Allergen labeling — the 9 major allergens, declared correctly

U.S. law recognizes nine major food allergens that must be disclosed by name whenever they, or an ingredient derived from them, appear in a product: milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, and sesame — sesame was added most recently, by the FASTER Act, effective January 2023. Declaring an allergen isn't optional or scaled by business size the way the Nutrition Facts panel can be; it applies to every packaged food that contains one of the nine, regardless of how small the seller is.

There are two accepted ways to disclose an allergen: naming the source directly in the ingredient list itself (e.g., "whey (milk)"), or collecting all of them into a single "Contains: milk, wheat, soy" statement immediately after the ingredient list. Most sellers use the "Contains" statement because it's easier for a customer scanning the package to find at a glance, and it's what CompliantLabel's builder auto-suggests likely allergens from your ingredient list — you review and confirm each one before it appears on your label.

What the nine-allergen rule does not cover is voluntary "may contain" or cross-contact advisory language — that's a separate, non-mandatory disclosure many manufacturers add anyway when they share equipment or a facility with allergen-containing products.

Three of the nine can't be declared by the broad category name alone. FDA's FALCPA guidance requires naming the specific species for tree nuts, fish, and crustacean shellfish — "Contains: almonds," not "Contains: tree nuts"; "Contains: cod," not "Contains: fish." CompliantLabel's builder asks for the species as soon as you declare one of these three, and won't let an export go out with the broad category standing in for it.

A full walkthrough — gluten-free label interactions and how "may contain" advisories are regulated differently from the mandatory declaration — is coming soon to this guide.