Food Allergen Management Checklist Template

What the Food Allergen Management Checklist Covers

1. 1
   Phase 1

   Phase 1: Set Up the Review

   5 tasks

   Answer which rules apply and why the review is happening first; they add the matching legal notes and tasks. Every due date counts from the date the review starts.

   • Record the site, the review date and who is involved — the premises covered, the date the review starts, which every due date counts from, the allergen lead who runs it, the head chef and the manager who approves and signs it off
   • Confirm who is responsible for allergen management — one named person with overall responsibility, and a responsible member of staff on every shift to handle customers’ allergen requests
   • Gather the current allergen records — the allergen matrix, recipes, ingredient specifications and labels, the allergen sign and menu wording, training records and the last review
   • Check last review’s actions and any incidents since — open actions from the last review, and any allergic reaction, complaint or near miss since; the answer decides whether the incident tasks in Phase 7 appear
   • Record what changed and the dishes it affects — new or changed dishes, recipes, ingredients or suppliers, and every dish whose allergens could change as a result, so the review checks those first
2. 2
   Phase 2

   Phase 2: Allergen Matrix & Recipes

   6 tasks

   The matrix is only as accurate as the recipes and labels behind it. Work from the ingredient labels and specifications, never from memory.

   • List every dish, drink and component on sale — including specials, sauces, dressings, sides, drinks and anything given away free, which needs allergen information too
   • Check there is a written recipe for each item — every ingredient and sub-ingredient listed, so the dish is made to the same specification each time
   • Mark the allergens in each item on the matrix — against each of the 14 allergens in the UK or the 9 major food allergens in the US, naming the specific nut or cereal
   • Check sauces, dressings, garnishes and toppings — the parts most often missed, such as a nut garnish, a mustard dressing, a stock cube with celery or a Worcestershire sauce with fish
   • Cross-check the matrix against the ingredients in stock — each product’s label or specification sheet, with ingredients kept in their original or labelled containers
   • Keep full ingredient lists for other allergens customers ask about — so staff can check foods outside the regulated list, never guess, and tell the customer when accurate information is not available
3. 3
   Phase 3

   Phase 3: Suppliers, Specifications & Substitutions

   6 tasks

   An allergen mistake can start before the kitchen: a new supplier, a product changed by its manufacturer or a substitute delivered without warning.

   • List the approved suppliers for each ingredient — with the assurances you rely on from each one, and anyone buying from outside the list
   • Collect a current specification for every ingredient — the product specification sheet or label for each one, replacing any that are out of date
   • Ask each supplier to tell you about allergen changes — agreed in writing, so a reformulated product does not arrive unannounced
   • Check the delivery check procedure — whoever receives goods confirms the product delivered is the one ordered before it is put away
   • Review substitutions since the last review — each one approved, recorded and the allergen information updated before the substitute was used
   • Check suppliers’ ‘may contain’ warnings are passed on — precautionary allergen information from a supplier reaches the customer, unless your own risk assessment replaces it
4. 4
   Phase 4

   Phase 4: Allergen Information & Labelling

   7 tasks

   Check what customers actually see and hear. The labelling tasks shown depend on which rules apply, and the distance-selling task on whether you take orders by phone or online.

   • Check how customers get allergen information — written information on the menu, a matrix or a booklet, backed by a conversation with trained staff
   • Check the sign or menu message asking customers about allergies — prominent where customers choose their food, and asking them to tell staff about a food allergy, intolerance or coeliac disease
   • UK: check labels on food prepacked for direct sale — the name of the food and a full ingredients list with the 14 allergens emphasised, on sandwiches, salads and anything else packed on the premises before it is ordered
   • US: check labels on food packaged on site — the common name, the ingredients and the food source of each major food allergen, as Food Code 3-602.11 sets out for food packaged in the establishment
   • Check buffet, counter and self-service items one by one — allergen information for each item rather than for the buffet as a whole, visible and easy to read where the customer chooses
   • Check allergen information for phone, online and delivery orders — available before the order is completed and again when the food arrives, with each allergen-free meal clearly labelled
   • Review free-from, gluten-free and vegan claims — drop any claim the kitchen cannot guarantee; a vegan dish is not automatically free from milk, egg, fish, crustaceans or molluscs
5. 5
   Phase 5

   Phase 5: Storage, Preparation & Cross-Contact

   5 tasks

   Cooking does not remove allergens. Separation, labelling and cleaning are what keep an allergen off the wrong plate.

