Hello everyone, my name is Megan Perez and I have a severe food allergy. My allergy is to both tree nuts and peanuts, and when I am exposed to these allergens I have an anaphylactic reaction. I don’t need to eat anything with nuts; if the allergen is in the air that is enough to send me to the emergency room.  I have been learning to live with this allergy for four years now, which unfortunately means that I was not born with this reaction. Finding food to eat outside of my home is a nightmare. Most of the time I can’t partake in foods from places around my college campus because there is always the threat of cross contamination.

With this petition I am demanding change to labeling practices in vending machines. I hope to bring a collection of signatures to the Board of the vending machine company Canteen so they can enact a change. I also hope to get enough visibility to this petition to cause change on a national level.

As it stands now vending machines are not required to show allergen information visibly to the consumer before purchase. Due to an amendment of Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C) brought on by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), companies with more than 20 vending machines must now “provide a sign in close proximity to each article of food or the selection button that includes a clear and conspicuous statement disclosing the number of calories contained in the article” (Federal Register). For a condensed version of the labeling requirements click here.

While knowing the calorie count is helpful to make healthy choices while on the run, it is not of the utmost importance. Consuming a large intake of calories in one sitting is dangerous, especially for those with a pre-existing condition but it is not likely to kill a person instantly after consumption. For this reason it is imperative that food allergies be listed visibly for the consumer before purchase.

The amount of vending machines in the country stand at 4.6 million according to Statistic Brain, a website that has statistics for various topics. With America’s population being close to 320 million (census.org) that roughly translates to 69 vending machines per person in the U.S. 15 million of that 322 million have diagnosed food allergies with the number growing (FARE). With vending machines being in public places such as schools, libraries, and similar venues it is impossible to escape them. Americans consume one-third of their calorie intake outside of the home, and because of this we need regulation (Peniamina et al).  Every three minutes someone is sent to the emergency room because of an allergic reaction, roughly this translates to over 200,000 emergency room visits a year (FARE).

The change will not be difficult. Vending machine companies like Canteen and others can use these options to help make their machines more food allergy friendly.

1. Place a sticker next to the product with the food allergen listed either in text or with a easily identifiable key.
2. Add in another screen when prompted to pick the vending item. After the price flashes on the screen just enter in the allergens there.
3. Create a new type of vending machine that has the ingredient list as an available option to look up remotely.

Your signatures will help bring about change that we desperately need. Allergy suffers need to know what they are eating before making a fatal mistake. I hope that after reading this you will start your own conversations and enact change in your own communities. If we make enough noise and are heard then we can make a change for the better.

Feel free to share this petition and infographic on social media.

Sources

Branum, Amy M., and Susan L. Lukacs. “Food Allergy Among U.S. Children: Trends in Prevalence and Hospitalizations.” NCHS Data Brief 10 (2008): n. pag. Web.

Food Allergy Research & Education (F.A.R.E). "Facts and Statistics." Food Allergy Research & Education. Food Allergy Research & Education, 2008. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

"Food Labeling; Calorie Labeling of Articles of Food in Vending Machines, Final Rule." Federal Register 79 (1 December 2014): 71259-71293. Web.

Jackson, Kristen, LaJeana Howie, and Lara Akinbami. “Trends in Allergic Conditions Among Children: United States, 1997-2011.” n. pag. Web. 27 Apr. 2015.

Peniamina, Rana et al. “The Food Allergy Journey: Understanding the Lived Experiences of Food-Allergic Consumers as a Pathway towards Improving Their Wellbeing.” Journal of Research for Consumers25 (2014): 5–8. Web. 15 Apr. 2015.

“Vending Machine Industry Statistics– Statistic Brain.” 2014 Statistic Brain Research Institute, publishing as Statistic Brain. February 3, 2015.