How to prove allergen due diligence (when an inspector asks)

Most kitchens know their allergens. Far fewer can readily show what they knew, who checked it, and when — which is what an enforcement officer or auditor looks for after the fact.

In England and Wales, the "due-diligence defence" under the Food Safety Act 1990 (section 21) allows a food business to defend against certain offences by proving it "took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence" to avoid committing the offence. The practical consequence is that the defence rests on demonstrable evidence, not on intentions or undocumented habits. (Source: Food Safety Act 1990, s.21 — see legislation.gov.uk; verify the current consolidated text.)

Note: this is general information, not legal advice. Allergen law and enforcement differ by jurisdiction — confirm your obligations with a suitably qualified professional.

What the rules require you to communicate

Separately from any defence, you have a positive duty to provide accurate allergen information. Under Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on Food Information to Consumers (retained in UK law and enforced via the Food Information Regulations 2014), the 14 named allergens in Annex II must be declared where present. For prepacked-for-direct-sale (PPDS) food, "Natasha's Law" — The Food Information (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2019, in force from 1 October 2021 — requires full ingredient lists with the allergens emphasised. (Sources: EU 1169/2011 Annex II; Food Information Regulations 2014; The Food Information (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2019 — legislation.gov.uk. Verify the version in force for your nation of the UK.)

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) publishes detailed allergen guidance for businesses at food.gov.uk, including expectations around accurate information and record-keeping. (Source: FSA allergen guidance, food.gov.uk — verify the specific page before relying on it.)

What "good evidence" tends to contain

The regulations tell you what to communicate; they don't prescribe a single record format. In our experience working with kitchens, evidence that holds up under scrutiny shares four traits (this is our practitioner view, not a legal standard):

• A clear source for each allergen call — the printed ingredient label, a supplier specification, or a documented decision about a scratch-made component.
• A named, identifiable person who reviewed and confirmed the dish's allergen declaration.
• A timestamp, because allergen information goes out of date when recipes or suppliers change.
• A traceable link from the dish back to the evidence behind each claim.

A practical self-check

Pick a dish at random and ask: "What did we check for this, who checked it, and when?" If the answer is fast and points to a source and a name, your evidence is usable. If it takes minutes of digging — or lives only in someone's memory — that's the gap to close, because the moment it's needed is exactly the moment under pressure.

Where software helps — and where it shouldn't

Tools can make capturing that evidence routine: photograph the packet, record the allergens and their source, and attach a named, time-stamped sign-off. What software should not do is make the declaration for you. That's the principle PlateProof is built on — assist, never certify: the AI suggests, a named person signs, the operator owns the declaration, and the system keeps the signed, photo-backed record.

See how it works →

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Sources (verify before relying)

• Food Safety Act 1990, s.21 (due-diligence defence) — legislation.gov.uk
• Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 (Food Information to Consumers), Annex II — legislation.gov.uk / EUR-Lex
• The Food Information Regulations 2014 — legislation.gov.uk
• The Food Information (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2019 ("Natasha's Law") — legislation.gov.uk
• Food Standards Agency allergen guidance for businesses — food.gov.uk

Citations name the primary sources; confirm exact wording, the version in force, and the live URL before publishing or relying on any claim.