Food Allergies
Food allergies are common, with people being allergic to many different foods. The food and hospitality industry is required by law to ensure they provide accurate information about 14 allergens that are listed in food safety legislation. These are:
- Celery
- Cereals containing gluten
- Crustaceans
- Eggs
- Fish
- Lupin
- Milk
- Molluscs
- Mustard
- Peanuts
- Sesame
- Soybeans
- Sulphur dioxide and sulphites
- Tree nuts
At the University we may work with staff and students who have allergies to these and other foodstuffs. It is important that we take care, as far as reasonably practicable, to protect these groups of people.
Students and staff have a personal responsibility to manage their allergies and should carry any essential medication (antihistamine and/or epinephrine autoinjector e.g. EpiPen) with them at all times. Some may choose to wear a medical alert bracelet which states the allergens and the action to take in an emergency.
Staff
Staff are encouraged to let their line manager know if they are living with a severe food allergy, where a reaction could be triggered due to day to day work activities. These are most likely to be food allergies triggered by traces of the food in shared kitchen facilities, or where these are eaten in shared offices.
Where this is the case, and in consultation with the member of staff, their line manager should ensure that colleagues are made aware so that people do not eat that food in the work area. Unless the member of staff consents, their identity should not be disclosed to others.
All staff should be encouraged to keep communal spaces, including hot desks, clean and to wipe down surfaces before and after handling / eating food.
Students
Where a student discloses that they are living with a severe food allergy, their School should take action to protect them. Schools may have a number of ways of ensuring this is commuicated, but some examples of what could be done, with the student’s consent and without disclosing their identity, include:
- Putting an announcement on the student intranet informing those that may attend lectures and seminars with the student.
- Using a student text message service to let students know.
- Academic colleagues reminding students at the start of lectures and seminars that they should not eat the food in question during those sessions.
Schools and Divisions may use this Example Poster to ensure that people in School and Division owned / managed areas are made aware. The poster can be adapted as required.