Natasha’s Law and Benedict’s Law explained

With increased focus on allergens in recent years, you’ve probably heard terms like “Natasha’s Law” and “Benedict’s Law”. Both are rooted in tragic incidents and both are driving real change in how allergens are managed in a food business.

Here’s what you actually need to know.

What is Natasha’s Law?

Natasha's Law (also known as The Food Information (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2019) was introduced in October 2021 following the death of Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, who suffered a fatal allergic reaction after eating a prepacked sandwich that, at the time, was not required to display allergen information on the packaging.

The aim of the legislation is simple, to ensure that consumers have clear, visible allergen information at the point they choose their food.

Natasha’s Law applies to prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) food, which is food packed on site before being selected or ordered by the customer.

If your business sells PPDS food, you are required to include on the packaging:

• the name/ description of the food

• a full ingredients list with any of the 14 allergens clearly emphasised

This information must be on the packaging itself, not just available elsewhere.

In practice, this has significantly raised the standard for allergen labelling and removed ambiguity for customers who rely on that information to make safe choices.

What is Benedict’s Law?

“Benedict’s Law” is a campaign focused on improving allergy safety in schools, following the death of five year old Benedict Blythe in 2021 after he was mistakenly given milk despite having a known allergy.

Since then, his mother has worked alongside allergy charities, clinicians and government bodies to push for meaningful, practical change across the education system.

This has led to the development of new statutory allergy guidance for schools, which schools will be expected to follow. The final statutory guidance was published in July 2026, taking effect from September 2026.

The guidance includes:

• Clear, whole school allergy policies setting out how schools will manage allergies and respond to emergencies
• Comprehensive allergy and anaphylaxis training for staff within schools
• Access to emergency adrenaline auto injectors (AAIs)
• Improved communication and records around allergies

The goal is consistency, making sure that wherever a child goes to school, the same core protections are in place.

Why this matters for food businesses

Food allergies affect hundreds of thousands of people, and severe reactions often happen outside the home, including in restaurants, cafés and takeaways.

Common failures include:

• Poor communication
• Inconsistent processes
• Lack of staff training
• Incorrect or missing labelling
• Cross-contamination

When something goes wrong, it can lead to serious consequences, from allergen incidents to enforcement action and reputational damage.

How Labl.it can help

Most businesses don’t fall short because they don’t care. They fall short because their processes don’t hold up.

For example; relying on handwritten labels, memory, or inconsistent methods increases the risk of errors, especially during busy periods or when different team members are involved.

That’s where having a structured system in place becomes critical.

Labl.it is designed to take the complexity out of allergen labelling, helping food businesses create accurate, consistent labels without adding to your team's workload.

Benedict’s Law and Natasha’s Law are reminders of what’s at stake. Getting allergen safety right isn’t just about meeting requirements, it’s about making sure the information your customers rely on is correct, every single time.

To see how Labl.it can help keep your kitchen compliant, book a demo