Fourteen allergens. One list worth knowing.

The list at a glance

The 14 allergens that UK food law requires businesses to declare when they are used as ingredients or processing aids:

• Cereals containing gluten — wheat (including spelt and khorasan), rye, barley, oats
• Crustaceans — prawns, crabs, lobster, crayfish
• Eggs
• Fish
• Peanuts
• Soybeans
• Milk — including lactose
• Nuts — almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios, macadamias
• Celery — including celeriac
• Mustard
• Sesame seeds
• Sulphur dioxide and sulphites — above 10mg/kg or 10mg/l
• Lupin — including seeds and flour
• Molluscs — mussels, oysters, snails, squid

Cereals, milk, eggs and the obvious ones

The top of the list is mostly familiar: cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, soybeans, milk and tree nuts. Two details deserve attention anyway — "cereals containing gluten" covers wheat and its relatives spelt and khorasan, plus rye, barley and oats; and "milk" in this list includes lactose, the milk sugar. Source: FSA technical guidance on the 14 allergens (opens in a new tab).

"Nuts" in the legal sense means tree nuts — the guidance names almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios and macadamias. Peanuts are listed separately because they are a different plant family; a peanut allergy and a tree-nut allergy are not the same thing. Source: FSA technical guidance on the 14 allergens (opens in a new tab).

The same split exists under the sea: crustaceans (prawns, crabs, lobster) and molluscs (mussels, oysters, squid, snails) are two separate entries on the list. A "seafood allergy" is shorthand that papers over a real distinction — you can react to one group and not the other, so the precise category matters when you ask. Source: FSA technical guidance on the 14 allergens (opens in a new tab).

The quiet ones

The bottom of the list is where surprises live. Celery, including celeriac, turns up in stocks, soups and spice mixes. Mustard hides in sauces, dressings, marinades and pickles. Sesame appears as seeds, oil and tahini.

Sulphur dioxide and sulphites — the preservative family in wine, beer, cider and some dried fruit and soft drinks — must be declared when above 10mg/kg or 10mg/l in the finished food. Lupin flour appears in some breads, pastries and pasta. Molluscs cover mussels, oysters, snails and squid. Source: FSA technical guidance on the 14 allergens (opens in a new tab).

Whatever the form, the category is what counts: peanut oil is still peanut, celery seeds are still celery, dried milk powder is still milk. The list names families of allergens, not particular presentations — so read for the group, not the exact word.

And the duty is not just about plated food: drinks count. A pint of beer is a cereals-containing-gluten declaration waiting to happen, wine and cider are where sulphites most often appear, and a cocktail can combine several of the fourteen at once — worth asking about before you order, not after.

Where each allergen commonly hides

Common hiding places worth an extra question: pesto and marzipan (nuts), Worcestershire-style sauces (fish), stock and soup bases (celery), glazes, dressings and marinades (egg, mustard, milk), wine and dried fruit (sulphites), tahini and seeded bakery (sesame), seafood sauces and paella-style dishes (crustaceans, molluscs, fish), and some breads and flours (lupin, cereals).

The pattern is less about memorising every dish and more about knowing where to look: sauces, bases, coatings, toppings and dressings tend to concentrate more declared allergens than the main ingredient does. When in doubt, ask — the business is required to know. Source: FSA best practice for non-prepacked foods (opens in a new tab).

One more honest caveat: a declaration covers what was deliberately used — ingredients and processing aids alike. Shared fryers, chopping boards and tongs are a separate question — that is cross-contact, and it is exactly why the conversation matters more than the menu alone.

What the law requires businesses to tell you

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, a food business must inform you if any of the 14 allergens have been used as ingredients or processing aids in what it sells — including free food and drinks made to order. For non-prepacked food — café meals, deli counters, restaurant dishes — FSA best practice is written allergen information supported by a conversation: a menu note or allergen matrix, plus staff who can answer questions. Source: FSA best practice for non-prepacked foods (opens in a new tab).

Food packed on the premises before you order — a wrapped sandwich from the café fridge — counts as prepacked for direct sale and must carry the food's name and a full ingredients list with any of the 14 allergens emphasised. Scotland operates equivalent rules through Food Standards Scotland, and outside the UK the required list and rules differ. Source: FSA technical guidance on the 14 allergens (opens in a new tab).

On a packaged label, the declared allergens must stand out in the ingredients list — bold, capitals or another emphasis — which is the same list the ingredients-list guide walks through. For phone or online orders, ask before you order rather than at collection; the obligation follows the business, not the counter.

When 'may contain' means something different

'May contain' and similar warnings are precautionary allergen information — voluntary wording about unintentional presence through cross-contact, not an ingredient or processing-aid declaration. The FSA treats it as risk-based communication rather than a routine catch-all: it flags cross-contact risk, not a recipe. Source: FSA food allergy and intolerance (opens in a new tab).

The practical reading: an emphasised allergen in a list means it is an ingredient; 'may contain' means the maker cannot rule out traces. Both matter if you have an allergy — and neither can be read off a photograph.

If you want the everyday version of this list in your pocket, the allergen questions guide is the companion piece — this page is the reference it leans on.

What a photo cannot do

A photo cannot rule an allergen in or out, and this guide is not a diagnosis. If you suspect a food allergy — yours or your child's — see a GP, who can refer you for proper testing. Call 999 for the specific signs of a serious reaction: sudden swelling of the lips, mouth, tongue or throat, struggling to breathe or swallow, or someone feeling faint or going limp and unresponsive. Most reactions are mild — but those signs are never a wait-and-see.

For eating out, the allergen questions guide turns this list into the actual conversation, and the reactions explainer separates allergy from intolerance and coeliac disease. A Food Says Hi lookup can give a dish's likely name and context — never an allergen verdict.