California Mandates Restaurant Allergen Disclosures

On October 13, 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed California Senate Bill 68 (SB 68), the Allergen Disclosure for Dining Experiences Act, into law.

The law amended the California Retail Food Code and added Health and Safety Code section 114093.5 to require written notification of major food allergens in menu items at certain restaurants subject to federal menu-labeling rules.

This update applies to covered chain restaurant food facilities with at least one California location that are already subject to federal menu-labeling requirements, and it takes effect on July 1, 2026.

What Employers Need to Do

• Review whether the restaurant or branded system is covered by SB 68, including whether it is part of a chain with 20 or more locations operating under the same name and offering substantially the same menu items, with at least one location in California.

• Audit standard menu items and ingredient data to identify any of the nine major food allergens the restaurant knows or reasonably should know are contained as ingredients.

• Decide whether allergen disclosures will appear directly on menus or through a digital format, and if using a digital format, prepare a written non-digital alternative such as an allergen chart, grid, booklet, or allergen-specific menu.

• Update all menu and ordering channels where customers encounter standard menu items, including printed menus, menu boards, drive-through boards, kiosks, websites, mobile apps, and online ordering platforms.

• Strengthen internal controls among culinary, procurement, marketing, menu-design, and digital-ordering teams so allergen disclosures remain accurate when recipes, ingredients, suppliers, or formulations change

Overview

• SB 68 made California the first state to require written restaurant menu disclosures for major food allergens.

• The law applies only to food facilities already subject to federal menu-labeling requirements under 21 U.S.C. section 343(q)(5)(H), which generally covers chain restaurants with 20 or more locations operating under the same name and offering substantially the same menu items.

• Covered restaurants must provide written notification of the presence of the nine major food allergens—milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans, and sesame—that they know or reasonably should know are contained as ingredients in each standard menu item.

• Restaurants may comply either by listing allergens directly on the menu or by providing allergen information in a digital format, such as a QR code, so long as a written non-digital alternative is also available for customers who cannot access digital content.

• SB 68 does not require cross-contact warnings or guarantees that food is allergen-free, and it does not apply to compact mobile food operations, nonpermanent food facilities, or prepackaged foods already subject to federal allergen-labeling requirements.

• Menu specials or test items offered for fewer than 60 total days in a year, or fewer than 90 consecutive days are exempt under the federal menu-rule framework incorporated into SB 68.

• Enforcement will rest with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and local enforcement agencies, and violations remain enforceable under the California Retail Food Code, where noncompliance may constitute a misdemeanor.

Why This Matters

SB 68 is a significant shift for covered restaurant chains because it turns allergen information into a written menu-disclosure obligation rather than leaving it primarily to staff knowledge, informal communication, or internal allergen-reference materials.

For employers operating covered restaurant brands, compliance is not only a menu-design project. It also requires accurate ingredient tracking, cross-functional coordination, and consistent updates across physical and digital ordering channels when recipes, suppliers, or formulations change.

Although the statute does not require cross-contact warnings, many commentators expect meaningful litigation risk if disclosures are inaccurate, incomplete, or inconsistent—especially once a guest gives notice of an allergy.

Key Risks for Employers

• Misidentifying whether a restaurant concept, franchise system, or location network is covered by the law’s chain-restaurant threshold.

• Publishing allergen information that becomes inaccurate because of recipe changes, supplier substitutions, menu variants, or inconsistent data across ordering platforms.

• Using digital disclosures without maintaining a written non-digital alternative for guests who cannot access electronic formats.

• Treating the law as a limited menu-labeling exercise instead of a broader operational compliance issue involving procurement, culinary, marketing, and technology teams.

• Assuming that regulatory enforcement is the only exposure, when private consumer-protection or negligence-based litigation may also follow inaccurate disclosures or allergy-related incidents.

Additional Information

The California Department of Public Health has published an implementation page explaining the covered allergens, who must comply, how restaurants may disclose allergen information, the available exemptions, and agency contact information for questions.

Source References

• California SB 68 – Major food allergens
• California Department of Health (CDPH) – Food and Drug Branch (FDG) – SB 68 Major Food Allergens

Resources

• FDA – Food Allergies

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