Food establishments may elect to participate in the Department’s Food Allergy Friendly program by meeting certain criteria. Food establishments that meet the criteria will be designated as Food Allergy Friendly and included on a list published on the Department’s website. The list of Food Allergy Friendly establishments is updated periodically. Participation in the Food Allergy Friendly program is voluntary.
Food Allergy Friendly program criteria:
- Sign(s) and/or poster(s) approved by the Department must be prominently displayed in the staff area.
- There must be at least one manager on duty at all times of operation who is certified in food allergen safety. The certificate must be issued by a program approved by the Department. Certificates issued by approved programs must meet the Department’s requirement for the Food Allergy Friendly designation by not being older than 3 years from the issue date.
- The maintenance on premises of a current list of ingredients used in the preparation of each food item available for consumption to be made available to the public (the diners) upon request, accompanied by disclaimers stating that “ingredient changes and substitutions may occur due to differences in regional suppliers, recipe revisions, preparation techniques, and/or the season of the year”.
After meeting these criteria, establishments wishing to be designated as Food Allergy Friendly must contact the Department’s Bureau of Public Health Protection at (631) 852-5999 to review their Food Allergy Friendly qualifications and schedule a site visit prior to inclusion on the Department website.