Travelling to South Korea With a Peanut or Nut Allergy: A Practical Guide
South Korea is an incredible destination for food lovers. From Korean barbecue and bibimbap to bustling food markets, cafés and convenience stores, trying the local food can be a huge part of the experience.
But travelling to South Korea with a peanut or tree nut allergy can bring an extra layer of planning.
How do you explain a serious allergy when you don't speak Korean? Which allergens are included on Korean food labels? And what should you consider when eating in restaurants or buying unfamiliar packaged foods?
Travelling with a food allergy doesn't mean you can't enjoy South Korea, but preparation and clear communication are particularly important. Here's what to consider before you travel.
Are Food Allergies Labelled in South Korea?
South Korea has allergen labelling requirements for certain foods, but the system isn't identical to allergen labelling in the UK or other countries.
According to South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS), foods subject to allergen labelling include peanuts, walnuts and pine nuts, alongside allergens including egg, milk, buckwheat, soybeans, wheat, fish and shellfish.
When relevant allergens are used as ingredients, allergen information must be displayed separately near the ingredient information on applicable packaged foods.
This is particularly important if you have a broader tree nut allergy. Do not assume that every nut you avoid at home is necessarily covered in exactly the same way by Korean allergen labelling requirements.
Always check the complete information available for a product and avoid eating something if you cannot confidently establish whether it is suitable for your individual allergy.
Eating Out in South Korea With a Peanut or Nut Allergy
Eating out can be one of the more challenging parts of travelling with a food allergy, particularly when there is a language barrier.
Menus may not always provide all the information you need, and ingredients can appear in sauces, marinades, garnishes and side dishes where they may not be obvious.
It can therefore be useful to research restaurants before you travel and, where possible, contact them in advance to discuss your allergy.
When ordering, make it clear that you have a food allergy rather than simply saying that you don't like or don't eat a particular ingredient.
Make Your Peanut or Nut Allergy Easier to Explain in Korean
Trying to explain a potentially serious food allergy in a language you don't speak fluently can be stressful, especially in a busy restaurant.
Our Peanut & Tree Nut Allergy Travel Card in Korean is designed to make that conversation easier.
The digital card communicates your peanut and tree nut allergy in Korean, giving you something clear to show restaurant and food-service staff when discussing your requirements.
Because it is digital, you can keep it on your phone and have it ready when you need it.
Get the Korean Peanut & Tree Nut Allergy Travel Card →
Korean Foods and Ingredients to Ask About
Korean food can contain ingredients that aren't immediately obvious from looking at the finished dish.
Sauces, dressings, marinades, toppings, desserts and pre-prepared ingredients can all make it difficult to judge whether a meal is suitable based on appearance alone.
You may also be served several small side dishes, known as banchan, alongside a meal. Rather than assuming these are safe because they weren't part of your main order, check any unfamiliar dishes before eating them.
The same applies to street food. If you cannot establish the ingredients or how the food has been prepared, it may be safer to choose something else.
Don't Forget About Cross-Contact
Ingredients are only one part of managing a food allergy while travelling.
Depending on your individual allergy, you may also need to consider whether your food could come into contact with peanuts or tree nuts during preparation.
Shared utensils, cooking surfaces, preparation areas and equipment can all be relevant, particularly in busy restaurants and street-food environments.
If cross-contact is a concern for your allergy, make sure this is part of the conversation with the person preparing your food.
An allergy translation card can help you communicate your requirements, but it cannot guarantee that a particular restaurant, kitchen or meal is safe.
Buying Food in Korean Convenience Stores and Supermarkets
South Korea's convenience stores are incredibly popular with travellers, and you'll find packaged meals, snacks, drinks and desserts everywhere.
Packaged food can sometimes make checking allergens easier because there is a physical label to inspect, but remember that the information is likely to be written primarily in Korean.
Look carefully at the ingredient and allergen information every time, even if you've bought a similar product before.
Translation apps can be helpful as an additional tool for understanding unfamiliar packaging, but they shouldn't be treated as a guaranteed method of determining whether a food is safe for someone with a serious allergy.
If you cannot confidently establish what a product contains, don't take the risk.
Be Specific About Your Tree Nut Allergy
One particularly important consideration for travellers with tree nut allergies is that the term “nuts” can cover many different foods.
South Korea's allergen labelling requirements specifically identify certain allergens such as peanuts, walnuts and pine nuts. That doesn't mean you should assume every other tree nut will always be highlighted in the way you might expect at home.
If you need to avoid almonds, cashews, pistachios, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts or other specific nuts, make sure the person preparing your food understands exactly what you cannot eat.
This is one reason a detailed allergy translation card can be particularly useful when travelling.
Keep Your Allergy Information Available Offline
Mobile data and Wi-Fi have a habit of disappearing exactly when you need them.
Before travelling, download or screenshot your digital allergy card so you can access it without an internet connection.
Consider keeping a backup copy somewhere else too, particularly if your allergy is severe.
You might have planned every restaurant before leaving home, but delayed trains, changed plans and spontaneous days out can quickly change where you end up eating.
Having your allergy information immediately available gives you one less thing to think about.
Travelling to South Korea With Allergy Medication
Make sure you take sufficient 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 rather than somewhere difficult to reach when you're out exploring.
Before travelling, check the latest requirements for taking your particular medication into South Korea and any rules or documentation required by your airline.
It can also be useful to know how you would access emergency assistance at your destination before you actually need it.
South Korea Peanut & Nut Allergy Travel Checklist
Before your trip, consider:
- researching restaurants before you travel
- learning how Korean allergen labelling differs from the system you use at home
- being specific about each nut you need to avoid
- taking sufficient prescribed allergy medication
- keeping your medication accessible
- downloading your allergy travel card so it is available offline
- keeping a backup of important allergy information
- checking ingredients every time you buy unfamiliar packaged food
- asking about cross-contact where this is relevant to your allergy
- clearly telling restaurant staff that you have a food allergy
Make Communicating a Peanut or Nut Allergy in South Korea Easier
Travelling somewhere new should be about experiencing the destination, not worrying about finding the right words to explain your allergy every time you order food.
The Korean Peanut & Tree Nut Allergy Travel Card from The Allergy Project gives you a simple way to communicate important allergy information in Korean.
It's delivered digitally, so you can save it directly to your phone and have it with you throughout your trip.
Travelling to South Korea with a peanut or tree nut allergy?
Get your Korean Peanut & Tree Nut Allergy Travel Card →
This guide provides general information for travelling with food allergies and is not a substitute for individual medical advice. Allergen labelling requirements, ingredients and food preparation practices can change. Always make your own assessment and follow the allergy-management advice given to you by your healthcare professional.
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