Supermarket fined £36,000 for allergen labelling breaches

A supermarket chain has been convicted and fined £36,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,000 by a Magistrates Court after being prosecuted by local Trading Standards for committing serious breaches of food allergen labelling requirements.

During a routine inspection, Environmental Health Officers identified multiple cases of non-compliance with allergen labelling requirements. Three products were incorrectly labelled and failed to appropriately declare all the allergens present as is legally required for pre-packed products.

Despite labelling concerns being raised on previous occasions the supermarket continued to produce incorrect allergen labels on its products. The labels were produced by head office and distributed to several stores.

The importance of accurate allergen labelling cannot be understated. Primarily for the health of consumers, and consumer’s loved ones, who live with serious allergies, but also for businesses ethical and reputational standing.