Requires restaurants to notify consumers of major food allergens for their menu items
Summary
HB 3446 would create a new section of Missouri law requiring restaurants to disclose major food allergens in menu items. The bill defines major food allergens to include milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts, sesame, soybeans, and ingredients containing proteins derived from those foods, with exclusions for highly refined oils and ingredients exempted under federal allergen law. The requirement would apply to restaurants that operate permanent food service facilities with commercial cooking equipment and prepare and sell multiple entrees for on- or off-premises consumption.
Restaurants would have to provide allergen information either directly on printed menus or through a digital format such as a QR code-linked menu, but if they use a digital format they must also offer an alternative written method for customers who cannot access the digital information. The bill allows allergen disclosure through common names or standardized pictograms. It also excludes prepackaged foods already covered by federal labeling rules and states that it does not change any existing duty a restaurant may have to protect patron safety.
Impact
The bill would add section 196.184 to chapter 196, RSMo, placing restaurant allergen disclosure under the enforcement authority of the Department of Health and Senior Services. The department could inspect for compliance through visual verification or other reasonable methods and could seek injunctive relief against violations. In practical terms, the measure would impose new menu-labeling and disclosure obligations on covered restaurants while leaving federal labeling requirements for packaged foods unchanged and preserving existing common-law or statutory safety duties.
Sentiment
The available context suggests the bill is framed as a consumer-protection and public-health measure, with no recorded committee testimony or votes showing opposition or support. Its caption indicates an intent to help consumers identify allergens in restaurant food, which generally aligns with food-safety concerns and accommodations for people with allergies. Because no transcripts or vote history are provided, the overall sentiment cannot be measured beyond the bill’s protective purpose and its referral to the Emerging Issues Committee.
Contention
The main points of potential contention are the compliance burden on restaurants, the scope of covered businesses, and the method of disclosure. Restaurants may object to the cost and operational complexity of maintaining accurate allergen information on menus, digital systems, and alternative written materials, especially for changing menus or small businesses. Another possible issue is enforcement and whether visual verification is sufficient to ensure accuracy. Supporters would likely emphasize consumer safety, transparency, and accessibility for people with food allergies, while opponents may focus on administrative burden and liability concerns.
Establishes the "Missouri Hemp Consumer Protection Act" to regulate the manufacture, distribution, sale, and consumption of certain hemp-derived consumable products in Missouri
Establishes the "Missouri Healthy Schools Act" and prohibits public schools from serving, selling, or allowing a third party to sell ultraprocessed food during the school day
Authorizing the Kansas state employees health care commission to provide insurance coverage for certain allergen introduction dietary supplements for infants under the state health care benefits program and requiring the commission to submit an impact report to the legislature if such coverage is provided.