A law named after a tragic girl who died from a severe allergic reaction will require labels to list all ingredients on pre-packaged foods.
The move is a bid to protect the country’s two million food allergy sufferers and follows the death of “beloved” Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, 15.
She collapsed from anaphylaxis after eating a baguette that did
not list sesame seeds as an ingredient.
This did not breach rules as it was made by Pret a Manger “on site” at Heathrow Airport. The law will require all food that is pre-packed directly for sale to carry a full list of ingredients.
The rules will be in force by summer 2021.
Natasha’s parents said: “We believe helping save other allergy sufferers and their families from the enduring agony that we will always bear is a fitting legacy.”
Environment Secretary Michael Gove added: “Nadim and Tanya Ednan-Laperouse have been an inspiration.” Natasha, of Fulham, West London, went into cardiac arrest on a flight to Nice in July 2016 while travelling with her father.
Her dad said: “I called my wife and told her to say goodbye. I knew she was going to die.”
Allergy UK said the law “will improve lives” but trade body UKHospitality cautioned the measures could be “impractical and potentially hazardous”.
Chief executive Kate Nicholls said: “Smaller businesses may struggle and it is almost certainly going to lead to much less choice for customers.
“There is also a risk the new measures will only promote a dangerous reliance on labelling.”