How to Build an Allergen Matrix for Your Menu

An allergen matrix is a grid that maps every menu item against each declarable allergen, so any staff member can answer an allergen question accurately and consistently. Build it by listing your dishes down one axis and Australia's declared allergens across the other, then filling each cell from verified ingredient labels — not memory. Keep it current, and confirm your obligations with your state or territory food regulator. Key takeaways: An allergen matrix is a menu-by-allergen grid: dishes down one axis, each declared allergen across the top, and a clear mark in every cell so nothing is left ambiguous.. Fill every cell from the actual ingredient labels of what you currently buy — never from memory, the dish name or an old recipe — and record 'contains' separately from 'may contain' (cross-contact).. Cover the full list of allergens that must be declared in Australia and use PEAL plain-English terms, naming the specific tree nut, mollusc, crustacean and cereal.. A matrix is a living document: reverify it whenever you change a supplier, product, recipe or menu, and re-check labels because manufacturers reformulate without notice.. The matrix supports staff answering questions on unpackaged food you serve; it does not replace controlling cross-contact in the kitchen or confirming rules with your regulator.. What an allergen matrix is and why it matters An allergen matrix (also called an allergen chart or grid) is a single reference that lists every item you sell down one side and every allergen that must be declared across the top. Each cell records whether that dish contains the allergen, or could carry it through cross-contact. For food you serve unpackaged — the meals made to order in a cafe, restaurant, bakery or takeaway — the Food Standards Code generally requires that accurate allergen information can be given to the customer, either displayed with the food or provided on request. A matrix turns that duty into something reliable and repeatable: instead of a chef trying to recall an ingredient during a rush, any staff member can read the answer off the grid. It also protects the business, because an incorrect answer to a customer with a serious allergy can be life-threatening. Gives every staff member the same accurate answer, not a guess that varies by who is asked. Turns 'allergen information on request or on display' into a documented, checkable system. Creates an audit trail an environmental health officer (EHO) and your own team can verify. Underpins staff training, menu labelling and kitchen cross-contact controls. The allergens your matrix must cover In Australia, a defined set of allergens must be declared. Build your column headings from the full list so nothing is missed: peanuts; tree nuts (naming the specific nut, such as almond, cashew, walnut, pecan, pistachio, macadamia, hazelnut, Brazil nut or pine nut); milk; egg; fish; crustacea (naming the specific crustacean, such as prawn or crab); mollusc (naming the specific mollusc, such as oyster or mussel); sesame; soy; lupin; cereals containing gluten (wheat, rye, barley, oats and their hybrids, naming the specific cereal); and added sulphites (generally at 10 mg/kg or more). Because tree nuts, crustacea, molluscs and gluten-containing cereals must be identified specifically under PEAL, it is good practice to split those into their specific components on the matrix rather than a single lumped column. Peanut, tree nuts (specific nut), milk, egg, fish, crustacea (specific), mollusc (specific), sesame, soy, lupin. Cereals containing gluten — wheat, rye, barley, oats — named specifically. Added sulphites at 10 mg/kg or more (common in dried fruit, wine, some sauces and processed potato). Split 'tree nuts' and 'gluten cereals' into specific sub-columns so PEAL terminology is captured at the source. PEAL: getting the wording right Plain English Allergen Labelling (PEAL) was introduced under Standard 1.2.3 and requires allergens to be declared using specified plain-English terms, in bold in the ingredient list and in a separate summary 'Contains' statement. PEAL applies to packaged food. Businesses were required to comply from 25 February 2024, at the end of a three-year transition period; food packaged and labelled before that date could generally still be sold during a two-year stock-in-trade period ending 25 February 2026. Even though the food you serve to order is unpackaged, PEAL wording is the right vocabulary for your matrix and for any menu statements: say 'milk' rather than 'casein' or 'whey', 'wheat' rather than only 'gluten', and name the specific tree nut, crustacean and mollusc. Using PEAL terms keeps your matrix consistent with the ingredient labels you read and with what allergic customers are taught to look for. Use the required plain-English word (e.g. 'milk', 'wheat', 'soy'), not technical or ingredient-derived names. Name the specific tree nut, crustacean, mollusc and cereal rather than a generic group. Align your matrix language with supplier labels so cross-checking is straightforward. Confirm current PEAL requirements and dates via FSANZ. Verify every cell from the label, never from memory The single most important rule is that each entry comes from the actual ingredient list of the product you currently buy — not the dish name, an old recipe card, or what an ingredient 'usually' contains. Manufacturers reformulate, and a supplier substitution can introduce an allergen overnight: a bread that gains soy flour, a stock that adds wheat, a spice blend that now carries sulphites. Work dish by dish, break each recipe down to every component (including sauces, oils, marinades, dusting flour, garnishes, coatings and cooking mediums), and read the allergen declaration on each product. Record the source so the entry can be rechecked. Where a supplier can't confirm an ingredient, treat it as present until proven otherwise. Decompose each dish to every sub-ingredient, including hidden ones like thickeners, glazes and f