Venkat and Mihalek introduce bipartisan food allergy safety bill

Rep. Arvind Venkat    January 13, 2025 | 12:58 PM

HARRISBURG, Jan. 13 – State Reps. Arvind Venkat and Natalie Mihalek have introduced legislation that would promote food allergy safety in multiple ways.

House Bill 77 would mandate that menus in restaurants and food establishments contain a disclaimer regarding food allergies, posters to make servers aware of food allergies must be present in food preparation and staff areas, and establishment staff would be required to undergo food allergy safety training.

“The last thing anyone should worry about while enjoying a meal with their family and friends is having a medical emergency brought on by a food allergy,” said Venkat, D-Allegheny. “Rep. Mihalek and I want to help ensure there are measures in place to keep Pennsylvanians protected from accidental food allergen exposures and their hazardous health effects.”

“The scariest part is that someone with food allergies could do everything right, such as carrying EpiPens and asking questions, and still have a serious problem. A little information can go a long way in avoiding future catastrophes,” added Mihalek, R-Allegheny. “I’m happy to be working with Rep. Venkat on this bipartisan bill.”

More than 33 million Americans have food allergies, and it is estimated that food allergies lead to 200 deaths per year. Over a 13-year period, nearly half of fatal food allergy reactions were caused by accidental food allergen exposure at a restaurant or other food service establishment.

An earlier version of the bill passed the state House with a bipartisan vote in the previous session.