Help & Setup Guide

Getting started

What foodallergens does and the onboarding wizard.

foodallergens.co.uk lets your food business publish allergen information for your menu. Each business gets its own public page that diners open by scanning a QR code — they can browse your items and filter by the allergens they need to avoid.

When you first sign up you’re taken through a short onboarding wizard that gets your menu online quickly:

1. Import your menu — upload a PDF, photo, or spreadsheet and our AI reads it into categories and items for you (or skip and add items by hand).
2. Set up variations — reusable options like proteins or sauces that carry their own allergens.
3. Preview your menu — check how it looks to a diner.
4. Add your logo — upload a transparent PNG or SVG so it appears on your public page and printed materials.

You can change anything later from the dashboard — onboarding just gets you started.

AI menu import

Upload a menu or allergen matrix and let the AI read it in.

The AI import turns an existing menu into structured categories and items so you don’t have to type everything in. Go to Dashboard → Import (it’s also the first onboarding step).

1. Choose your file — a PDF, image (photo or screenshot), or Excel/CSV spreadsheet.
2. Pick the type — a normal menu, or an allergen grid/matrix if your file is an allergen table.
3. Upload and wait — large menus (150+ items) can take up to two minutes.
4. Review the result — the AI fills in categories, items, and any allergens it can read.

If the import times out, try splitting your menu into smaller sections and importing each. Files must be under 4MB.

Adding and editing menu items

Create dishes and set their details.

An item is a single dish or product on your menu. Go to Dashboard → Items to see, add, edit, or remove them.

1. Click “Add item”.
2. Enter the item name and choose a category (and optional sub-category).
3. Tick the allergens that apply to the item (see “Setting allergens”).
4. Optionally add brands, comments, or a product-label photo.
5. Save. The item appears on your public page straight away.

On a computer the items table can be sorted by clicking a column heading. On a phone, tap an item to expand its details.

Categories and sub-categories

Group your items — e.g. Starters, Mains, Sides.

Categories organise your menu into sections. Go to Dashboard → Categories to manage them. A category can have sub-categories nested underneath it (for example “Mains” with sub-categories “Curries” and “Grills”).

• Add a category and give it a name.
• Create a sub-category by choosing a parent category when you add it.
• Assign items to a category (and optional sub-category) when you add or edit the item.

Items with no category still appear on your page, but grouping them makes the menu easier for diners to scan.

Variations

Reusable options — like a choice of protein or sauce — that carry their own allergens.

A variation is a reusable option or modifier you can attach to many items — most often a choice of protein, base, or sauce. Instead of repeating the same allergen information on every dish, you set it once on the variation and link that variation to any items it applies to.

For example, a “Peanut satay sauce” variation carries PEANUTS and SOYA. Link it to every dish that can be served with it, and those allergens are reflected wherever it’s offered — change the sauce once and every linked dish updates.

1. Go to Dashboard → Variations and click “Add variation”.
2. Name it (e.g. “Grilled chicken”, “Katsu sauce”) and give it a type/category such as PROTEIN or SAUCE.
3. Tick the allergens that the variation itself contains.
4. On an item, link the variations that dish can be made with.

When a diner uses the “safe for me” filter, both an item’s own allergens and the allergens of any variations it offers are taken into account.

Setting allergens

How to mark allergens, and the 14 UK regulated allergens.

You set allergens by ticking them on an item (and on any variations). The system uses the 14 allergens regulated in UK law:

• Cereals containing gluten
• Crustaceans
• Eggs
• Fish
• Peanuts
• Soya
• Milk (dairy)
• Tree nuts
• Celery
• Mustard
• Sesame
• Sulphites (sulphur dioxide)
• Lupin
• Molluscs

On the add/edit item screen, tap each allergen that applies to turn it on. Allergens can be set both directly on an item and on the variations linked to it — the public page combines them.

Your QR code

Find, download, and display the QR diners scan.

