What does the phrase 'may contain' on a food label mean?

Answer 1

In the United States, if the food is produced with the allergenic ingredient, it must be included in the ingredient statement.

If a company makes a variety of products with a variety of allergenic ingredients on the same equipment or in the same facility, a "may contain" statement is not a regulatory acceptable replacement for appropriate cleaning or GMPs to separate allergens. It is considered only as advisory. If a food (even if labeled "may contain") ends up causing reactions due to the allergen or is tested and found to contain the allergen, the product must be recalled for two reasons: It is hazardous and is mislabeled.

Most companies that are worth their salt will have programs to separate allergens to ensure the health and safety of their customers. They would also prefer not to deal with recalls and lawsuits. Good companies will have multiple barriers to allergen cross-contact which include cleaning and production procedures/scheduling and dedicated lines and/or buildings. They will even require label verification at production changeovers or when a new label shipment arrives.

Companies might still use the "may contain" statements to advise potential consumers of possible allergen content, but it does not absolve them of legal obligations or responsibilities.

Answer 2

The asker might mean a "food label" rather than a "good label." May contain just means that the product might contain that ingredient. Sometimes, this is an extra ingredient other than expected.

You might be buying pecans and there might be a warning for people who are allergic to peanuts and saying that the product may contain peanuts or peanut parts. In that case, they likely process both types of nuts in the same part of the factory and may even use some of the same machinery on both. They might partially disassemble the machine for cleaning before changing what they are processing and still might miss some of the debris from the other nuts. This is not an unsanitary condition, but having unexpected food in with other food can be a problem for people with Allergies. Or, it is possible that a given batch of pecans has no peanut traces at all (since earlier batches removed any that might have been there). But since they don't know which cans contain enough to cause problems for those suffering allergies, they have to put that warning on all the cans.