In November 2025, FDA will host a three-day, virtual public meeting on food allergen thresholds and their potential applications. Input received during the public meeting will help FDA determine next steps, establish priorities, and develop food allergen threshold approaches.
Harmonization of precautionary allergen labeling (PAL) requires the acceptance of reference doses for priority allergens. A new study found that PAL based on specific FAO/WHO-recommended thresholds would only elicit mild to moderate reactions in a small proportion of the allergic population.
To improve upon the commonly used precautionary, hazards-based approach to allergen labeling, FAO and WHO have developed a scientific approach to food allergen labeling based on actual risk, such as the likelihood and severity of an allergic reaction occurring.
Harmonized food allergen regulation at the EU level, and systematic monitoring led by a European reference lab, are necessary to protect consumers, argue researchers.
A recent study explored how the use of uniform, threshold-based precautionary allergen labeling could increase food safety for allergic consumers, as well as enhance the number of foods available to them on the market.
Providing food manufacturers with a standardized methodology for determining whether precautionary allergen labeling is appropriate for their products, the Allergen Bureau has introduced the latest version of its risk assessment tool, Voluntary Incidental Trace Allergen Labeling (VITAL®) 4.0.
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) is launching an educational campaign to address widespread misconceptions about “vegan” versus “free-from” labels and raise awareness about precautionary allergen labeling.
A recent meeting report from the FAO/WHO Joint Expert Consultation on Risk Assessment of Food Allergens proposes a process to guide the development and evaluation of allergen derivative exemptions.
The UK Food Standards Agency’s (FSA’s) recently updated technical guidance on food allergen labeling includes changes to advice on the use of Precautionary Allergen Labeling and clarification on “vegan” versus “free-from” labeling.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have released a report summarizing a meeting on precautionary allergen labeling (PAL) that will support the Codex Committee on Food Labeling (CCFL) in the development of guidance on the use of PAL.
