Food Labelling & Coeliac Disease

How to label food allergens for gluten products

Blog Updated: September 2024

If you’re a food supplier looking to create labels for your food products – you’ve come to the right place. The EU regulations set strict rules in the way allergens are presented on the labels of pre-packed food, ensuring information is clear and making it easier for customers to make safe choices.

One of the most common allergens present in foods is gluten, which can be deadly to people suffering from Coeliac Disease. There’s also a growing number of people who are choosing to eat a gluten-free diet, making it important to highlight any gluten that may be contained in your products.

Gluten-Free Labelling

By law, you can only classify your product as gluten-free if it contains 20 parts per million (ppm) or less of gluten. It’s almost impossible to have a completely gluten-free product due to natural ingredients such as rice containing small traces of gluten.

Research shows that this tiny amount is not toxic to people with coeliac disease, and as such any product with less than the above amount can be labelled as gluten-free.

Gluten-free is a USP, so make it clear on your labels. Coeliac UK also created a crossed-grain symbol that you can use on your packaging which is widely recognised for gluten-free foods.

May Contain Gluten Labels

If your product includes gluten-free ingredients, but could potentially be contaminated due to the manufacturing or packaging process, you must instead include “May Contain Gluten” on your product labels.

These labels may say:

May contain traces of gluten
Made on a line handling wheat
Made in a factory also handling wheat
Not suitable for people with coeliac disease due to manufacturing methods

Even if the risk is small, we’d recommend using caution when it comes to your packaging to ensure the safety of your customers.

Highlighting Allergens on Food Labels

Previously, food labels could display the term ‘Contains Gluten’ to summarise allergens, but this is no longer permissible.

A clear list of the ingredients that contain gluten (such as ‘wheat’, ‘rye’ and ‘barley’) found in cereals, will need to be clearly emphasised in the manufacturers’ chosen method. As illustrated below:

Companies can use different methods of emphasis, as long as the allergens stand out, such as:

Bold
Italics
Highlighting
Contrasting colours
CAPITALISING TEXT
Underlining text

An allergy advice statement may still be added to the label or packaging; directing consumers to the ingredients list of allergens. The new EU food labelling regulations do not only apply to packaged food but unpackaged foods as well such as:

Foods served in restaurants
Meals served in hospitals, schools, workplaces, universities and prisons
Including foods sold loose, for example in deli counters, butchers and fishmongers, and bakeries

In whatever way the unpackaged food is served, the new food labelling regulations state that any allergens present in the food must be communicated to the customer. For example, stated on the menu, verbally, or printed on special labels.

If you require any labels for either packaged or unpackaged food items, get in touch with the LabelsPlus team. We can guide you to create and produce food labels suited to your business and product.

Disclaimer: All information is correct at the time of publication and should only be used as a guide. We do not take any responsibility for any errors or omissions.