New rules for labelling allergens - Are you ready?
What are the PEAL labeling changes and deadline for implementation?
PEAL’s mandatory requirements affect the placement, format, and terminology of the ingredients on your labels.
All allergens must be declared using prescribed names in one plain English word. Individual tree nuts must now be declared separately, along with fish, Crustacea, Mollusca, and gluten-containing cereals.
Allergens must be declared in bold each time they appear in the ingredients list. An allergen summary statement, starting with the word ‘Contains’ (in bold), must be included underneath (or alongside the ingredient list) on the label, and be distinctly different to the ingredient list. The font size of the allergen summary statement must be equal to or bigger than the words in the ingredients list. If a ‘May contain’ statement is required, this must appear on a separate line.
On February 25th, 2024, PEAL’s labeling requirements become legally mandatory for all businesses.
Click HERE to view PEAL Guidance.
How can the BarTender labeling platform help your transition to PEAL?
In simple terms: automation. Manually revising an entire label catalogue carries risk for human error, is time consuming, doesn’t scale long-term, and is hard to manage. Similarly, manually altering your labeling platform’s code requires highly specific technical insight from IT professionals—resources that could be used elsewhere.
BarTender offers a different approach, with four main areas of benefit for organizations looking to streamline their transition to PEAL standards:
1. Accurate and Compliant Labeling
BarTender simplifies the creation of PEAL-compliant labels, with a focus on bolded allergen ingredients and clear allergen declarations.
2. Allergen Management and Data Integration
BarTender ensures that businesses can clearly communicate potential allergens present in their existing products—while dynamic data integration allows for easy updates, blending real-time accuracy with templated compliance.
3. Batch and Lot Tracking
BarTender enables businesses to generate unique identifiers, barcodes, and QR codes for each batch or lot. Streamline your tracking processes, enhance efficiency, and reduce the time required to trace and isolate potentially affected products during a safety concern or recall.
4. Inventory and Supply Chain Management
By integrating BarTender with existing enterprise systems, businesses can maintain accurate inventory records, manage stock levels, and optimize supply chain processes. Ensure that labeling information aligns with the actual product inventory, and reduce the risk of non-compliance and product inconsistencies.
BarTender’s user-friendly interface and design tools allow businesses to easily incorporate required information, such as ingredient lists, nutritional panels, and country of origin labels. By automating the label creation process, BarTender minimizes the risk of human error, ensuring all mandatory details are included accurately.
Updating your labels to comply with PEAL guidelines doesn’t have be difficult—but it can be.
Our specialists are available to assess your current labeling systems, and suggest improvements that can boost efficiency, promote consumer safety, and help your business avoid penalties.
Fill out the form on CONTACT US page and get started today!
