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AUG. SEP. 2019 VIII periodically organised in other Italian cities, whose aim is to educate restaurateurs and managers to minimise the risks for allergic and intolerant customers, instruct them on the procedures to be implemented in case of emergency and inform them about the problems posed by ‘hidden’ foods in apparently allergy-proof preparations. EVEN A SMALL KITCHEN CAN COMBAT CROSS-CONTAMINATION In the world of catering, there are strict rules that - if broken - ‘the machine’ will jam. As a first rule, the chef must know his products and suppliers well. The second is that the communication between kitchen and waiters must work perfectly. Feeding allergy sufferers and intolerants is not difficult but requires a specific knowledge, on the part of the chef and his team, of the food products they handle and the time required to prepare them. Small details’ that often discourage the restaurateur from cooking for this ‘small’ clientele. The reasons that push him to adopt this behaviour are various, one, the most widespread, the fear of being reported by the customer, should he feel bad, after eating in his restaurant. The other, closely related to the first, the possible closure of the kitchens, after that the Nas or Asl have carried out the checks necessary to the case; the last is motivation, laziness, having to pay more attention in the kitchen to avoid contamination of the food and utensils used. “A thorough preparation would solve the problem,” says chef Elio Sironi. “The team, if properly trained, can take advantage of the same areas avoiding so-called cross- contamination, the greatest threat to intolerant and allergic people.” Anyone today can broaden their knowledge on gluten and on the various allergies and food intolerances: on the web, in the newspapers or by attending specialised cooking courses. Information that, often, turns out to be incomplete, inaccurate and deceptive that often make so many people understand, not a few, that celiac disease and intolerances are, almost, a way of life, of healthy living. “It is a vice,” says Tiziana Colombo severely, “bad habit but it hurts those who really suffer from food intolerances because restaurateurs remain wary of this attitude and in the end, it becomes difficult to accommodate the requests of those who really suffer from intolerances.” The boom in food on TV and in the printed media and the visibility acquired by chefs have stimulated many people, but especially professionals, to study, to broaden their knowledge of the products they use and the possible combinations between them. This is how a healthy competition has started, encouraging restaurateurs and chefs to experiment with new allergen-free menus to propose to their public. The world of nutrition is vast. Unfortunately, it also welcomes certain ‘characters’ who completely ignore the principles of the kitchen intended for allergy sufferers and intolerants such as, in fact, the aforementioned cross-contamination, not informing customers about the different possibilities of choice. In the kitchen of a coeliac or food allergy sufferer, the rules are strict: from the storage of food to the hygiene of the table top and the use of utensils. Two separate spaces would undoubtedly cancel out the contamination problem, but this is not always possible, both for logistical and economic reasons. There is, however, a solution. Not difficult at all. It requires the use of small and simple devices, those adopted in all traditional kitchens of the HACCP system: wash your hands frequently, do not touch products that contain gluten, use different utensils and gloves for the preparation of various dishes. “I work in a space of 15 square meters,” says Giovanni Priolo, “and I do everything with and without gluten. In one corner of the pizzeria I prepare with gluten, in the other, in the kitchen, I do everything without gluten... to date I have had no problem.” Until 2015, buying a gluten-free product was not easy. Only the pharmacies had a monopoly on the sale of products for celiacs. An exclusivity ending only recently, when the big industrial chains understood that the world of coeliac disease and of food intolerances was so vast to incorporate a large section of the world’s population. Therefore, an economically advantageous market. Today, finally, gluten products can be purchased anywhere: 80% in supermarkets, the remaining 20%, come from craft workshops, in small shops. An increasingly large catchment area destined to grow and one that convinces more and more restaurateurs, even the most suspicious, to open their kitchens to all those who suffer from allergies and intolerances. A smart choice that would effectively increase their turnover. MAGAZINE