Perceptions of Allergic Consumers and Allergists on Precautionary Allergen Labelling: Where do we go from here?

Abstract

Background Despite the widespread use of precautionary allergen labelling (PAL) by manufacturers, PAL remains poorly understood by consumers and allergists in Canada. The aim of this study was to investigate the perceptions of allergic consumers and allergists on PAL. Methods An online survey was sent to consumers registered in Food Allergy Canada’s database and to a third-party consumer panel representative of the general population. All consumer participants had a food allergy or were a parent/caregiver of a child with food allergy. In parallel, a separate online survey was sent to allergist members of the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and provincial associations. Results 1,080 consumers and 63 allergists (29% of allergists in Canada) responded to the survey. Fifty-four percent of consumers purchased products with a PAL statement at least occasionally. More than half of consumers (53%) considered PAL a very useful tool. Most surveyed individuals (59%) had not heard of the term “individual allergen threshold” or had heard the term but didn’t know what it meant. While consumers who participated in the survey agreed with a risk-based approach to PAL, the same consumers were reluctant to buy foods with even a small amount of their allergen that would not trigger an allergic reaction in the vast majority of them. Half of allergists thought PAL was not useful in its current form and 83% allowed the consumption of foods with PAL to their patients in some circumstances. Conclusions A multi-stakeholder approach is needed with greater consumer and allergist education on risk assessment concepts before the adoption of allergen thresholds for the application of PAL.