Tool · United Kingdom
Allergen checker — the 14 of Annex 2
Paste an ingredients list. The checker marks the 14 allergens of Annex 2 of the retained Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 — and shows the thing that catches businesses coming from the United States: in Great Britain the allergen is emphasised inside the ingredient list, not in a “Contains” line beside it. Free, no sign-up, everything stays in your browser.
A first pass based on word patterns, not a legally binding declaration. An empty result is no guarantee that a product is free from allergens. Before you print a label, have the list verified against the actual recipe by a qualified person.
The place is the difference, not the list
Article 21(1)(b) of the retained Regulation:
“… the name of the substance or product as listed in Annex 2 is emphasised through a typeset that clearly distinguishes it from the rest of the list of ingredients, for instance by means of the font, style or background colour.”
Two things follow, and both are regularly got wrong by businesses used to a US label:
- There is no “Contains” route. In the United States, § 343(w)(1) offers a summary statement or parentheses in the list. Here there is one place: the list itself.
- Only the Annex 2 name is emphasised, not the whole ingredient. In wheat flour that is wheat — “flour” stays in normal type.
Article 21(1) has a second limb for the case where there is no ingredient list at all: then the label carries the word “contains” followed by the substance from Annex 2. That is the exception, and it is where the American habit comes from — but it is not the normal British route.
Fourteen, and five of them vanish in the United States
| Allergen | Great Britain | United States | Australia |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milk, egg, fish, crustaceans, tree nuts, peanuts, soya, sesame | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Cereals containing gluten | ✅ six cereals | wheat only | ✅ by cereal |
| Celery | ✅ | — | — |
| Mustard | ✅ | — | — |
| Lupin | ✅ | — | ✅ |
| Molluscs | ✅ | — | ✅ |
| Sulphites ≥ 10 mg/kg | ✅ | ingredient list only | ✅ |
If you sell on both sides of the Atlantic, the column that matters is the middle one: a British list taken to the United States declares five things the law there does not ask for, and a US list brought here is missing them. Our US checker shows the same text from the other side.
What the checker cannot see
- A carrier inside a flavouring — the words in your text do not say what is in it.
- A processing aid, which may not be in the ingredient list at all.
- Cross-contact — a precautionary statement is voluntary and is not part of Article 21.
- Whether sulphites reach 10 mg/kg, the threshold in Annex 2.
And for food prepacked for direct sale the rules are different again — see Natasha’s Law.
Frequently asked questions
How many allergens does a UK label declare?
Fourteen — Annex 2 of the retained Regulation carries the same list as the EU one.
Is a “Contains” statement enough in the UK?
No. The emphasis goes inside the ingredient list; a summary line does not replace it.
Does the whole ingredient go in bold?
No — only the Annex 2 name. In “wheat flour” that is “wheat”.
What if a product has no ingredient list at all?
Then Article 21(1) asks for the word “contains” plus the substance — the exception, not the rule.
What about food prepacked for direct sale?
Natasha’s Law applies; we work through it in its own guide.
Can I use the checker output as my label?
No. It is a first pass and has to be verified against the recipe.
Wording quoted from the retained Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 as it applies in Great Britain, Article 21(1) and Annex 2, on legislation.gov.uk. Northern Ireland follows the EU version. The detection works on word patterns in the text you paste and makes no statement about your product. This page is information, not legal advice — the responsibility for a label stays with the food business operator.