Compliance & Legislation
Most operators focused on allergen compliance are thinking about their standard menus. The rules for prepackaged grab-and-go food are separate, different, and catching operators off guard.
By Dylan McDonnell, Founder & CEO, Foodini | May 2026 | 7 min read
If you have a restaurant in New York with a grab-and-go fridge — sandwiches prepared in the morning and placed in a case for customers to pick up and walk out — those sandwiches must be labelled with the top nine allergens by November 2026 under New York's A6558A.
If a customer comes in and orders a sandwich and you prepare it fresh to order, that doesn't have to be labelled. It's a nuance, but it's one worth understanding clearly — because most multi-state operators running California SB 68 compliance projects have not factored this into their New York planning.
Governor Hochul signed New York Assembly Bill A6558A into law in November 2025. It takes effect November 2026 and applies to all food establishments across New York state — not just chains with 20+ locations. This is a broader scope than California's SB 68.
Under A6558A, any food establishment that prepares and prepackages food for sale on the same premises must label that food with the nine major food allergens: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, wheat, soy, and sesame.
A coffee shop that bakes muffins and puts them in a display case for self-service is selling prepackaged food — those muffins need allergen labels.
A deli that assembles sandwiches at 6am and wraps them for the grab-and-go case is selling prepackaged food — those sandwiches need allergen labels.
A bakery that wraps brownies in branded packaging near the register is selling prepackaged food — those items need allergen labels.
In each of these cases, the operator may have previously thought of this as "our food" rather than "labelled product," because it was prepared in-house rather than received from a manufacturer. A6558A changes that. In-house preparation does not exempt prepackaged food from allergen disclosure requirements — it creates the obligation.
California's SB 68 and New York's A6558A are both effective in 2026, both require the same nine allergens — but they address different food formats and require different compliance mechanisms.
A multi-location operator with California and New York locations needs to comply with both. The underlying need is the same — accurate allergen data — but the outputs differ: menu disclosures for SB 68, physical labels for A6558A.
New York's A6558A is part of a wider trend: not just more jurisdictions requiring allergen disclosure, but more food formats being covered. California covered chain restaurant menus. New York expanded to prepackaged on-site food for all establishments. Virginia added allergen markers for delivery and carry-out modifications.
An operator who builds allergen compliance narrowly — only for the format the current law requires — will be rebuilding it within two to three years. The operators who build a centralised, accurate allergen data system now are the ones who can apply it to each new compliance surface as it emerges.
Foodini builds the allergen data source that powers compliance across menu formats — in-store menus, digital channels, delivery platforms, and prepackaged food labelling — so one accurate data set covers every compliance requirement your operation faces today and as the regulatory landscape expands.
See how Foodini handles multi-format allergen compliance →