Poor understanding of allergen management could spell disaster for the food industry, leading to major food scares and costing millions of pounds, according to one industry expert.
"There's another Sudan 1 waiting to happen with allergies," said technical consultant Kevin Swoffer, formerly head of technical services at the British Retail Consortium.
"There is going to be a major debate at the Food Standards Agency [FSA] if a big company says 'sorry, we've had a mix up'," said Swoffer. In particular, he was critical of articles 13 and 14 of the FSA's guidance on how to manage an allergen incident. He claimed they were unclear and too generic.
While most large companies were extremely open and honest in their approach to allergen control, even some of them occasionally got it wrong. And most smaller companies were far less aware of the allergen issue, he claimed.
"If the major players are getting it wrong, what is happening with the rest of the industry?" he asked. "The bigger companies are attempting to get this under control, but there is a knowledge gap between small and large manufacturers."
The FSA's Annual Report of Incidents recorded a total of 15 allergen notifications in 2006. "They are not even looking for it [allergen problems] at the moment," said Swoffer.
"Once they have got their act together, that figure could go through the roof."
He added that a number of ingredients suppliers - including some spice firms in India - were worryingly ignorant about the dangers of allergens.
"I am concerned that there are problems out there. India has not got a clue about allergen labelling. It is not even on its radar," he said. "It really makes me worry that further down the line, the message has not got across."
His comments came as UK communications and risk management consultancy Razor claimed it had been inundated by inquiries from food and drink manufacturers for crisis management support packages linked to product recall pre-emption and alerts. Razor has teamed up with global insurance provider XL Insurance.
Razor said interest in the service was noticeable from contract manufacturers and more exposed categories including meat, dairy and drink manufacturers.
"It seems that some sectors have realised their potential vulnerability faster than most, although we are waiting to see how this trend develops," said Razor md Chris Woodcock.