Quick answer
Restaurants and takeaways must provide accurate, accessible information about the regulated allergens used as ingredients in non-prepacked food. Oral information is permitted under the relevant rules, with clear signposting to where it is obtained. FSA best practice recommends written information supported by a staff conversation; keep that recommendation distinct from the legal requirements.
Identify the food and country before applying the rules
FSA technical guidance for England, Northern Ireland and Wales covers non-prepacked food such as restaurant meals and items packed at a customer’s request. Food Standards Scotland’s guidance explains Scottish information routes. Food prepacked for direct sale or other prepacked products have different requirements.
For an ordinary non-prepacked meal, the allergen-information duty is not automatically a duty to display a full ingredients list. Information must cover the regulated allergens in the entire dish as served, including components and accompaniments.
Separate requirements from recommended practice
| Point | How to apply it |
|---|---|
| Accurate accessible information | Keep the ingredient evidence current and make the information available to the customer. |
| Oral information | Provide clear visible signposting to the staff or location where information can be obtained, using the relevant national rules. |
| Written information plus conversation | FSA recommended best practice; choose a usable written format and staff support. |
| A law-change claim | Verify enacted current requirements before describing a proposal or campaign as law. |
Do not describe “Owen’s Law” or a campaign request as an enacted blanket UK rule without checking the actual current legislation. This guide reflects the official sources checked on 25 October 2026.
Choose a format staff and customers can use
The FSA best-practice guidance describes written options such as menu information, a separate matrix or digital information supported by a conversation. Make names and symbols understandable, including the specific cereal or nut where required.
Give staff access to the controlled information and a clear escalation route. A handwritten notice saying “ask staff” is ineffective if the staff then guess or cannot obtain the current recipe. Digital information needs an alternative for customers who cannot access it and a backup during technical failure.
Cover the whole dish and actual service
Illustrative example: a menu entry accurately describes a main item but omits its sauce and side. The information must reflect the complete food served. Check substitutions, specials, drinks, dressings and optional additions rather than relying on the standard main recipe alone.
For a buffet, provide information for individual items rather than one statement for the whole display. For online or telephone ordering, allergen information must also be available before purchase and at delivery. A notice inside the premises cannot perform that remote-order function.
Keep versions and conversations consistent
Trace a menu entry back to the recipe and delivered ingredients. Test whether staff can explain a changed component and whether an allergy order reaches the kitchen and correct customer. Withdraw obsolete printed and digital information together.
Use the existing allergy-order handover guide for the practical service chain. Accurate information informs the customer; it does not by itself prove the kitchen can meet a particular preparation request. Explain limitations honestly before accepting it.
Next steps
- Identify the non-prepacked information route and relevant country.
- Provide accurate information, with clear signposting if using oral answers.
- Use written information plus conversation as recommended best practice.
- Check the full dish, staff access, updates and remote-order arrangements.
Read the official practical guidance — Use the current source alongside the procedures for your own business.