   • Walk the stores, fridges and freezers — ingredients in sealed, labelled containers, open packs closed, and decanted products still identifiable by their allergens
   • Check the spillage procedure — what staff do when one ingredient spills onto another, and whether they know it
   • Watch an allergen order being prepared — clean utensils and boards, hands washed between dishes, separate equipment and clean oil; gluten-free chips are never cooked in oil used for battered fish
   • Check cleaning removes allergen residues — surfaces, equipment and utensils cleaned so no food debris or crumbs remain, with clear cleaning instructions in the kitchen
   • Decide which dishes the kitchen cannot make allergen-safe — where cross-contact cannot be avoided, staff tell the customer the dish cannot be made free from that allergen
6. 6
   Phase 6

   Phase 6: Taking & Serving Allergen Orders

   6 tasks

   Observe a real service where you can. Follow one allergen order from the first question to the plate on the table.

   • Check staff ask every customer about allergen requirements — at the table, at the counter and on the phone, with a clear sign or menu message where asking everyone is not possible
   • Check who takes allergen orders on each shift — every server, or a named supervisor or chef the order is handed to, and every member of staff knows which
   • Check what the allergen conversation covers — the foods to avoid, whether the customer has seen the written information, the risk of cross-contact and any changes that can be made to a dish
   • Check how the order is recorded and passed to the kitchen — in writing on the ticket or order screen, with the kitchen confirming it has received and understood it
   • Check the dish is marked at the pass and confirmed at the table — a label or flag so it reaches the right person, and the server confirming the allergen requirement as they serve it
   • Check pre-orders and group bookings are confirmed on the day — allergen requirements taken in advance are checked again with each person before the food is served
7. 7
   Phase 7

   Phase 7: Training & Allergic Reactions

   7 tasks

   Staff must be trained on allergens and know what to do if a customer has a reaction. The incident tasks appear only when a reaction, complaint or near miss was reported since the last review. This checklist records your procedure; it is not medical advice.

   • Check every member of staff has had allergen training — kitchen, front-of-house and delivery staff, with the course and the date, such as the FSA’s free food allergy training
   • Check the person in charge on each shift can answer allergen questions — which items on today’s menu contain which allergens, the symptoms of a reaction and where the written information is kept
   • Book refresher training and training on the changes — for anyone without training in the last year, every new starter, and the whole team when the menu or a recipe changes
   • Review the procedure for an allergic reaction — call an ambulance straight away (999 in the UK, 911 in the US), help the person use their own adrenaline auto-injector if they have one, and keep them lying down or sitting, never standing or walking
   • Walk the shift team through the reaction procedure — who calls the ambulance, who stays with the customer, who meets the crew at the door, and keeping the dish and any packaging
   • Review each reaction, complaint or near miss since the last review — what was ordered, what the customer was told, where the process failed and what was done at the time
   • Fix the cause and check it has worked — change the recipe, the matrix, the order process or the training, then check the fix in the next service
8. 8
   Phase 8

   Phase 8: Action Plan, Approval & Next Review

   6 tasks

   The updated allergen information is approved before it reaches customers. Nothing after the approval step can be completed until the manager records a decision.

   • Record every gap found and who will close it — from every phase, with an owner and a date for each action
   • Update the matrix, recipes and written allergen information — every change from this review, with the date of the new version on each document
   • Manager approves the updated allergen information — the matrix, menus, labels and online information checked against the recipes before they go into use
   • Replace every old copy and brief the team — printed and online menus, the matrix on display, staff copies and delivery app listings, then a pre-shift briefing on what changed
   • Manager signs off the review — every gap has an owner, every change is in use and the team has been briefed
   • Set the next review date — within a year, and sooner whenever the menu, a recipe, an ingredient or a supplier changes