The allergen matrix, built dish by dish
In the EU, the INCO regulation (No 1169/2011) requires written information on 14 major allergens — never verbal, never from memory. A matrix is the clearest way to hold that information, dish by dish. Add your menu below and get a printable matrix.
14-day trial · No credit card · Cancel anytime
Definition
An allergen matrix is a cross-reference table listing every menu item as a row and the 14 regulated allergens as columns, with a mark wherever an allergen is present. It needs updating every time the menu or a recipe changes.
Build your matrix
Add your dishes (up to 10), tick the allergens each one contains. Three examples are pre-filled to show the idea.
Up to 10 dishes here. For a full menu, methodus documents every one automatically.
Your matrix, ready to print
The table below carries your dishes and your ticks — the format a health inspection asks for, ready to post in the kitchen or behind the bar.
Free account · 30 seconds · No credit card
Methodus detects allergens from your recipes
You just ticked this matrix by hand. In Methodus it builds itself: you dictate the recipe, the AI identifies allergens from the ingredients, and the spec sheet — so the matrix — updates every time a recipe changes. Nothing to re-tick.
The allergen matrix is one link in your HACCP process, not the whole thing. See the HACCP method and the log templates → for the rest of the daily routine: temperatures, cleaning, receiving.
Frequently asked questions
The INCO regulation requires written information on the 14 allergens, but doesn't mandate one specific format. The matrix (dishes as rows, allergens as columns) is the clearest layout and the one most often asked for in practice, including at an inspection.
Gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, soybeans, milk, tree nuts, celery, mustard, sesame, sulphites (above 10mg/kg), lupin, and molluscs — Annex II of Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011.
No. Under the INCO regulation, allergen information has to be written and accessible — posted, on the menu, or available on request. Verbal disclosure alone is no longer sufficient.
The principle — written disclosure of major allergens — shows up in most Western regulations (the FDA's 9 major allergens in the US, Natasha's Law in the UK), but the exact list and rules differ. Check your local requirements.
Who builds methodusmethodus is built by an operator. Nathaniel Gilliand, École hôtelière de Lausanne graduate, runs restaurants, bars and beach clubs. This is the tool he built to find the margin that was evaporating in his own P&L.
14-day trial, no credit card.
Your allergens, kept current on their own
Dictate your recipes, and the matrix builds and updates itself behind the scenes.
14-day trial · No credit card · Cancel anytime
Cookies & measurement. Essential cookies run methodus.bar. Analytics & ads only with your OK. Details in the privacy policy.