What is Allergen Cross-Contamination?

Cross-contamination occurs when a safe food comes in contact with a food allergen such as peanut, nuts, seafood, or milk. For those with severe food allergies, eating even the slightest trace of an allergic food can cause a potentially life-threatening or fatal reaction. Although not everyone with a food allergy is this sensitive, it is still essential to be very careful and follow precautions. Reactions can occur through several means: 

• Someone ate a peanut product.
• They unwittingly ate a portion of food that was not supposed to contain peanut but had been contaminated with peanut. This could occur through an unintended ingredient or from being in contact with peanuts during preparation, storage, or serving.
• They touched something with peanut traces and then put their hands in their mouths or rubbed their eyes. The most common instance of direct contact is when someone eats a peanut product and then touches a chair or table, leaving a smear or even a trace of peanut. The next person to use that table or chair could be severely peanut-allergic, and that residue, if ingested, could be enough to cause a reaction.