Your QR code opens your public allergen page. Go to Dashboard → QR code to view and download it. Print it and place it where diners can scan it — on tables, menus, or at the counter.

• The QR points to your public page at foodallergens.co.uk followed by your business slug.
• The slug is fixed to your business — if you need it changed, contact support.
• Download the QR image to print it yourself, or order professionally printed materials (see “Ordering printed materials”).

If your QR page looks blank when scanned, it usually means your menu has no items yet, or items have no category — add menu content and it will show.

Ordering printed materials

Order stickers, tent cards, and QR displays — or upload your own design.

Go to Dashboard → Order prints to order professionally printed QR materials such as A6 stickers and table tent cards. Your logo and QR code are laid out for you on a clean, branded design.

1. Choose a product and quantity.
2. Pick a background colour, or switch to the “Design” option to upload your own print-ready artwork (PDF, PNG, or JPG under 4MB).
3. Enter your delivery details.
4. The annual sticker is free; other products are paid for with a one-off card payment at checkout.

Printed materials are dispatched within 2–3 working days and typically delivered within 5–7 working days. You can check an order’s status by asking the support assistant, which can look up whether it’s pending or fulfilled.

How “safe for me” works for diners

The diner-facing allergen filter and the standing safety notice.

On your public page, a diner can select the allergens they need to avoid and the menu will highlight which items match — a “safe for me” style filter. It reflects exactly the allergen data you entered on your items and their variations.

Listing in the business directory

Appear in Find a Business.

foodallergens has a public directory (“Find a business”) where diners can discover venues that publish allergen information. To appear, your business must have the “show in directory” option turned on in your settings, and it needs at least some menu content to be worth listing.

• Turn on “show in directory” in Dashboard → Settings.
• Make sure you have categories and items set up.
• If you’ve done both and still don’t appear, contact support — the directory feature can also be toggled at the platform level.

Uploading your logo

The image rules for a crisp logo on screen and in print.

Your logo appears on your public page and on printed materials, so it needs to be high enough quality for print. Upload it during onboarding or from Dashboard → Settings.

• Use a transparent PNG or an SVG.
• It must be at least 1000 pixels on its shortest side (roughly 300dpi for print).
• Keep it under 4MB.
• JPEG and WEBP are not accepted because they can’t have a transparent background.

If your upload is rejected, it’s almost always the format (export a transparent PNG) or the size (use a larger image).

Account, subscription and billing

Manage your plan, upgrade, or cancel.

Your subscription state is shown in your dashboard. New accounts start on a trial or on a promo code’s free period; you can subscribe to a monthly or annual plan when you’re ready. The public menu stays live throughout.

• To subscribe or change your plan, use the upgrade prompt in your dashboard or Settings.
• To manage payment details or cancel, go to Dashboard → Settings → Manage billing, which opens the secure Stripe customer portal.
• Annual and monthly are both available; prices are shown before you pay.

If your plan shows the wrong type after paying (for example you bought annual but it shows monthly), or you need a refund, contact support or ask the assistant — those are handled by a person.

Logging in and resetting your password

Sign-in help and the password-reset email.

Sign in at foodallergens.co.uk with the email and password you registered. If you’ve forgotten your password, use “Forgot password” on the login page — you’ll be emailed a link to set a new one.

• The reset email is sent by our authentication system; check your spam folder if it doesn’t arrive within a few minutes.
• The reset link opens a page where you set a new password, then you can sign in as normal.
• If you still can’t get in, contact support and we’ll help recover your account.

Allergen safety and the law

Your responsibility, and where to get authoritative guidance.

foodallergens is a tool for managing and displaying allergen information. It does not verify, approve, or guarantee the accuracy of your allergen data, and it cannot tell you or a diner whether a dish is safe to eat. That responsibility is yours as the food business.

• Always check your allergen information against your actual recipes, ingredients, and suppliers.
• Consider preparation and cross-contamination risks, which a menu can’t capture — this is why diners are told to inform staff.
• Treat any AI-imported allergen data as a draft to verify, never as ground truth.