Assessing allergen management and use of precautionary labelling (PAL)

Overview

This interactive workshop goes beyond allergen awareness to provide a complete picture of how allergen risks should be assessed and managed within food businesses. 

Whether you inspect food manufacturers, caterers or retailers, this workshop will strengthen your ability to evaluate allergen management systems and support businesses in protecting consumers with food allergies. 

Drawing on real-world scenarios, we will examine how businesses assess allergen risks, prevent allergen cross-contamination, and determine whether Precautionary Allergen Labelling (PAL) is justified. 

Learning outcomes:

Gain practical knowledge that can be applied immediately during food safety inspections:  

• Strengthen your understanding of the legal framework for allergen management and how to identify good practice beyond minimum legal compliance. 
• Build confidence in determining whether food businesses have appropriately identified and controlled allergen risks. 
• Evaluate the effectiveness of measures to prevent allergen cross-contamination. 
• Assess whether Precautionary Allergen Labelling (PAL) is appropriate and supported by a suitable and sufficient risk assessment. 
• Understand the relationship between validation, verification and Precautionary Allergen Labelling (PAL). 
• Learn how to provide consistent, evidence-based advice to help improve allergen management systems. 

Who should attend:

• Environmental health officers 
• Food safety officers 
• Local authority officers responsible for food hygiene and safety inspections 
• Officers inspecting food manufacturers, contract caterers, healthcare catering, educational settings, and businesses making allergen or ‘free-from’ claims 

CPD: 4 hours