New legislation (the Food Information (Amendment) Regulations 2019) is being introduced to provide further protection to allergy sufferers who buy foods that are ‘prepacked for direct sale’ (PPDS) to give them more confidence in the food they buy.

It comes into force on the 1st October 2021 in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland and is commonly referred to as Natasha’s Law after the tragic death of Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, who had an allergic reaction after eating a filled baguette which did not carry full ingredient and allergen labelling at the time.

At present, the allergen information for PPDS products can be provided by any means, including being informed verbally by staff i.e. ‘Speak to a member of staff for allergy advice’.

Natasha’s Law will require food businesses to include full ingredients labelling on ‘pre‑packed for direct sale’ (PPDS) foods, and where there are any allergens in the recipe, these must be clearly indicated by a unique typeface, e.g. bold.