The 14 allergens

Since 2014, every food business in Ireland must be able to give customers written information on which of the 14 EU-listed allergens are in each dish (S.I. No. 489 of 2014). Getting it wrong can put a customer in hospital and the business in court. Every person who takes an order or plates food needs to know this.

1. Cereals containing gluten (wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt, kamut)
2. Crustaceans (prawns, crab, lobster)
3. Eggs
4. Fish
5. Peanuts
6. Soybeans
7. Milk (including lactose)
8. Nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios, macadamias)
9. Celery (including celeriac)
10. Mustard
11. Sesame seeds
12. Sulphur dioxide and sulphites above 10mg/kg or 10mg/l
13. Lupin
14. Molluscs (mussels, oysters, squid, snails)

Peanuts are legumes, not nuts, and are listed separately. Oats count under gluten unless certified gluten-free.

• Celery in stock cubes, soups and gravies.
• Sulphites in wine, dried fruit, some chips and sausages.
• Mustard in dressings, mayonnaise and marinades.
• Sesame in burger buns, hummus and some oils.
• Milk in butter used to finish a sauce or a steak.
• Fish in Worcestershire sauce and Caesar dressing (anchovy).
• Gluten in soy sauce, beer batter and many stocks.

1. Ask every table: "Any allergies or dietary needs?" Don't wait to be told.
2. Check the venue's allergen matrix, not your memory. If the matrix is out of date, stop and ask the chef.
3. Write the allergy on the docket and tell the pass out loud.
4. Cross-contact counts: a clean board, clean tongs, a fresh fryer. Chips cooked in the same oil as battered fish contain gluten.
5. If you're not sure, say so and offer another dish. Never guess.