Mustard Alert – Mustard ingredients contaminated with peanuts. Latest Update
In a recent food safety alert, the UK’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) has issued urgent guidance following the discovery of peanut contamination in mustard ingredients imported from India. The contamination poses a critical risk to people with peanut allergies and has already led to a series of precautionary recalls across the UK. Mustard products from affected batches were widely used in food items like sauces, spice blends, and ready-made meals, sparking concern among food safety authorities, businesses, and allergy organizations.
What Happened?
The contamination originated from specific mustard suppliers in India who exported ingredients to UK-based distributors. According to the FSA, mustard seeds, mustard powder, and mustard flour are among the impacted ingredients, and these have been traced back to multiple suppliers in India who unknowingly distributed the contaminated products. The FSA, in collaboration with Food Standards Scotland (FSS), has been actively working with food businesses and local authorities to trace the distribution of these mustard products throughout the UK food chain.
FGS Ingredients Ltd, a major UK supplier, was among the first to issue recalls, prompting cautionary product withdrawals across various categories. Some of the recalled products include popular items like curry powders, seasoning blends, and black mustard seeds sold under different brands. The FSA has advised businesses that used mustard from these suppliers to remove affected products from sale and alert customers as a precautionary measure.
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How does this affect my business and what changes do I need to make?
The investigation into which products are contaminated is ongoing, therefore the FSA is advising people who have a peanut allergy to avoid consuming foods that contain, or may contain mustard, mustard powder or mustard flour because they may have been contaminated with peanuts.
The advice to hospitality businesses is to add a precautionary “May Contain Peanuts” to all foods containing mustard, mustard powder or mustard flour. Add this to wherever you record your allergens (Allergen Matrix, menus, menu board, dish specifications etc).
We recommend that you update your kitchen and front of house team so all staff are aware of this issue so they may advice your customers accordingly.
In addition, be extra vigilant to ensure no contamination of mustard onto any other foods during storage, preparation or cooking.
How long will the investigation take to identify the contaminated products?
This is an ongoing investigation, so the FSA continues to monitor the situation closely and is working with local authorities, industry representatives, and businesses to identify the full scope of this contamination. With a wide range of recalled products still emerging, businesses are expected to follow FSA guidance keeping the “may contain peanuts” warning on all products containing mustard to minimize the risk to public health and helping customers with peanut allergies make informed choices.
For updates check the FSA alert’s page: FSA Alerts
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