Allergens on a digital menu: EC 1169/2011 regulation

The EC 1169/2011 regulation requires restaurateurs to communicate the 14 allergens to customers clearly and accessibly. A digital menu does this job better than paper. This article explains what the regulation says, how to handle it operationally, and how Crubby supports compliance.

The 14 allergens under European law

These are the allergens that European law requires you to declare:

1. 1.Cereals containing gluten
2. 2.Crustaceans
3. 3.Eggs
4. 4.Fish
5. 5.Peanuts
6. 6.Soya
7. 7.Milk (including lactose)
8. 8.Tree nuts
9. 9.Celery
10. 10.Mustard
11. 11.Sesame seeds
12. 12.Sulphur dioxide and sulphites
13. 13.Lupin
14. 14.Molluscs

How to communicate allergens

The regulation requires communication that is clear, legible and accessible. A footnote list on a paper menu is formally compliant but hard to read.

A digital menu is superior for compliance: visible markers next to every dish, an expandable detail view and mobile accessibility via QR code.

How Crubby handles allergens

For every dish in the catalogue, Crubby shows allergen markers (discreet chips) next to the name. The customer can filter and see, for example, only the gluten-free dishes.

When you change a recipe — say you remove milk from a cream — all it takes is one allergen toggle in 5 seconds on the CMS. The update is instant across every screen.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Putting only "contains allergens" without specifying which ones is not enough.
• Stating "everything prepared in premises where allergens are present" is just a disclaimer — it does not replace the per-dish list.
• Failing to update allergens when you change a recipe — a risk of penalties and a health risk.

Penalties for non-compliance

Conclusion

A well-managed digital menu makes you not just compliant but proactive: the customer with an allergy instantly finds what they can order, feels reassured and comes back. Crubby turns compliance into a user-friendly feature.