Many allergenic ingredients often appear in processed foods as "hidden identities", such as egg ingredients in pastries and soy protein in sauces, which can be ingested by mistake if not taken seriously. In this issue, Antion will take you to understand the regulatory requirements for food allergens in China.

PART 1. What are allergens?

Allergens refer to antigenic substances that can induce allergic reactions in the body. In terms of food, it refers to specific foods or food ingredients that can trigger abnormal reactions in the human immune system. For most people, these ingredients are safe and digestible, but the immune system of individuals with allergies may mistake them for "harmful substances" and activate defense mechanisms, leading to a series of allergic symptoms.

PART 2. What are the allergens included?

The National Food Safety Standard General Standard for the Labeling of Prepackaged Foods (GB 7718) lists 8 categories of allergens that may cause allergic reactions, including:

• Gereals and products containing gluten (such as wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt wheat, or their hybrid products).

• Crustaceans and products (such as shrimp, lobster, crab).

• Fish and products.

• Eggs and products.

• Peanuts and products.

• Soybeans and products.

• Dairy and dairy products (including lactose).

• Nuts and products.

In addition to these 8 categories, some substances may also cause allergies, such as sesame and its products, coconut and its products, etc., which are not yet included in the standards.

PART 3. How are allergens marked on food labels?

According to the requirements of GB 7718-2025, the 8 major categories of allergens are mandatory labeling content, while other allergens are voluntary labeling content. For mandatory labeling of allergens, there are two types of labeling methods:

1. Labeling of allergens when used as ingredients

Use easily recognizable names, bold fonts, or underscores to indicate in the ingredient list.

Specially mark prompt information near the ingredient list, which can use "food allergens (prompt)", "allergens (prompt)" or "allergen information (prompt)" as guiding words, or not use guiding words.

2. Labeling of allergens indirectly or potentially introduced during the processing

It is advisable to use the following methods to indicate near or in other locations on the ingredient list:

"This product may contain…"; "It may contain…"; "May contain trace amounts of…"; "This production equipment also processes foods (products) containing…"; "This production line also processes foods (products) containing…".

PART 4. Under what circumstances are allergens exempted from marking

The following two situations are exempt from labeling allergens:

1) The ingredients that have undergone deep processing have removed protein components that may cause allergic reactions, such as:

a) Soy and peanut processing products: refined soybean oil, refined peanut oil, peptides derived from soybeans, phospholipids, vitamin E, plant sterols, plant sterol esters and plant sterol esters, xanthan gum;

b) Grain processing products: starch, dextrin, glucose syrup, refined vegetable oil from grain sources;

c) Aquatic processing products: chitin, chitosan, fish gelatin, refined fish oil, fish oil derived DHA;

d) Milk processing product: Lactitol.

2) Other situations exempt from labeling:

a) Products with a single ingredient as an allergen may be exempt from repeated labeling if the name of the allergen is clearly stated in the product name;

b) Edible alcohol and distilled spirits.

Source: Antion

Note: This article is compiled by Antion. Please indicate the source for reprint.