Guide
School packed lunches and allergen labelling
Food businesses supplying packed lunches to schools must provide accurate allergen information. Individually packed meals prepared ahead for collection or delivery are often PPDS and need a name plus full ingredients list with allergens emphasised on each pack — contracts may also demand nutrition or nut-free statements.
Reviewed against official guidance.SourcesNot legal advice.
Packed ahead for pupils
If you assemble sealed lunch boxes before they are chosen or handed out, treat them as packed food and label each box. Schools will expect clarity for parents and staff supervising mealtimes.
Contract requirements
Procurement specs sometimes go beyond the legal minimum (nut-free sites, no sesame, calorie caps). Meet the stricter of law and contract — and keep evidence of specs.
Kitchen discipline
- Separate boards and time slots for allergen-free lines when promised
- Never swap bread brands mid-week without relabelling
- Print labels from a locked recipe library, not from memory
Responsibility
You remain responsible for the accuracy of information on packs you supply.
Questions
Does a weekly menu PDF replace pack labels?
What about parent-provided lunches?
Official sources
Everything on this page traces back to these. Where they and we disagree, they are right — tell us and we'll fix it.
- Introduction to allergen labelling for PPDS foodFood Standards Agency / GOV.UK
- Labelling guidance for prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food productsFood Standards Agency / GOV.UK
- Food allergen labelling and information requirements technical guidanceFood Standards Agency / GOV.UK