Food Allergy Friendly Massachusetts

Beginning tomorrow, February 1, Massachusetts restaurants will be required to have a certified food protection manager on staff. This staff member must must have completed allergen-awareness training through a state program and certification must be renewed every five years.

In addition, restaurant managers in MA must make sure their staff is trained and educated in the area of food allergy and the manager must deliver the meal to the table of the food allergic diner.

Yeah Massachusetts!

I've been saying for years, if Disney can make food allergic diners feel comfortable, so can other restaurants. MA is the first state to enact this type of policy. Here's hoping others soon follow.

I see a family vacation to MA in our near future. My kids would love the Freedom Trail and I've always wanted to visit Martha's Vineyard. How much easier our trip planning will be knowing we can speak to restaurant staff about food allergies and they will get it.

Really get it.

I'll be anxious to hear from Massachusetts readers and travelers as this law takes effect. Food allergy awareness will save lives and will allow those with food allergy to participate in activities others take for granted.

Like stopping at a restaurant for a quick lunch; or eating out with friends; or attending a family party at a restaurant...

Everyone has the right to eat safely.

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Restaurants Benefit by Being Food Allergy Friendly

I love this article where Allergy Eats founder, Paul Antico explores how much it's worth for restaurants to cater to those with food allergies. He's got it right on the money. Our family would frequent an allergy friendly restaurant and would avoid those restaurants with an allergy unfriendly attitude. Eating establishments can take small steps that would put those with food allergies at ease.

I think it's funny that when travelling, our most comfortable eating spot is McDonald's. Our dairy, egg, peanut and tree nut allergic child can have a regular hamburger, apple slices and a drink. We explain the situation to the cashier (or manager if we can't identify an allergy-friendly cashier). Most of the time, the manager or cashier will decide they will just make his meal. Other times they go back and explain to the "cook" that we need to have hands freshly washed (or new gloves put on) and for nothing else to be touched while the burger is being made. We can also see and hear what's going on, which is another comforting feature of McDonald's.

So truly, if McDonald's can take the extra steps to ensure a safe experience, surely other restaurants can too!

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Food Allergy Awareness in the Restaurant Industry

Okay, it has a funny name...MenuTrinfo...but I like the concept. MenuTrinfo stands for Menu, Nutrition, Information. Their mission is to help the restaurant industry provide better and clearer nutrition information to restaurant patrons.

MenuTrinfo just announced a series of webinars, free and open to any interested party. The first one is Nov. 16  from 11-11:30 am EST. The topic is "Practical Approaches to Special Diets and Nutritional Labeling". Betsy Craig, MenuTrinfo’s founder, will focus on current dietary trends, food allergy management, status of menu nutritional labeling legislation and resources where restaurant owners can turn to for help.


Sign up on their website if you'd like to participate. Feel free to pass this information along to your favorite restaurant. Educating restaurants in the area of food allergy, safe food handling and nutrition labelling is a win-win for all of us.

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Allergy Eats Helps Those With Food Allergies

Paul is a dad of kids with food allergies. He's a busy man who set his sights on making it easier for families with food allergy to eat out. The result is a new online guide called Allergy Eats.

The concept is simple- people who deal with food allergies share information with one another by rating restaurants. It's a peer review system and it only works if everyone contributes.

Right now the majority of the reviews appear to be in the greater Boston area. So, the rest of us need to hop on over and rate the restaurants in our area. Who better to give commentary about the food allergy friendliness of a restaurant than a food allergy family? Let's share our experiences.

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Food Allergy Issues One of Top Restaurant Trends in 2010

The National Restaurant Association lists gluten-free and food allergy-conscious meals within their top ten list of trends for 2010.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to walk into a restaurant and ask to see the dairy, egg and nut-free menu? Then wouldn't it be even more wonderful to know that whatever is ordered will be prepared by a specially trained staff to avoid cross-contamination and accidental allergens?

This is a trend that I hope sticks and spreads.

Here's the complete list of restaurant trends.

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