In the ever-evolving landscape of the food and drink industry, one aspect that has gained increasing attention in recent years is food allergies. These allergies can pose serious risks to consumers, making it crucial for businesses to prioritise food allergy safety within their business processes. At Serve Legal, we are dedicated to helping businesses maintain the highest standards of allergen compliance. Our mission is to support the food and drink industry in ensuring that they provide safe and responsible services to all customers, including those with food allergies.
Our team were thrilled to be invited to attend the Food Allergy Aware Mock Trial 2023 as a Silver Sponsor, to support allergy awareness campaigns and promote Serve Legal’s supportive service offering.
The Food Allergy Aware’s Mock Trial is an annual event that brings together educators, the legal profession and industry leaders to simulate legal proceedings related to food allergy incidents. It provides a unique platform for participants to understand the legal ramifications of food allergy incidents, explore best practices, and share insights into preventing such incidents.
This year's event was particularly enlightening as it brought together a whole host of voices and experiences from across the sector. Our team were particularly interested in the representative of the ‘prosecution’, and his statement that food retail businesses will be viewed in a much more positive light in they can demonstrate that their food allergy safety processes are working on the ground, instead of just having a ‘shiny policy on the shelf’. This is exactly the mission of Serve Legal’s customer experience allergen audit; to support food businesses to demonstrate what is happening on the ground.
Having the chance to witness a crafted mock trial, resembling real-world situations, allowed our team to witness the legal implications and consequences that Serve Legal’s Customer Experience Allergen Audits seek to avoid.
Promoting Industry Standards
Throughout the Food Allergy Aware Mock Trial 2023, the importance of promoting industry standards of allergen compliance was emphasised. Serve Legal is deeply committed to testing these standards, which encompass a range of practices, including:
- Staff Training: Ensuring that all staff members are well-trained in identifying food allergies, cross-contamination risks, and appropriate responses when serving customers with allergies.
- Clear Labelling: Clearly labelling menu items with allergen information to help customers make informed choices.
- Allergen Protocols: Implementing strict allergen understanding in the kitchen to prevent cross-contamination.
- Communication: Establishing effective communication between customers with allergies and restaurant staff to address concerns and provide accurate information about menu items.
- Legal Compliance: Staying up-to-date with relevant laws and regulations, and ensuring compliance with them.
At Serve Legal, we believe in a proactive approach to allergy compliance. Our participation in events like the Food Allergy Aware Mock Trial 2023 reinforces our commitment to supporting clients with a breadth of allergen knowledge and support.
We are proud to continue this commitment through our ongoing relationship with Anaphylaxis UK who are, this week, celebrating Anaphylaxis Awareness Week with their #WearItBright campaign. Anaphylaxis UK are committed to creating a industry standard for allergy compliance, one that the Serve Legal team echo and support. This week, we will be encouraging our auditors to wear orange to show their support for Anaphylaxis’ #WearItBright campaign to raise awareness for those suffering with food allergies. If you wish to find out any further information about Serve Legal’s working partnership with Food Allergy Aware, Anaphylaxis UK or enquire about our Customer Experience Allergen Audits, please feel free to contact us via businessenquiries@servelegal.co.uk or visit our services page.
