Free CPD-Accredited Certificate Course Gives Food Handlers the Allergen Knowledge That Saves Lives
Alison has launched a new CPD-accredited certificate course: Food Allergy Awareness Essentials. This free beginner-level online course gives anyone who handles, prepares, or serves food the practical allergen awareness skills needed to recognise risks, prevent cross-contact, interpret allergen information correctly, and communicate clearly — before a mistake becomes a medical emergency. No cost, no barrier — just the knowledge that protects customers, guests, and the people you feed every day.
Reviewed by food science and curriculum development expert Abid Hussain, the course covers what makes food allergies fundamentally different from intolerances; which allergens matter most and how they find their way into food unexpectedly; how to read supplier labels, allergen declarations, and ingredient lists with confidence; how to prevent cross-contact at every stage of food preparation and handling; and how to have clear, unambiguous conversations about allergen concerns with customers and colleagues. Practical and grounded in real food-handling scenarios, it is designed for anyone who serves food — in a restaurant, school, hospital, care home, catering operation, or private household.
When Awareness Is the Difference Between Life and Death
In 2016, fifteen-year-old Natasha Ednan-Laperouse died on a flight after eating a sesame-containing baguette from Pret a Manger. The sesame was not labelled. She didn't know it was there. Nobody along the chain — from kitchen to customer — caught the risk in time. Her death triggered a fundamental change in UK food law: Natasha's Law, which came into force in October 2021, requiring full ingredient labelling on all food prepared and sold on the same premises. It was a legislative response to a tragedy that should never have happened — and that, with proper awareness at every point in the food chain, might have been prevented.
Food allergies affect an estimated 32 million people in the United States alone, and prevalence is rising globally across all age groups. The European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology estimates that up to 17 million Europeans live with food allergies, while regulators across the EU, UK, US, Canada, and beyond have strengthened mandatory allergen labelling requirements in recent years — recognising that the information gap between ingredient and consumer is where the danger lives. Allergic reactions to food send hundreds of thousands of people to emergency departments every year. The most severe — anaphylaxis — can be fatal within minutes. And a significant proportion of those reactions occur not because allergens were hidden by design, but because the people handling the food simply didn't know what to look for, or what to do.
Closing the Gap Between Regulation and Reality
Mike Feerick, Founder and CEO of Alison, stated: "Food allergy awareness shouldn't be optional, and it shouldn't cost anything to access. Every person who handles food — whether they're running a Michelin-starred kitchen or making lunch for a school — needs to understand allergens, and most of them have never had proper training. This course puts that knowledge where it belongs: freely available to everyone."
This launch strengthens Alison's growing food safety and public health portfolio, reinforcing its mission to make essential professional knowledge freely accessible to workers and communities everywhere.
To learn more or enrol in the course, visit: alison.com/course/food-allergy-awareness-essentials
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About Alison
Alison is a global leader in free online learning and skills development. With over 50 million registered learners across 193 countries (as of October 2025), Alison empowers individuals, communities, and organisations to upskill quickly and effectively – at zero cost.
The Alison platform provides immediate access to over 6,000 free, CPD-accredited courses, covering essential areas such as Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Cybersecurity, Digital Marketing, Project Management, Business Operations, Healthcare and Sustainability. Courses are created by a mix of independent experts and global leaders, including IBM, Stanford and Microsoft.
For organisations, Alison offers a Free Learning Management System (LMS) that enables unlimited learners to access thousands of courses with no upfront cost. A premium version with advanced analytics and customisation is also available. Alison's offering includes a full suite of assessments and psychometric tools, including a Workplace Personality Assessment, Mental Health & Wellbeing Assessment, English Language Proficiency Test, as well as Numerical, Verbal, and Abstract Reasoning tests.
To further support career development, learners also gain access to a Career Guide, a Resumé Builder, and the ability to study offline through the Alison App. The platform is also expanding its reach with multilingual versions, starting with complete Spanish, French, and Hindi offerings — reaffirming its mission to make education accessible to anyone, anywhere.
Founded in 2007, Alison pioneered the concept of free, large-scale online learning and is recognised as the world’s first MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) platform. Today, its mission continues: to break down barriers to learning, helping people gain skills, build confidence, and improve their lives — no matter where they live or what they earn.
