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Encouraging Heroes. You can be one too.

Heroes, I just learned about an organization called FARE, which stands for Food Allergy Research and Education. This organization is working on behalf of the 15 million Americans who suffer from food allergies. I’d be willing to bet you know someone with a food allergy. Some of them can be life threatening. As a parent, I’d be pretty scared if I had to worry about my child going into anaphylactic shock over a hidden ingredient. There are parents who have to deal with that exact situation every day.

Among other things, FARE has partnered with the National Restaurant Association to develop an online course that helps restaurants better understand food allergies. Secondly, FARE has partnered with MenuTrinfo’s Allertrain Service. This program teaches chefs and food service employees safe handling and delivery procedures of meals to diners with food allergies. You can read all about these programs at the FARE website SafeFARE.org

FARE is also proud to partner with AllergyEats, the leading guide to food allergy aware restaurant reviews. Restaurants listed in the SafeFARE database are encouraged to include a link to their AllergyEats profiles so users can read more about their commitment to serving diners with food allergies. Restaurants linking to their AllergyEats profile from their SafeFARE listing also will receive a special “SafeFARE listed” icon on their AllergyEats profile.

In addition to all of the work being done to educate restaurants and servers, FARE has resources for diners. There are tips for communicating with restaurants about allergies, a card that can be printed out to hand to waitstaff outlining your particular allergies, an ingredient quiz, and even a database to help you find local restaurants who are sensitive to the food allergy issue.

How can we help? Share the FARE website with your friends and family, and help everyone better understand food allergies. FARE is urging everyone to become SafeFARE advocates by telling their local restaurants about the SafeFARE program and the benefits of allergen training.