What are allergens?

Allergens are foods that can cause severe allergic or adverse reactions. There are ten common allergens, which include fish, tree nuts, peanuts, shellfish, wheat, milk, lupins, soy, eggs, and wheat. By law, allergens must be declared on food and beverage labels. The Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code) requires businesses to declare allergens on labels whenever they are present as ingredients, components of food additives, or components of processing aids.

What are the new allergen labelling requirements (PEAL)?

On 25 February 2021, the Code was amended to introduce new requirements for allergen labelling. As a result of these changes, businesses in Australia and New Zealand will be required to add clear and consistent food allergen declarations to ensure consumers have the information they need to make safe food choices.

All allergens must be declared in their required names as:

1. Bold text within a statement of ingredients (when product is required to bear a label) and:

2. In a separate bold type contains statement in the same field of view as the statement of ingredients; and directly next to the statement of ingredients; and be distinctly separate from the bold ingredients.

Old labelling requirements

New labelling requirements (PEAL)

What is the deadline for compliance with PEAL?

The deadline for compliance is 25 February 2024.

From 25 February 2021, businesses have 3 years to comply with the new requirements. During this transition period, food businesses can comply with either the existing allergen declaration requirements in the Code, or the new requirements (PEAL).

At the end of the transition period, there will be a 2-year stock-in-trade period. During this time any food labelled with the existing allergen declarations before the end of the transition period may be sold for up to 2 years after the end of the transition period.

Do you need to comply with the PEAL?

If you are printing ingredients on labels for food, you may need to take action to be PEAL compliant. Wedderburn is here to help. Wedderburn offers a complete range of PEAL compliant weighing scales and labelling solutions. Our team can assess your current labelling requirements and advise if you need to take action to be PEAL compliant.

Don’t risk missing the February 2024 deadline. Give yourself plenty of time to update your equipment and allergen database and avoid any last-minute stress. Contact us today for a FREE assessment of your current labelling requirements.