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ing and Consumer Protection Act, which took effect in 2006, requires
that labels of foods containing the eight major food allergens declare
the allergen in plain language. Though not required, some manufacturers also include a precautionary statement (i.e., “May contain”) to
list the presence of major allergens that may be contained in the food
due to cross-contact that occurs in shared facilities. FALCPA is the result of years of hard work and a cooperative effort involving the food
industry, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), FAAN, other consumer advocacy groups, concerned families nationwide and bi-parti-san efforts by federal legislators, but there are still improvements to be
made.
“M“Most families with food allergies expect minimally that a ‘free of’ claim means made in a dedicated facility—a facility that does not contain
the allergen(s) they need to avoid.”
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In a study published in 2010 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology allergens were found in over 5 percent of food items with advisory labels (i.e., “May contain” statements) and were also found in
items without warnings (close to 2 percent). In the June 2010 issue of
Journal of the American Dietetic Association, a study sampling 22 grains
that claimed to be inherently gluten-free found that 32 percent contained levels of gluten higher than 20 ppm. This kind of contamination is often because many suppliers who process grains that are
naturally gluten-free also use the same facility and equipment to
process grains that contain gluten.
“In our experience, most families with food allergies expect mini-
mally that a ‘free of’ claim means made in a dedicated facility—a facil-
ity that does not contain the allergen(s) they need to avoid,” Robbins
says. “Our tag line is ‘Treats you can trust’ because of our rigorous
standards. As the mother of a child with life-threatening food allergies,
it was important to me that the most allergic consumer be able to con-
fidently and safely enjoy our cookies.”
Robbins points out that just a trace of an allergen can lead to an al-
lergic reaction. With that in mind, HomeFree goes through an ex-
haustive process to ensure the safety of its consumers. “We bake in our
own dedicated facility so that we have full control over our allergen
standards. Our facility is strictly free of peanuts, tree nuts, eggs and
dairy, even in the staff room,” she says.
“We source our ingredients to be free from cross-contamination
(despite the cost of shipping from the safest rather than the closest
source), and double check by testing in our own lab every batch of in-
gredients and random batches of cookies for traces of peanut, al-
mond, egg and milk protein. We test our gluten-free cookies for
gluten as well.”
Testing is important when making “free-from” claims even when
