients list and 39% had a precautionary statement for one or more allergens. Milk (53%), gluten (41%), and egg (22%) were the most commonly used allergens in ingredients lists. For precautionary statement, nuts (20%), egg (14%), peanut (13%), soybean (12%), and milk (11%) were the most common allergens listed. Precautionary statement was most frequently found among first‐price products (hard discount and entry‐level retailer brands). National brands seemed to use it less frequently. For all these results, differences depended both on food categories and allergen categories. This study will enable to follow allergens labeling and their use as ingredients over time, particularly by assessing an hypothetical increase in allergens presence in processed food.

Health-related messages in the labeling of processed meat products: a market evaluation

“…No data about presence or absence of additives has been found in the literature for comparison purposes. In relation to allergenic compounds, labeling data have been reported in different food sectors, one of them being ‘delicatessen meat’, but no information on processed meat products is shown (26).…”

Food allergen labeling: compliance with the mandatory legislation in Brazil

“…However, it is known that in the case of soy, for example, many ultraprocessed foods make use of the emulsifying additive lecithin in its formulation, which further increases the restriction of food consumption for allergic people, due to the use of a derivative from the soybean and not specifically of the soybean grain itself (Soon, 2018). Another study carried out in France with 17.309 foods showed that soy was present in 20% of food ingredient lists, however, only 12% of foods warned about this allergenic component (Battisti et al, 2017).This demonstrates the lack of product options for this group of people with restrictions on certain components or ingredients. Other studies also demonstrates the high frequency of these same allergens.…”

Characteristics of Allergen Labelling and Precautionary Allergen Labelling in Packaged Food Products Available in Latin America

“…The present study shows that PAL is widely used in Latin America (33.2% of food products) and that even the proportion of naturally allergen-free products with PAL is considerable (23.6%). Others have reported similar percentages of PAL (28.6%–39.9%) [ 14 , 15 , 37 ] or even higher (65%) [ 38 ]. The PAL statement “may contain traces of…” was the most commonly utilized statement, which agrees with other studies [ 15 , 38 ] but 32 other types of PAL were also identified in the present study.…”

“…The sample size consisted of all the packaged food products available on the shelves at the time of the survey. For products with multiple package sizes, only one size was included in the analysis to avoid bias [ 14 ]. Duplicate products found across the supermarkets in each country were recorded only once.…”

“…Furthermore, the excessive use of PAL limits the availability of packaged food products for food-allergic individuals and/or parents/caregivers, which could give rise to an additional economic burden [ 9 , 12 , 13 ]. Developed and emerging countries have evaluated the prevalence and characteristics of food products with PAL [ 14 , 15 , 16 ] but in Latin America, no study has addressed either the characteristics of food allergen labelling or PAL. Regulations for food allergen labelling can vary from country to country, with the characteristics of the label and the list of allergens declared on it representing the main sources of variation [ 2 ].…”