Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI)2012-10-092012-10-092012-05http://hdl.handle.net/10147/247732The FSAI is responsible for the enforcement of food law in Ireland which is achieved through service contracts with official agencies. To ensure a high level of consumer protection, the FSAI audits the work of the official agencies each year and may also carry out focused audits of food businesses. The consumption of certain foods or food ingredients can result in responses by the human body that are termed food allergies or food intolerances depending on the type of reaction. Of the many food ingredients known to cause food allergies or intolerances, only 14 must be declared on packaging according to EU food law. However, the presence of these food allergens must be declared only when they have been used intentionally as ingredients but not when they are present as low level contaminants. In addition, certain derivatives of a number of food allergens are exempt from mandatory allergen labelling because the protein components known to elicit the allergic response have been removed during processing. The FSAI operates an early warning system whereby people with a food allergy or intolerance who are registered with the FSAI are notified by SMS text messaging of any food incidents as they arise that may potentially affect their allergy. In recent years, the number of food allergen alerts has been increasing. In 2011, the FSAI in conjunction with its official agencies, issued 20 such alerts and dealt with 44 food incidents related to food allergens. The FSAI has been reviewing the whole area of food allergies and intolerances with a view to strengthening the safeguards for those people who live with these conditions. The FSAI is examining its own role and that of the official agencies in the sampling and analysis of foods and their labels. In addition, the FSAI has requested that the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) provides information and guidance on the prevalence of food allergies in the EU as well as any scientific developments that would assist the overall work of risk assessors and risk managers. It was against this backdrop that the FSAI decided to conduct an audit to assess how a selection of Irish food businesses manage and control food allergens. The audit was part of the planned programme of targeted audits undertaken by the FSAI in 2011 and involved 12 unannounced site visits to different types of manufacturing establishments including bakeries, chocolate manufacturers, convenience foods and snack producers, as well as meat and fish establishments. This summary report brings together the findings from the individual site inspections from which overall conclusions can be drawn and recommendations for improvement proposed.enFOOD SAFETYFOOD ALLERGYFOOD PRODUCTION AND QUALITYReport