Food Allergies in China: Allergy Cards, Hidden Allergens and How to Eat Safely

The short version

China is manageable with a food allergy, but the safety net you are used to is missing. There are no allergen menus, staff training is rare and kitchens share equipment.

Your plan:

1. Carry a written allergy card in Chinese and show it before every order and again when the food arrives.
2. Name the hidden forms: the oil, the sauce and the stock, not only the ingredient.
3. Choose simple dishes you can see, in kitchens you can trust.
4. Bring all your medication, including two adrenaline auto-injectors if prescribed.
5. Know the emergency number: 120.
6. Walk away if staff seem unsure. There is always another restaurant.

Label rules in this guide come from China’s National Health Commission, checked on 30 September 2026. This is general information, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor or allergy specialist before you travel.

Why China is harder

• Low awareness. Severe food allergy is less familiar in China. Staff may hear “I don’t like peanuts” when you mean “peanuts could kill me”.
• Shared woks and oil. One wok cooks dish after dish with a quick rinse. Frying oil is reused.
• Compound sauces. A single sauce can contain soy, wheat, sesame, peanuts and shellfish, and the cook may not know the full list.
• Well-meant guesses. Staff often say “no problem” to be helpful. Picking the peanuts off the top is a common response.
• Shared dishes. Food arrives on shared plates, and serving spoons move between dishes.
• No allergen menus. Restaurants are not required to list allergens.

None of this means staff do not care. When they understand that it is a medical danger, most kitchens try hard to help. Your job is to make it unmistakable.

Where allergens hide

The hardest allergies in China are soy, wheat, sesame and peanuts, because they are in the basic oils and sauces. Milk is the easiest: traditional Chinese cooking uses very little dairy.

Allergy cards you can show

Save these as images on your phone and print a few copies. Show the card before ordering, ask staff to show it to the cook, and show it again when the dish arrives.

Peanuts

我对花生严重过敏，吃了会有生命危险。 请不要放花生、花生油、花生酱。 请确认所有的油、酱料和汤里都没有花生，并使用干净的锅和餐具。 如果不能确定，请直接告诉我。谢谢！

I have a severe peanut allergy that can be life-threatening. Please do not use peanuts, peanut oil or peanut butter. Please check that all oils, sauces and soups are peanut-free, and use a clean wok and utensils. If you are not sure, please tell me. Thank you!

Tree nuts

我对坚果严重过敏（核桃、腰果、杏仁、榛子、开心果、松子等），吃了会有生命危险。 请不要放任何坚果或坚果油，并使用干净的锅和餐具。 如果不能确定，请直接告诉我。谢谢！

I have a severe tree nut allergy (walnuts, cashews, almonds, hazelnuts, pistachios, pine nuts and others) that can be life-threatening. Please do not use any nuts or nut oils, and use a clean wok and utensils. If you are not sure, please tell me. Thank you!

Shellfish

我对虾、蟹、贝类等海鲜严重过敏，吃了会有生命危险。 请不要放虾、蟹、贝类、虾米、虾酱、蚝油、XO酱。 请使用干净的锅和餐具。如果不能确定，请直接告诉我。谢谢！

I have a severe allergy to shrimp, crab and other shellfish that can be life-threatening. Please do not use shrimp, crab, shellfish, dried shrimp, shrimp paste, oyster sauce or XO sauce. Please use a clean wok and utensils. If you are not sure, please tell me. Thank you!

Sesame

我对芝麻严重过敏，吃了会有生命危险。 请不要放芝麻、芝麻油（香油）、芝麻酱（麻酱）。 请使用干净的锅和餐具。如果不能确定，请直接告诉我。谢谢！

I have a severe sesame allergy that can be life-threatening. Please do not use sesame seeds, sesame oil or sesame paste. Please use a clean wok and utensils. If you are not sure, please tell me. Thank you!

Gluten (coeliac disease)

我有乳糜泻，不能吃任何含小麦、大麦、黑麦的食物，很少量也不行。 请不要放酱油、面粉、面筋、面条，也不要用含小麦的醋和酱料。 请使用干净的锅和餐具。如果不能确定，请直接告诉我。谢谢！

I have coeliac disease and cannot eat anything containing wheat, barley or rye, even in very small amounts. Please do not use soy sauce, flour, wheat gluten or noodles, or any vinegar or sauce that contains wheat. Please use a clean wok and utensils. If you are not sure, please tell me. Thank you!

Other allergens: use the peanut card and replace 花生 with your allergen:

Emergency card:

我发生了严重的过敏反应，需要马上去医院。请帮我叫救护车（120）。

I am having a severe allergic reaction and need to go to hospital immediately. Please call an ambulance (120) for me.

