A mum has questioned whether it is "workable" for a school to ban food that "may contain traces of nuts".
She explained she had received an email from her daughter's school, saying that no food should be brought onto the premises that contained nuts or may have traces of nuts due to a child having a severe allergy. Writing on Mumsnet, she asked how the school could expect everyone to avoid anything that "may contain traces of nuts".
She said: "Had an email last night from DD's (dear daughter's) school (it's a school that goes right through from 3-18 so covers all age groups) saying that as of today no food can be brought onto school premises that contains nuts or 'may contain traces of nuts' due to a child with a severe nut allergy starting there.
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"I can't see how this is workable. It rules out about 50% of bought food, and 100% of food made/prepared in my kitchen as we eat a lot of nuts at home. Obviously I am more than willing to avoid sending any food that actually has nuts in, and I'm going to take extreme care to check labels etc going forward.
"But surely they can't expect everyone to avoid anything that 'may contain traces of nuts'? That's just not doable for most people."
Her post sparked a heated debate, with some parents saying the school was doing its best to protect the child with a nut allergy. However, others felt the request was "disproportionate".
One mum wrote: "Banning all food that contains trace amounts of nuts is virtually impossible. How absurd. Definitely push back on this."
Another said: "Very few foods are guaranteed nut (or any other allergen) free, and 'may contain' is a widely used disclaimer just in case of cross contamination in the production/ food chains. Totally disproportionate to ban all 'may contains', the impact totally outweighs the risk by proxy."
One Mumsnet user, who has a nut allergy, commented: "I have a nut allergy. If you rule out all items that 'may' contain traces you will be left with very little. Very few items are guaranteed nut free because of production methods.
"I would gently point this out to the school and maybe suggest they provide a list of suitable foods. That might make them think a bit harder. The anaphylaxis society has lists of food which are frequently updated as this changes."
And another parent added: "They are mad. My dd (dear daughter) is anaphylactic and I have to give her food that says 'may contain' or she would starve to death. I wouldn't give her crunchy nut cornflakes but I would give her cornflakes.
"It's almost impossible to buy any food at all where they can guarantee that there is no danger of cross contamination."
However, others highlighted the seriousness of allergies and the impact they have on people's lives.
One comment read: "I think if you don't suffer with a nut allergy or know someone with one, it's hard to imagine how hard life can be for them. I have a very mild nut allergy so can be around them but shouldn't consume them myself.
"However my cousin nearly died from someone eating nuts and then passing her something without washing her hands. I do agree that it is nearly impossible to ban nuts all together, but if your child could potentially die from eating/touching certain foods, wouldn't you want the school to try and help?"
Another commented: "Yabu (you are being unreasonable) to email school. They’ll already be understaffed and overworked they don’t need another complaint to reply to.
"Their email is basically another reminder that school is a nut free zone. Our school is too, yet some idiots still send their kids into school with Nutella sandwiches despite many reminders from school who are at end of tether with this.
"Be patient and forgiving with the school, don’t create unnecessary admin, and thank your lucky stars that your child doesn’t have a life-threatening allergy which depends on good will and compliance by other people."
One parent wrote: "I presume they will be more than aware they can't be 100% nut free but it will be more about parents making an effort and making them aware how serious it needs to be taken."
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