For years, Olive Garden's famous breadsticks were considered safe to eat by the more than 1.5 million Americans who suffer from sesame allergies. But that's no more. In December, the Italian eatery began adding sesame flour to its recipe.
The goal, it turns out, isn't flavor enhancement. Olive Garden is adding sesame to comply with new Food and Drug Administration regulations requiring labels for foods that contain sesame. That regulation was intended to improve food safety and choices for allergic consumers. But cleaning every last seed and particle from food service equipment isn't easy — or cheap. If Olive Garden or its contractors miss something, even after spending hours cleaning, they're potentially subject to expensive recalls, fines and even lawsuits.
So Olive Garden and other food companies are dealing with the uncertainty and risk by adding sesame to previously sesame-free foods and labeling accordingly. It's often the safest business decision, but one that contravenes the spirit of a regulation designed to provide more — not fewer — safe food options for allergic consumers.
