Knowledge of what they are and how they are declared on pre packed foods is quite important to the people of Canada who have allergy or intolerance to certain foods. The nutrition facts label current in Canada has the aim of advising the customer on the existence of allergens in a particular product and this is very helpful in preventing instances of food borne illnesses. The purpose of this guide is to provide information on how one can read and understand the allergen information of foods labels from Canada to avoid such products.
Allergen labelling in Canada: background information
Some of the major health issues that are common with a greater percentage of the Canadian population includes food allergies. Some of the possible outcomes of allergy include; Inconvenience to the patient, the patient is in danger of death. The general consumer protection policy of Health Canada supplements it by insisting that Advisory and product information for common food allergens, sources of gluten and added sulphites are to be declared on the label of all packaged foods.
There are 11 priority allergens recognized in Canada, which are required by law to be declared on food labels:
- Peanuts
- Tree nuts
- Milk
- Eggs
- Fish
- Crustaceans and shellfish
- Soy
- Wheat and triticale
- Sesame seeds
- Mustard
- Sulfites
Ingredient List
In particular, every packaged food sold in Canada must be accompanied by an ingredient list that contains the complete list of the constituent components. Any of the 11 priority allergens if present must be declared by the name that is most recognizable by consumers. For instance, while labelling if the product has milk it has to be labelled as containing milk and not just casein (a milk protein). This simplifies the task of making allergens recognisable to consumers who do not get to study parts of ingredient names for a long time.
Contains Statement
Beside the list of ingredients, a majority of products have a ‘Contains’ statement that encompasses all the allergens in the food. A statement that remains rather standard and most commonly it falls below the ingredient list and the words are expressed heavily and unambiguously. For example, a label might say, “Contains: The three are Milk, Soy and Wheat With this, the consumer can easily tell whether or not the food they are about to eat is okay for them.
May Contain Statement
Some labels also use a phrase such as ‘May Contain’, ‘Processed in a facility that also uses’, to point to potential cross contact during production. For instance, a product, which might not have peanuts as any of the ingredients, may state that it ‘Contains peanuts.’ This seems relevant for extreme Allergy patients where even the tiniest presence of allergens can trigger off severe reactions.
Gluten and Sulphite Labelling
A number of other ingredients that may cause allergic reactions are allowed, but items containing sources of gluten (wheat, barley, rye) or added sulphites must be marked. If a product contains gluten this should be declared in the list of ingredients and in the ‘Contains’ statement regardless of whether this is a significant ingredient in the product. In the same way, if sulphites end up being above 10ppm, in other words 10 parts of this product per million of the foodstuff, this must be put on the label.
Helpful Information for Food Allergic Consumers in Relating Nutrition Facts Labels to Their Allergy Condition in Canada
Always Read Labels: Every time you buy, for example, a shampoo and conditioner for your hair type, always read the label because your favorite company may also swop ingredients on you.
Look for Hidden Sources: Some of these allergens may be in foods but they may be recognized under other names. For example, caseinate and whey are proteinates from milk and lecithin is normally extracted from soy UK Computer Science. Remember to accustom oneself with the synonyms for the allergens one should stay away from.
Be Cautious with Imported Foods: Regarding this, you should know that labelling policies may vary from those of the Canadian laws in the case you are purchasing imported products. In this case, always check the lists of ingredients present in the food and the allergens announcement.
Seek Out Allergen-Free Products: Lastly all the manufactures provide allergen free kinds of many foods that we commonly consume today. Also, try to use the packaging that has labels stating that the product doesn’t contain certain allergens for example ‘Peanut free’ or ‘Gluten free’ and so on.
Conclusion
Nutrition facts label in Canada containing allergen information is helpful to those who have food allergies. By going through the list of ingredients and the “Contains” statements, and the “May Contain” statements, it is easier for the Canadians to avoid cases of allergic reactions to foods that they consume. Whether you are experiences severe allergies to specific foods or you are simply trying to avoid certain ingredients, it will be very important to know more how to read these labels for you to be safe from allergens.
