The third and final blog in our ‘Natasha’s Law’ series is here.

Anyone in the hospitality sector not yet familiar with Natasha’s Law needs to be, and soon.  The new law comes into force on 1st October 2021 and is designed to keep allergy sufferers safe.  The reforms are in memory of teenager Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, who died after eating a baguette containing unlabelled sesame. Following her tragic death her family campaigned tirelessly for changes in labelling, the result of their efforts is a change in the law around labelling requirements. 

The legislation means that all pre-packed for direct sale (PPDS) food products including salads, wraps, sandwiches, and cakes – the list is extensive – will need to have a label on them that lists all the ingredients, with any allergens emphasised.  The hope is this will keep allergy sufferers safe and give them confidence when buying food. So far in this blog series we have looked at the importance of getting labelling right and the role of mobile ordering. Now we turn our attention to Point of Sale (POS) solutions and how they can help businesses and consumers alike.

POS literally refers to when the point a sale is made – so the checkout. It’s the final stage in the purchasing journey and is an opportunity for those in hospitality to add an extra layer of protection in the fight against allergens.

We offer a range of software and hardware for point of sale solutions. When a food or beverage item is scanned at the POS any allergens contained in that product will flash up on-screen and can serve as a warning to the consumer. Anyone who hasn’t read the label closely and may have inadvertently picked up an item which contains an ingredient they are allergic to will be reminded at this point, dramatically reducing the chances of them purchasing an item that they may have a reaction to.

Something that many hospitality operators share with us is their concern around the ongoing management of allergens. Yes, allergen sufferers will be well-versed in managing their allergens, but  human errors can happen and so technology provides an additional layer of safety to hospitality operations.

To hear more about how we can help you transform your business operation contact us on info@systopia.co.uk