Common Food Allergens in Japan and How to Spot Them

Hi Rebecca! Thank you for your question. Without knowing the exact ingredients of these products it would be hard for us to even guess but all our snacks and sweets are all natural and may be worth giving a try!

Hey I’ve noticed when my friends have brought me back Japanese sweet treats, I have an allergic reaction to them. One example is a grape juice drink, and another time my friend brought back candies from a souvenir shop from Fuji. both caused me to break out in hives. it seems to be only sweet snacks. any idea on what it could be?

Hi Sharon! Thank you for your question and we hope your son has a wonderful trip to Japan. It may make sense for him to carry a card that says “I have a severe allergy to peanuts. Does this contain peanuts?" which we have translated into Japanese for you: 私は重度のピーナッツのアレルギーがあります. ピーナッツは入っていますか？Let us know if there’s anything else we can do to help!

My son has a severe peanut allergy- and does carry an epipen but will be travelling allow, can you give any advice on how to check if a product is safe to eat in a restaurant/shop , how do you say I have a severe peanut allergy, does this contain peanuts ? Thankyou so much.

Hi Galit! Thank you for your question. We’re not entirely familiar with those letters but it’s possible they may be the manufacturer’s identification (ID) code that corresponds to a specific production facility. Hope this helps!

we noticed the letters + B E K on expiry date labels or sometimes + Y O K.
can you please advise what this means?

Hi Sely! Thank you for your comment. As with traveling anywhere with allergies, it’s best to be prepared. It may make sense to let people know “my daughter has an allergy to peanuts, treenuts and sesame. And my son has an allergy to salmon” which we have translated into Japanese for you: “娘は落花生、木の実、ごまにアレルギーがあります。息子はサーモンにアレルギーがあります。” Enjoy your trip to Japan and let us know if we can be of help!

Hi, my daughter has a Anaphylactic allergy to peanuts, treenuts and sesame. And my son has an allergy to salmon. We will be carrying an Epipen during our travels In Japan. As you can imagine I am very nervous about dining around in Tokyo where we will be mainly be travelling. Do you think it would be difficult and risky to eat in Japan safely? I am particularly concerned about the sesame content in Japanese cuisine. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you for your Holly! We’re excited about your trip to Japan and hope our Care Packages can bring you a taste of what’s to come!As with traveling anywhere with allergies, it’s best to be prepared. It may make sense to carry a card that says “I have a severe allergy to nuts (peanuts in particular) and shellfish.” which we have translated into Japanese for you: 私は重度のナッツ(特にピーナッツ)と甲殻類のアレルギーがあります。Enjoy your trip to Japan and let us know if we can be of help!

Hello!

I am looking at travelling to Tokyo next year. I carry epipens and have a severe allergy to nuts (peanuts in particular) and shellfish. I can quite happily eat other fish though e.g. salmon, tuna etc. Do you think it would be too difficult to eat safely in Tokyo? I’m trying to do some research around this. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you for your comment gregory miyata. MSG isn’t one of the allergens required or recommended to be listed by the MAFF but is one we ensure is not in any of our products

You omitted one very common seasoning that most Japanese foods contain—-MSG…monosodium glutamate. My mom used it all the time when growing up. Sad to say, our daughter has an allergy to it as it gives her migraine headaches for a day…and I hear many younger generation of kids also suffer from that allergy