What is Allergen Checker? How does it work? - A Brief Guide to Allergens
Allergen Checker has been available for businesses since 2014. With our extensive knowledge in the catering and hospitality industry, we are perfectly positioned to help businesses navigate the world of allergens.
Providing the right information to customers has never been more important, with 20% of the UK suffering from one or more allergies it is imperative to get it right. In this blog, we’ll break down what Allergen Checker is and why we think it is necessary for businesses that serve food.
Allergen Checker is a fully digital SaaS system that allows you to create and manage your menus on our software. The many benefits of having digital software where you can manage your menus enable you to quickly update and amend them when you need to. Having various options which make labeling and managing ingredient lists clear, specifically when it comes to allergens, is important when dealing with food safety.
Our software allows you to print your menus which includes our simple and effective icon guide. These icons make it easy for your customers to identify which allergens are found in the various items on your menu.
Our system allows you to print labels which you can use in various ways around your kitchen. You can print the labels and add them to take away boxes or packets, or use them for internal labelling of ingredients. The versatility these labels provide is up to you and how you function as a business.
Using our QR code system allows your customers to quickly and efficiently locate the full list of ingredients on your menu. Not only relying on our simplistic icons listed on the printed menus, but the QR codes also provide full ingredient information.
Allergen Checker is simple, we have grown our system based on our customer's needs. When you sign up with us you are entitled to a free 7-day trial. During that trial, you are able to create an account and begin adding your menu. When you have created your menu, you can then go in and manage the ingredients that each dish contains. Our simple icons and labeling system allow you to manage and update your menu as and when you need it. You can create menus and dishes in minutes and manage each one via our software. We have an extensive list of tutorials on our youtube channel.
There are 14 major allergens people suffer with;
Celery
Cereals Containing Gluten
Crustaceans
Eggs
Fish
Lupin
Milk
Molluscs
Mustard
Nuts (Tree nuts)
Peanuts
Sesame
Soya
Sulfur Dioxide (Sulphites)
Some may suffer from multiple allergies, whereas others may only suffer from one. The level of severity people can experience varies from person to person. When you have a severe allergy it is important to understand that even traces of an allergen can cause a reaction.
Reactions are caused by antibodies the immune system creates when it comes into contact with a protein from one of the 14 allergens. The body views this protein as harmful and attempts to fend it off. This is what causes the reactions we see, such as swelling, rashes, and difficulty breathing to name a few.
Due to the health risks involved with food and food preparation, it is important now more than ever to make allergen labelling clear. Clarity on ingredients not only serves the customers but businesses as well. Leaving no room for second-guessing provides your customers with the satisfaction that you take food health and safety seriously.
Starting with Allergen Checker couldn’t be easier. Click here and follow the instructions to create your account. Once you have created your account and completed all the information you are free to use the software for 7 days. Here you can add your menus and dishes and manage the allergens found in the meals you provide.
We are always open to hearing from our customers, if you have any questions or feedback regarding Allergen Checker or you wish to know more contact us now.