Food Allergies

Check Lists Dietary Needs Food Allergies Laws & Regulations February 2, 2016

Valentine’s Day Reminders for Sweet Success

Check Lists Dietary Needs Food Allergies Laws & Regulations February 2, 2016

Valentine’s is right around the corner and while loved ones are fervently planning the perfect evening, you are assembling the team that will make it happen. But are food allergies and dietary restrictions being planned into your event? Here are just a few reminders to help make the evening a sweet success. Allergens Let’s face it, anaphylaxis isn’t sexy. Keeping an epinephrine auto-injector may or may not be an option in your state. It’s a life saving tool, so if it is available add it to your emergency kit along with at least one staff member trained in how to…

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New Jersey Governor Christie signs Epinephrine Access and Emergency Treatment Act
Food Allergies Laws & Regulations January 21, 2016

New Jersey Announces that Stock Epinephrine Bill is Now Law

Food Allergies Laws & Regulations January 21, 2016

New Jersey Governor signs into law “Epinephrine Access and Emergency Treatment Act” In December 2015 you may have read in the Thrive! blog that the New Jersey state Senate had unanimously approved legislation that would create a training program for anyone who wishes to administer EpiPens, especially coaches, teachers, and other professionals in a public environment. The legislation was written broadly enough to include restaurant, hotel, and convention workers. The New Jersey legislation, Bill A-4094/S-2884, titled, “Epinephrine Access and Emergency Treatment Act,” had been awaiting Governor Christie’s signature until Monday, January 11th, when it was signed into law. Epinephrine is a controlled substance and…

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The new Food Labeling Modernization Act of 2015 was introduced simultaneously to the U.S. Senate and to Congress
Food Allergies Laws & Regulations January 14, 2016

A Spotlight on the New Food Labeling Modernization Act and Meetings

Food Allergies Laws & Regulations January 14, 2016

The new Food Labeling Modernization Act of 2015 is important to the food allergic community and the meetings industry [list icon=”icon: check-square-o” icon_color=”#d81c5c”] The new bill will add sesame to the U.S. top allergen list The bill leaves out important provisions preventing cross-contact Unpackaged foods will need to declare allergens at point-of-sale [/list] New legislation, introduced simultaneously to the U.S. Senate and to Congress in November 2015 has serious implications for the meetings industry and is of significant importance to the food allergic community. Named, “The Food Labeling Modernization Act of 2015,” the purpose of the bill is “to amend the Federal Food,…

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Stock epinephrine laws can help keep attendees safe at meetings
Food Allergies Laws & Regulations December 29, 2015

2015 Saw Dramatic Increase in Epinephrine Laws Across the U.S.

Food Allergies Laws & Regulations December 29, 2015

Epinephrine Laws Enable Venues to Stock and Educate Staff on this Life-saving Medication When someone experiences a severe allergic reaction, their first line of defense is epinephrine, a drug that treats many signs of anaphylaxis all at once. Up until the last few years, epinephrine was only allowed to be purchased with a personal prescription or administered by trained medical staff. Today, as food allergy reactions increase and awareness for this potentially life-threatening condition grows, the call for epinephrine laws to allow “stock” EpiPens in places like schools, restaurants, convention centers, and even airplanes, has escalated. For those individuals who…

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Food Allergies Laws & Regulations December 15, 2015

Allergy Labelling in the European Union: How Confident is the Freefrom Customer when eating out?

Food Allergies Laws & Regulations December 15, 2015

Food businesses and their staff need more training to better manage the expectations of the FreeFrom customer A year ago the European Union enacted EU1169 requiring that all food served directly to consumers – pre-packaged and unpackaged – list any of the 14 food allergens they contained. Our friends at Food Allergy Training Consultancy (FATC) wanted to see how the freefrom community thought food service business were doing in meeting the regulations for allergy labelling in the European Union. Below are the results from the survey they did, reprinted with permission from Food Allergy Aware. Since the European Union introduced the Food Information Regulations…

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Stock epinephrine laws can help keep attendees safe at meetings
Duty of Care Food Allergies October 5, 2015

Advancements in Epinephrine Can Actually be Valuable for Event Attendees

Duty of Care Food Allergies October 5, 2015

New State Entity Laws Give Venues Opportunity Save Lives Since I wrote this post in May on the historic law that makes Georgia safer for event attendees, I’m excited to be able to add 15 more states to the list of those allowing places of public accommodation (hotels, convention and conference centers, restaurants) to stock epinephrine. If you have a family member or friend with a food allergy, you’re probably familiar with epinephrine. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), epinephrine is used for the emergency treatment of life-threatening allergic reactions caused by allergens, whether from food…

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Stock epinephrine laws can help keep attendees safe at meetings
Duty of Care Food Allergies Laws & Regulations May 14, 2015

Historic Law Makes Georgia Events Safer for Attendees

Duty of Care Food Allergies Laws & Regulations May 14, 2015

Last week, the governor of Georgia, Nathan Deal, signed a bill into law which makes Georgia events safer for attendees with food allergies. Georgia SB126 allows places of public accommodation such as restaurants, hotels and convention centers to stock epinephrine — the first-line medication to treat anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction. In light of the fact that nearly 50 percent of fatal food allergic reactions are triggered by food consumed outside the home and to foods that were thought to be safe,* allowing event venues to obtain epinephrine auto-injectors provides a huge sense of relief for food allergy sufferers who attend events in Georgia. According to the Convention…

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Jar and glass or milk, several brown egg and a six slices of bread on a plate on a wooden table egg allergies
Dietary Needs Food Allergies May 14, 2014

A Closer Look at Wheat, Milk and Egg Allergies

Dietary Needs Food Allergies May 14, 2014

A Closer Look at Wheat, Milk and Egg Allergies In Monday’s post “10 Things Meeting Professionals Need to Know About Food Allergies” I mentioned that wheat, eggs and milk are three of the top eight foods that cause 90 percent of all allergic reactions in people worldwide. As part of my continuing recognition of Food Allergy Awareness Week (May 11-18), I’m going to provide a closer look at wheat, egg and milk allergies and where they are found in meeting menus. So many foods these days are made with wheat, egg and/or milk that allergic individuals should pay close attention to…

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Food Allergies May 12, 2014

10 Things Event Professionals Need to Know About Food Allergies

Food Allergies May 12, 2014

Event professionals and their catering partners must be prepared to meet the needs of food-allergic event participants. It could mean the difference between an enjoyable experience or the unfortunate death of an attendee. In honor of Food Allergy Awareness Week (May 11-18), here are 10 things you should know. FACT #1 Globally, researchers estimate 220-250 million people may suffer from a food allergy. In the US, nearly 15 million people have food allergies. In Europe, 17 million people are afflicted. FACT #2 A study released by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2013 notes that the prevalence…

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Event Budgeting
Event Planning Skills Food Allergies April 8, 2014

How to Keep Dietary Restrictions from Sinking Your Event Budget

Event Planning Skills Food Allergies April 8, 2014

Meeting planners are worried about many things when thinking about accommodating guests with special dietary needs, but one of the major fears is the cost. This concern needs to be addressed up front and throughout the planning and budgeting process with both your suppliers and your attendees so you aren’t sinking your event budget. Take a recent question I received after a webinar I gave for Collinson Media. Cathy just hosted a conference for 4,300 people. Of the 458 special meal requests she received, 41 were halal and 12 were kosher. With seven meal functions during the three-day conference, that equated…

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