Owen’s Law Spring 2026: The FSA Review That Could Finally Make Written Allergen Menus Law
Quick Answer: What’s Happening with Owen’s Law in 2026?
The Food Standards Agency (FSA) published best practice guidance in March 2025 urging restaurants, cafes, and takeaways to provide written allergen information for all non-prepacked food.
The FSA is now evaluating whether businesses are actually following that guidance. The results of this evaluation, expected spring 2026, will inform ministers on whether Owen’s Law — mandatory written allergen menus — needs to become legislation.
If the evaluation shows poor uptake, the case for making Owen’s Law a legal requirement becomes significantly stronger. If it passes, restaurants would face criminal liability for failing to provide written allergen information — making negligence claims considerably easier to prove.
Key legislation: Food Safety Act 1990 | Food Information Regulations 2014 | Natasha’s Law
Imagine telling your waiter you’re allergic to milk. They nod. They say they’ll check. Your meal arrives. And somewhere between your words and the kitchen, the message got lost.
That’s not a hypothetical. It happens every week in restaurants across England. And right now, the Food Standards Agency is deciding whether the current system of verbal warnings and voluntary good practice is working — or whether it’s time to force the issue into law.
The answer matters. It could change how every restaurant in the country handles your allergy. And it could change what happens if they get it wrong.
What Is Owen’s Law — and Why Does It Matter Now?
Owen’s Law is named after Owen Carey, a teenager who died in 2017 after eating a chicken burger marinated in buttermilk at a restaurant. Owen told staff about his dairy allergy. The allergen information wasn’t written down. The buttermilk wasn’t flagged. He suffered a fatal anaphylactic reaction.
His family’s campaign has driven a simple but powerful demand: every restaurant, cafe, and takeaway in England should be legally required to provide written allergen information for freshly prepared food. No more relying on a busy waiter’s memory. No more “just ask a member of staff.”
In December 2023, the FSA formally recommended that the government introduce mandatory written allergen labelling. In March 2025, the FSA published its best practice guidance — stopping short of law, but setting clear expectations that businesses should provide written allergen information and actively ask customers about allergies.
As confirmed in a House of Lords debate in June 2025, the government committed to evaluating the uptake and impact of that guidance starting in spring 2026. The results will tell ministers whether voluntary compliance is enough — or whether Owen’s Law needs to become statute.
“The difference between written allergen information and a verbal conversation is the difference between evidence and hearsay. If Owen’s Law passes, proving a restaurant was negligent becomes a completely different proposition.”
Chris Carter, Managing Solicitor, Carter & Carter Solicitors
The Numbers Behind the Push for Owen’s Law
An estimated 2.4 million adults in the UK live with a food allergy. The FSA issued 66 allergy alerts in 2024 alone. Under current law, restaurants serving non-prepacked food only need to tell customers that allergen information is available — not provide it in writing.
Source: Food Standards Agency research and allergy alert data
What Would Owen’s Law Actually Require?
Owen’s Law would go further than the current guidance. The key proposals include full written ingredient lists showing all 14 major allergens on menus or menu boards, a legal requirement for staff to ask every customer about allergies, and mandatory allergen training for all food-handling staff — not optional guidance, but law.
If you’re wondering how this differs from Natasha’s Law, the distinction is straightforward. Natasha’s Law covers pre-packed food for direct sale — the sandwich made in-store, the wrap in the deli counter. Owen’s Law would cover freshly prepared food — the meal cooked to order. Together, the two would close the gap entirely.
What’s the Timeline — and What Happens Next?
Here’s where we stand. The FSA’s best practice guidance was published in March 2025. The evaluation of how well businesses have adopted it is due in spring 2026 — which means it should be underway as you read this.
If uptake has been strong, ministers may conclude legislation isn’t needed yet. But if the evaluation reveals patchy compliance — which is the more likely outcome — the pressure to pass Owen’s Law will become very difficult to resist.
Even then, formal legislation wouldn’t take effect before late 2027 or 2028. A Bill would need to be introduced, debated, passed, and businesses would need implementation time. That’s a long road. But the direction of travel is clear.
“We’ve handled allergy claims since 2007. The single biggest barrier in most restaurant claims is proving what was communicated. Written menus would remove that barrier overnight.”
Chris Carter, Managing Solicitor, Carter & Carter Solicitors
⚠️ Had an Allergic Reaction at a Restaurant? Don’t Wait for Owen’s Law
You don’t need Owen’s Law to be in force to bring a compensation claim. Under the Food Safety Act 1990 and the Food Information Regulations 2014, restaurants already have a legal duty to provide accurate allergen information. If they failed in that duty and you suffered an allergic reaction, you may have a valid claim right now.
Preserve your evidence early: photograph your meal and the menu, keep any receipts, note the names of staff you spoke to, report the incident to your local council’s environmental health team, and request CCTV before it’s overwritten — most venues delete footage within 7–14 days.
You have three years from the date of the incident to bring a compensation claim. But the strongest claims are the ones where evidence was preserved early.
How Would Owen’s Law Affect Allergy Compensation Claims?
This is the part that matters most if you’ve suffered an allergic reaction.
Right now, the biggest challenge in most restaurant allergy claims is proving what was communicated. You say you told the waiter. The restaurant says you didn’t. Without written records, it becomes your word against theirs.
Owen’s Law would change that equation entirely. If written allergen information is a legal requirement, then a restaurant that fails to provide it has breached a clear statutory duty. That breach becomes powerful evidence of negligence. The question shifts from “did you tell them?” to “did they provide the written information the law required?”
✅ Your Rights If You’ve Suffered an Allergic Reaction
✓ Restaurants must provide accurate allergen information under the Food Information Regulations 2014 — failure is a criminal offence
✓ You can claim compensation separately from any criminal prosecution brought by the council
✓ You have 3 years from the date of the incident to bring your claim
✓ You don’t need to have been hospitalised — any allergic reaction caused by negligence may qualify
✓ Claims are handled on a No Win No Fee basis — you pay nothing unless your claim succeeds
🔗 Related Guides from Carter & Carter
Owen’s Law and Nut Allergy Claims — What’s Changing?
Restaurant Allergy Claims — Your Legal Options
Can I Sue for an Allergic Reaction?
Natasha’s Law — What You Need to Know
Had an allergic reaction after a restaurant got it wrong?
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