Food allergen refers to the natural or artificial added substances in common food, which can induce anaphylactic reaction after being consumed by people with allergic constitution. Food allergies may cause health problems such as edema, blood pressure drop, and arrhythmia, in severe cases, it can be fatal. One of the effective preventive measures is to indicate the food allergens contained or possibly contained in the food label, so as to remind consumers with allergic history to choose the food suitable for them. Today, the global foodmate will introduce the allergen labeling requirements for prepackaged foods in China mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.

Types of allergens

The following food and its products are considered allergic substances:

a) Grains containing gluten and their products (e.g. wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt or their cross breeding strains);

b) Crustaceans and its products (e.g. shrimp, lobster, crab);

c) Fishes and its products;

d) Egg category and its products;

e) Peanuts and its products;

f) Soybeans and its products;

g) Dairy and dairy products (including milk candies);

h) Nuts and its products.

Labeling requirements

Enterprises are encouraged to voluntarily label allergen information to alert consumers. If food allergens are used as ingredients, easily identifiable names should be used in the list of ingredients, such as: milk, egg powder, soybean lecithin, etc. Or word of caution should be added near the list of ingredients, such as: "contains...", etc.

If it is possible to include any of the food allergens or its products into the food processing procedure, word of caution should be added near the list of ingredients, such as: "may contain... " "This production equipment also processes... ", etc.


Types of allergens

The following food and its products are considered allergic substances:

(i) cereals containing gluten (namely wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, their hybridized strains and their products);

(ii) crustacea and crustacean products;

(iii) eggs and egg products;

(iv) fish and fish products;

(v) peanuts, soyabeans and their products;

(vi) milk and milk products (including lactose);

(vii) tree nuts and nut products,

(viii) sulphite in a concentration of 10 parts per million or more

Labeling requirements

The name of the Allergic substance shall be specified in the list of ingredients. If a food consists of or contains sulphite（≥10ppm）, the functional class of the sulphite and its name shall be specified in the list of ingredients.


Types of allergens

Prepackaged food products containing following substances which cause an allergic reaction in susceptible individuals shall be labeled with the warning information on the package:

(1) Crustacea and products thereof.

(2) Mango and products thereof.

(3) Peanut and products thereof.

(4) Milk, goat milk and products thereof, except lactitol derived from milk and goat milk.

(5) Egg and products thereof.

(6) Nuts and products thereof.

(7) Sesame and products thereof.

(8) Cereals containing gluten and products thereof, except glucose syrup, maltodextrin and alcohol produced from cereals.

(9) Soybean and products thereof, except highly refined or purified soybean oil (fat), tocopherols and their deviation, phytosterols and phytosterol esters.

(10) Fish and products thereof, except fish gelatine used as carrier for vitamin or carotenoid preparations; fish gelatine used as fining agent in alcohol.

(11) The use of sulphites etc., at concentrations of 10 mg/kg or more in term of total SO2 which are to be calculated for final products.

Labeling requirements

The warning information about allergens shall be labeled as either way:

(1) Labeling on the package with the term of “This product contains ______”, “This product contains ______, unsuitable for susceptible individuals”, or other synonymous terms.

(2)The product name claims ______ , label in this way, all the allergic substances of product should be included in the product name.
Macau currently does not specify the types of allergens, nor does it require food labels to indicate allergens

Summary


The requirements for food labeling change frequently. China issued the draft of " National Food Safety Standard General Principle for Prepackaged Food Label" in December 2019. According to the new draft, the labeling of allergens will become mandatory. The Global Foodmate pays great attention to food regulations, and will share them in time if there are new requirements.

The Global Foodmate has a professional label audit team, which can help the label compliance of import food. The service scope covers Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. If you have label trouble, please contact us freely.

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Business Division of Food Safety and Regulatory Compliance of Global Foodmate provides food standards & regulations research, labelling compliance consulting/Chinese label design, industry public opinion monitoring and analysis, registration services (of Infant formula, FSMP, Health food, Novel Food Ingredients, Novel Food Additives, New Varieties of Food-Related Products and Overseas manufacturers of imported food) and other comprehensive food safety solutions for domestic and overseas enterprises and institutions in food industry.

Please feel free to contact us: +86 10 68869850, E-mail: global_info@foodmate.net