Scientific Opinion on the evaluation of allergenic foods and food ingredients for labelling purposes

Following a request from the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, the EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA Panel) was asked to deliver a scientific opinion on the evaluation of allergenic foods and food ingredients for labelling purposes. In view of the request, the NDA Panel decided to update its previous opinions relative to food ingredients or substances with known allergenic potential listed in Annex IIIa of 2003/89/EC, as amended. These include cereals containing gluten, milk and dairy products, eggs, nuts, peanuts, soy, fish, crustaceans, molluscs, celery, lupin, sesame, mustard and sulphites. The opinion relates to immunoglobulin (Ig)E- and non-IgE-mediated food allergy, to coeliac disease and to adverse reactions to sulphites in food, and it does not address non-immune-mediated adverse reactions to food. It includes information on the prevalence of food allergy in unselected populations, proteins identified as food allergens, cross-reactivities, the effects of food processing on the allergenicity of foods and ingredients, methods for the detection of allergens and allergenic foods, doses observed to trigger adverse reactions in sensitive individuals and risk assessment methodologies that have been used to derive individual and population thresholds for selected allergenic foods.