In MA, New Law Means Restaurants More Aware of Food Allergies

For those living with food allergies, going out to eat can mean guessing which items on the menu might be safe to eat. A new law in Massachusetts, the first of its kind in the US, aims to change this. Now, when you tell your waiter that you're allergic to peanuts, shellfish, dairy, or other foods, he or she will understand the risk better than ever.

The recently passed law requires restauraunts in Massachusetts to include a notice on their menus asking those with food allergies to tell their server. Restaurants must also put up a poster with food allergy information in an area accessible by the staff.

As of last month, at least one of the restaurant's managers must go through an online training course about food allergens. Susanne Condon with the state's Department of Public Health said "It really is to raise awareness." Restaurant manager Michelle Wood says "I feel like this the right thing for restaurants...People aren’t aware when you have a seafood allergy you can’t eat anything that has touched a similar surface as seafood, so it’s really something you have to take seriously.”

Restaurants across MA have been working to comply with the new food allergen rules, and these requirements have been added to the list of things checked by the local health boards during restaurant inspections.

Read more about this new food allergen law: http://www.wickedlocal.com/scituate/news/x1512112279/Restaurants-work-to...