Approximately 32 million Americans have food allergies, according to the organization Food Allergy and Research Education (FARE). That amounts to about one in 10 adults, or two children in every classroom. As a result of the risks, real-time allergen tracking has become indispensable for foodservice operators. Even one oversight can lead to severe health consequences, legal challenges, and damage to a brand's reputation.
Fortunately, real-time allergen tracking tools are helping businesses at every level of the supply chain monitor allergens and manage their risks. Within foodservice, digital menu management systems, kitchen display systems with allergen alerts, and centralized training platforms are making it possible for businesses to update ingredient information in the moment and maintain consistent staff education. Here are some examples of how a range of food industry brands are managing the risk of allergens:
• Cracker Barrel, Wayback Burgers and TGI Fridays are among the brands using EveryBite’s SmartMenu technology across their locations. It lets diners filter menu items by allergen categories, including the top nine allergens. Every time a guest uses the digital platform, their SmartMenu allergen choices are collected as insights for the restaurant.
• Volanté Systems offers a POS platform tailored for foodservice operations. It integrates allergen alerts and dietary filters to assist in managing allergies, particularly in healthcare and senior living environments.
• Menutech automatically detects allergens using AI, allowing for real-time menu updates and compliance with food safety regulations.
• FoodNotify is a cloud-based tool that helps restaurants manage recipes with automatic allergen, nutrient, and additive labeling, ensuring compliance and real-time updates across menus.
• AllerGenius is an allergen detection technology that uses advanced molecular techniques to identify allergenic proteins with high sensitivity. It can screen raw ingredients for the presence of allergens before they are incorporated into food products. It’s helping food producers and foodservice businesses alike to understand what’s going into their food.
Across your operation – and up and down your supply chain – how is technology currently helping you mitigate allergy risks? Effectively containing these risks can help you foster guest confidence: Food allergy sufferers are a loyal group when they find brands who protect them from exposure.

The pandemic has been a two-year practice in adjusting to new recommended safety practices – and it’s demonstrated the need for restaurant operators to be able to get information out to staff in real time. In other words, posting flyers on employee bulletin boards has officially become obsolete. Do you have tech tools in place that enable you to push safety alerts and other information out to employees instantaneously via their smartphone? In addition to helping protect food safety and ensure your team is on the same page about vaccine-related regulations in your area, it could also help you empower your team to take greater responsibility and initiative in upholding health and safety protocols in your business.