Dedicated Facility Or Not?

We recently stumbled upon this heartbreaking story of a 22 year young man with peanut allergies, Bruce Kelly, who passed away after eating chocolates he thought were safe.  Although the chocolates did not contain any peanuts, they were manufactured in a facility that uses peanuts in other products. Bruce had consumed these exact chocolates just days before without any issues, but this time, the candies resulted in a fatal reaction caused by his peanut allergies.

Now, his parents are hoping to shake things up in the product labeling world. Currently, foods containing peanuts, tree nuts, dairy wheat and soy products must be labeled. However even when products don’t contain these allergens, they are sometimes manufactured near products that do, leading to cross-contamination like in Bruce Kelly’s tragic case.

When we launched our subscription boxes for kids, we had to decide whether we should include products in our peanut and tree nut free box that were manufactured in facilities that used peanuts and nuts in other products. After debating and agonizing over what was best for all the kids with food allergies out there, we decided to stick to products made in dedicated peanut and tree nut free facilities. In the rare occasion that we stray from this rule,  we will inform our subscribers which products are not from these facilities after we’ve done our own investigation and have deemed them safe. Our subscription boxes for kids were designed to keep kids with food allergies safe and informed, so we pride ourselves on doing just that.

As a mother of a tree nut allergic son, this story really struck close to home for me. I’ve always allowed my son to eat foods as long as the products themselves didn’t contain nuts listed in the ingredients.  Now, this story has had me questioning whether or not I should change my stance on foods that could be subject to cross-contamination. I consider myself well informed on the world of allergies, so have I been wrong this whole time? Or should I not let one story (although tragic) to impact the way I manage my son’s allergies?

Now, we want to hear from you, moms, dads and caretakers of kids with food allergies. What’s your stance on this issue? Do you feel comfortable allowing kids with nut or peanut allergies to consumer products that don’t come from a dedicated nut free facility?

Xo

Iris

Iris Shamus Wife, mother to three awesome kids and founder/CEO of AllerMates. Based in New York, Iris and her team create helpful content, answer emails, ship their products and obsess every day about keeping kids safe.