Sysco has renewed its long-term partnership with Natasha’s Foundation for a further three years to drive greater awareness, education and research into food allergies across the UK.
The extended partnership builds on three years of collaboration between the foodservice giant and the food allergy charity. During this time, the organisations have worked to strengthen allergen understanding across the foodservice sector.
The pair have developed practical tools to help food operators keep consumers safe, including colleague training resources and digital content designed to translate complex regulation into clear, actionable information for cafés, caterers, schools and hospitality businesses.
They have also worked to support the intent of Natasha’s Law – UK legislation that requires any food that is pre-packed for direct sale to show a full ingredients and allergen list on the food label. It was introduced in October 2021 and named after 15-year-old Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, who died from a severe allergic reaction to sesame in July 2016.
The renewed partnership comes as food allergy remains one of the fastest-growing health challenges in the UK. According to Natasha’s Foundation, 2.4 million adults now live with a food allergy, one in 13 children are affected, and hospital admissions for severe allergic reactions have tripled in the past 20 years.
The Foundation continues to improve understanding, influence policy and fund pioneering scientific research around food allergy. The Natasha Clinical Trial, now running across nine NHS hospitals, is giving 300 children and young people with milk and peanut allergies oral immunotherapy (OIT) treatment using everyday foods.
Earlier this month, the charity also launched Natasha’s Prize, a £10m global research prize focused on food allergy prevention.
Sysco’s renewed support will continue to fund the Foundation’s work across research, education and policy – including Allergy School, a free national programme reaching 21,000 schools, 240,000 teachers and six million children.
It will also continue to integrate Natasha’s Foundation expertise across its customer platforms, training programmes and communications.
“Food allergy affects millions of people in the UK, and the responsibility to keep consumers safe is shared across the entire food industry,” said Sysco GB CEO Paul Nieduszynski. “Natasha’s Foundation has transformed national understanding of this issue, from the introduction of Natasha’s Law to the groundbreaking clinical trial now underway in the NHS.
“We are proud to continue supporting their mission and to play our part in helping customers, colleagues and communities build the confidence, knowledge and systems needed to protect people living with food allergies.”
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