Travelling to France With a Peanut or Nut Allergy: A Practical Guide
From croissants in Paris to crêpes in Brittany and long lunches in the South of France, food is one of the great pleasures of travelling in France.
But if you’re travelling to France with a peanut or tree nut allergy, eating out can understandably require a little more planning.
How are allergens shown on French food labels? What information should restaurants provide? And how do you make sure someone understands that you have a serious food allergy rather than simply saying you don't like nuts?
The good news is that France follows EU food allergen rules and there are requirements around providing allergen information. However, clear communication is still an important part of travelling with a food allergy.
How Are Food Allergies Labelled in France?
France follows European Union food-information rules covering 14 regulated allergens.
These include peanuts and specified tree nuts, alongside allergens including milk, eggs, cereals containing gluten, soya, sesame, mustard, celery, fish and shellfish.
For prepacked food, allergenic ingredients must be identified and emphasised within the ingredients information, making them easier to spot.
You'll commonly see the French word “arachides” referring to peanuts, while “fruits à coque” is used for the group of tree nuts covered by the allergen rules.
Even if you're familiar with European allergen labelling, always check each product rather than assuming something is suitable because you've bought something similar before.
Eating Out in France With a Peanut or Nut Allergy
France's restaurant culture is one of the highlights of visiting, and there are rules around allergen information that can help when eating out.
French restaurants must provide written information about regulated allergenic ingredients in the food and drinks they serve.
This information might appear directly on the menu, on a display or in separate allergen information that you can ask staff to provide.
That doesn't mean you should rely on the written information alone if you have a serious allergy.
Tell restaurant staff about your allergy and ask any questions you need to about ingredients and preparation before ordering.
Make Your Peanut or Nut Allergy Easier to Explain in French
Knowing the French word for peanut is useful, but communicating a serious food allergy involves more than translating the name of one ingredient.
Our French Peanut & Tree Nut Allergy Travel Card gives you important allergy information in French so you can show it directly to restaurant and food-service staff.
It's digital, so you can save it to your phone before travelling and keep it easily accessible when you're eating out.
Get the French Peanut & Tree Nut Allergy Travel Card →
French Allergy Words You May See on Food Labels
Even when you have a translated allergy card, recognising some common French food words can be useful when shopping or reading menus.
- Arachide – peanut
- Arachides – peanuts
- Fruits à coque – the category used for specified tree nuts
- Noix – walnut
- Noisette – hazelnut
- Amande – almond
- Noix de cajou – cashew nut
- Pistache – pistachio
- Peut contenir – may contain
- Traces de – traces of
These translations can help you recognise familiar words, but they shouldn't replace checking the full allergen and ingredient information relevant to your individual allergy.
French Foods Where It Is Worth Asking About Nuts
French cuisine varies enormously by region, and recipes can differ between individual bakeries, restaurants and chefs.
Rather than trying to create a list of supposedly “safe” French foods, it's better to ask about the specific food you're considering.
Nuts can appear in pastries, cakes, chocolates, desserts, ice creams, sauces, salads and confectionery, sometimes in ways that aren't immediately obvious from looking at the finished dish.
Praline, for example, commonly involves nuts and sugar, while frangipane traditionally contains ground almonds.
Bakeries and pâtisseries may also prepare many different products in the same environment, so if cross-contact is relevant to your allergy, make sure you ask about that too.
Visiting a French Boulangerie or Pâtisserie With a Nut Allergy
Walking into a French bakery is probably going to happen at some point on your trip.
For someone with a nut allergy, however, the huge variety of pastries, cakes and breads being prepared and displayed together can mean there is more to consider than simply choosing something that doesn't visibly contain nuts.
Allergen information must be available for applicable non-prepacked foods in France, but you may need to ask where to find it.
If cross-contact is a concern for you, speak to staff about how products are prepared rather than relying only on the name or appearance of an item.
Shopping in French Supermarkets With a Food Allergy
French supermarkets can be relatively straightforward places to check allergen information because prepacked foods are subject to EU food-information rules.
Allergenic ingredients must be highlighted within the ingredients information.
However, the packaging will generally be written in French, so familiarising yourself with the French names for your allergens before travelling can make shopping easier.
You may also see precautionary phrases such as “peut contenir” or references to traces of an allergen.
Always read the information on the particular product you're buying, even if you've previously eaten a similar product or the same brand at home.
Peanuts and Tree Nuts Are Not the Same Allergen
One important thing to remember when travelling is that “nuts” isn't one single allergen category.
Peanuts and tree nuts are treated separately within European allergen legislation.
The regulated tree-nut group includes almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios and macadamia or Queensland nuts.
If you have allergies to particular tree nuts, be specific about exactly what you need to avoid rather than relying solely on the general word “nuts”.
Think About Cross-Contact When Eating in France
Allergen information tells you about ingredients intentionally used in a food, but depending on your allergy, you may also need to consider cross-contact.
Shared kitchens, preparation surfaces, utensils and equipment can all be relevant.
This can be particularly worth discussing in bakeries, pâtisseries, ice-cream shops and restaurants where foods containing nuts are prepared alongside other dishes.
A translation card can help you communicate your requirements, but it cannot guarantee that a particular restaurant, kitchen or meal is safe.
Other Food Allergies When Travelling to France
Peanuts and tree nuts aren't the only allergies travellers need to communicate.
The Allergy Project has French digital allergy travel cards covering a growing range of food allergies and dietary requirements.
If you're travelling with another allergy, or several allergies, you can browse all of our French options before your trip.
Browse All French Allergy Travel Cards →
Download Your French Allergy Card Before Travelling
If you're taking a digital allergy card to France, download or screenshot it before your trip.
That means you won't be dependent on mobile data or restaurant Wi-Fi when you need to show it to somebody.
You may also want to keep a backup copy somewhere else.
Travel plans change, restaurants get booked up and sometimes you end up eating somewhere completely different from where you expected. Having your allergy information immediately available can make those unexpected situations easier to manage.
Travelling to France With Allergy Medication
Take enough of your prescribed allergy medication for your trip and follow the individual advice given to you by your healthcare professional.
If you have been prescribed adrenaline auto-injectors, keep them accessible while you're travelling rather than somewhere difficult to reach.
Before travelling, check current airline requirements and any relevant rules or documentation relating to carrying your particular medication internationally.
France Peanut & Nut Allergy Travel Checklist
Before travelling to France with a peanut or tree nut allergy, consider:
- researching restaurants before your trip
- learning the French names for your individual allergens
- checking written allergen information when eating out
- telling restaurant staff clearly that you have a food allergy
- asking about cross-contact where this is relevant to your allergy
- checking food labels every time you buy an unfamiliar product
- taking sufficient prescribed allergy medication
- keeping emergency medication accessible
- downloading your French allergy travel card so it works offline
- keeping a backup copy of important allergy information
Make Communicating Your Food Allergy in France Easier
France has strong allergen-information requirements, but having a serious food allergy can still involve conversations with the people preparing and serving your food.
A translated allergy card gives you another way to make your requirements clear without relying entirely on your own French.
If you have a peanut or tree nut allergy, our digital French card can be saved directly to your phone and taken with you throughout your trip.
Get the French Peanut & Tree Nut Allergy Travel Card →
If you're travelling with a different food allergy, you can also explore our complete range of French cards.
See All French Allergy Travel Cards →
This guide provides general information for travelling with food allergies and is not a substitute for individual medical advice. Allergen information, recipes and food preparation practices can change. An allergy translation card is a communication tool and cannot guarantee that a food or establishment is safe. Always make your own assessment and follow the allergy-management advice provided by your healthcare professional.
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