Natasha Ednan-Laperouse was 15 when she died after eating a Pret baguette that contained sesame seeds not listed on the label. The law that carries her name came into force on 1 October 2021 and changed how every UK food business handles allergens on prepacked-for-direct-sale food.
If you run a restaurant, café, bakery, sandwich shop, or any dine-in or takeaway service, this is non-negotiable.
What the law actually says
All food that's prepared and packaged on the same premises where it's sold (PPDS) must carry:
- The name of the food.
- A full ingredients list.
- The 14 regulated allergens, emphasised (bold, italic, or a different colour).
For food served directly to the customer — like a plate on a dine-in table — the rule is slightly softer: the allergen information must be available, whether on the menu itself, a poster, or verbally if asked. But the law strongly suggests "written and accessible" is safer than "verbal on request."
The 14 allergens
You need to be able to flag every one of these on every item you serve:
Celery · Cereals containing gluten · Crustaceans · Eggs · Fish · Lupin · Milk · Molluscs · Mustard · Peanuts · Sesame · Soy · Sulphur dioxide (sulphites) · Tree nuts.
Where most restaurants slip up
- Staff memory. A new team member doesn't know the menu contains mustard in the vinaigrette. A customer asks; they say no. Someone gets hurt. The restaurant is liable.
- Menu changes without a paper trail. Chef swaps the bread supplier; the gluten-free option isn't gluten-free any more; nobody updates the menu.
- Verbal disclosure only. Works fine until it doesn't, and when something goes wrong, there's no record of what the customer was told.
How software helps
A digital menu where each item is tagged with its allergens solves all three:
- Staff can't forget — the information is shown to the customer before they order.
- Menu changes are audit-trailed; you know who changed what and when.
- The customer self-serves the information, so there's no ambiguity about what was disclosed.
At OrderTap every menu item supports all 14 regulated allergens. They're shown to customers as "Contains: …" on every menu item that has them tagged. It's free on every plan — we don't gate compliance features.
What this does NOT replace
Software is a tool, not a get-out-of-jail card. You still need:
- Staff allergen training (most councils require this for one person per shift).
- Clean practice to prevent cross-contamination.
- A documented allergens register for your kitchen.
The software makes the customer-facing side of allergens reliable. The kitchen side is still your job.
If you're not sure about anything in your operation
Talk to your local Environmental Health Officer. The FSA also has a free online allergen training module — highly recommended, takes about 30 minutes.
This article is informational, not legal advice. For complex cases, consult a qualified food-law solicitor.