Safer places to eat

No restaurant in China is risk-free, but some are much easier than others.

Harder places: street food stalls, busy noodle shops at rush hour, buffets, banquet meals with fixed menus, bakeries and dessert shops, and food delivery, where you cannot talk to the kitchen.

Dishes that are usually simpler to check:

• plain steamed rice (白米饭) and congee (白粥);
• steamed fish or steamed egg, with sauce on the side;
• boiled or stir-fried greens with garlic (蒜蓉), if the oil is safe for you;
• plain boiled dumplings, if wheat is safe for you and you check the filling;
• fresh fruit you peel yourself.

Always ask, even for these. For how QR menus and ordering work, see how to order food in China.

Packaged food and labels

Ingredient lists are in Chinese. Use your phone’s camera translation on every label. See translation apps for China.

The rules are changing. China’s new national standard for packaged food labels, GB 7718-2025, takes effect on 16 March 2027. According to the National Health Commission:

• Eight allergen groups must be shown when used as ingredients: cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, fish, eggs, peanuts, soybeans, milk (including lactose) and tree nuts.
• They can be highlighted in bold or underlined in the ingredient list, or listed beside it after words such as 致敏物质 or 过敏原 (allergen information).
• Sesame is not on the mandatory list. Labeling it is voluntary.
• “May contain” warnings for cross-contact on shared production lines are encouraged, not required.

Until that date, allergen labeling is voluntary, so a package with no allergen statement can still contain one. After it, some older stock will remain on shelves for a time.

Words to look for:

Imported products in international supermarkets often keep their original labels, with a Chinese sticker added.

Before you go

• See your doctor or allergy specialist. Ask for an emergency action plan and a letter in English that lists your allergy and your medication.
• Bring all your medication from home: two adrenaline auto-injectors if prescribed, antihistamines, inhalers and anything else you use. Auto-injectors are hard to find in Chinese pharmacies.
• Carry medication in hand luggage, in original packaging, with the prescription. See China customs rules.
• Tell your airline about your allergy when you book, and bring your own food for the flight.
• Buy travel insurance that covers your allergy as a pre-existing condition and includes medical evacuation. See travel insurance for China.
• Pack safe snacks for travel days, long train rides and the first days while you find your feet.
• Save your cards as phone wallpaper or a favorite photo, and print paper copies.
• Tell your hotel and any guide in writing before you arrive.
• Choose hotels near a large hospital in each city, and save its name in Chinese.

If you have a reaction

1. Use your adrenaline auto-injector as your doctor has instructed.
2. Call 120 for an ambulance, or ask anyone nearby to call. Show the emergency card above.
3. Go to the nearest large hospital’s emergency department (急诊, jízhěn). Do not wait to find an international clinic.
4. Tell your travel companion or guide where your medication is before every meal, so they can help.
5. Call your insurer’s assistance line as soon as you are safe.

Chinese hospitals expect payment or a deposit before treatment, and many do not take foreign cards, so keep Alipay or WeChat Pay working and carry some cash. Ambulances are not free. See travel insurance for China.

Coeliac disease and gluten

Gluten is one of the hardest things to avoid in China, because soy sauce is everywhere.

• Naturally gluten-free staples: rice, congee, rice noodles (米粉, 河粉), sweet potato noodles, corn, potatoes, plain meat, fish, eggs, tofu, vegetables and fruit.
• Usually contain gluten: soy sauce, oyster sauce, many dark vinegars, wheat noodles, dumplings, buns, pancakes, mock meats and anything in batter.
• Bring from home: gluten-free soy sauce sachets, crackers or bread, and snack bars.
• Easier regions: the south, where rice and rice noodles are the staple. The north eats mainly wheat: noodles, dumplings and buns.
• Ask for dishes cooked with salt only (只放盐, zhǐ fàng yán), without soy sauce (不要酱油, bú yào jiàngyóu).

Traveling with an allergic child

• Carry the child’s medication yourself at all times, not in a day bag left on a bus.
• Bring familiar safe food for the whole trip if the allergy is severe.
• Expect strangers to offer sweets and snacks. Teach your child to check with you first. A polite bú yòng, xièxie (不用，谢谢, no thank you) is fine.
• Book hotels with a fridge or a kitchenette so that you can prepare simple meals.

See China with kids.

Help from someone who speaks Chinese

The most effective safety measure is a person who can speak to the kitchen for you. A private guide can explain your allergy to the cook, read labels, and choose restaurants that handle special requests well. See our local guide service, or tell us about your allergy when you use our free trip planning service and we will plan meals around it.

For vegetarian, vegan and halal travel, see vegetarian and halal food in China. For general stomach upsets, see stomach problems in China.