Donating Loose Food - Guidelines for Catering Clients
There is a simple and compliant way to donate loose food without providing the full ingredients list required for prepacked food: by packaging it “in bulk” for our volunteers to portion later. We have assured advice from our Primary Authority South Derbyshire on this!
Why package loose food in bulk?
When a business packages food that is then donated to our volunteers, it is technically considered "prepacked" for the end consumer and requires a full ingredients list. But if businesses package loose food “in bulk” (i.e. at least 2 portions of the same food in 1 container), our volunteers will then portion it at home and share it with several Olio-ers → It is therefore considered "non-prepacked" and allergen information alone is sufficient (rather than requiring the full ingredients list as well).
In other words, if a business puts 2 or more portions of loose food in 1 container, allergen info alone is sufficient. Conversely, any food that is packaged as an individual portion requires a full ingredients list!
How much is a portion?
As the weight of a portion is not defined by food safety regulators, it is at the discretion of our business partners to determine this.
Why is this important?
📄 Simplifies compliance:
- When food is “non-prepacked,” you simply need to provide allergen information, not a full ingredients list. This makes it easier to comply with regulations.
🌍 Greater social impact for each business:
- This process ensures that our business partners can share more loose hot food than before and demonstrates a commitment to community well-being and food security.
How should allergen information be provided?
Allergen information can be provided in one of the following ways:
- Writing or applying an allergen label directly on each food container.
- Handing the allergen document to the volunteer at the time of collection.
- Providing us with the allergen information in advance so that we can host it on our website.