Sesame Labeling Under the FASTER Act: Coverage and Enforcement

The FASTER Act sesame labeling requirements took effect on January 1, 2023, and require FDA-regulated packaged foods and dietary supplements to declare sesame on the label whenever it is an ingredient, including when it is hidden inside a spice, flavoring, or another compound ingredient. Signed as Public Law 117-11 on April 23, 2021, the law amended the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to make sesame the ninth recognized major food allergen alongside milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans.¹

How Sesame Must Appear on a Label

Manufacturers have two ways to declare sesame. The word “sesame” can appear in parentheses right after the ingredient name in the ingredient list, or it can appear in a separate “Contains” statement placed immediately after or next to the ingredient list.² If a product already carries a “Contains” statement for other allergens and it also contains sesame, sesame has to be added to that statement.³

Sesame Hidden in Spices and Natural Flavors

Before the FASTER Act, sesame could legally appear on a label simply as “spice” or “natural flavor” with no further explanation. That loophole is closed. Sesame now has to be called out by name even when it is a component of another ingredient, so a label might read “natural flavor (sesame)” or “spices (sesame).”³ Flavorings, colorings, and incidental additives that contain a major food allergen are not exempt.²

Sesame-Derived Ingredients

Sesame appears in more products than many shoppers realize: tahini, hummus, some breads, energy bars, salad dressings, and various Asian sauces. If a product contains any sesame-derived ingredient, the label must identify sesame by name regardless of how that ingredient is written. A product listing “tahini” in its ingredients still needs a “Contains: sesame” statement or a parenthetical, because not every consumer knows tahini is a sesame product.³

What the Law Covers, and What It Does Not

The labeling mandate applies to packaged foods regulated by the FDA, including dietary supplements like vitamins and protein powders.⁴ That covers most of what you find on a grocery store shelf: breads, snacks, sauces, condiments, cereals, and supplements.

Several categories fall outside the rule, and the gaps matter for anyone managing a sesame allergy:

Meat, poultry, and certain egg products are regulated by USDA under separate statutes and are not subject to FASTER Act labeling.⁵
Wines, distilled spirits, and malt beverages are regulated by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. As of mid-2025, TTB has a proposed rule that would require allergen labeling (including sesame) on alcohol, with a proposed five-year compliance window after any final rule. The comment period was extended through August 15, 2025, and the requirement is not yet in effect.⁶
Prescription and over-the-counter drugs are outside the law. Some prescription drugs use sesame oil as an inactive ingredient, so anyone with a sesame allergy should raise it with a pharmacist.
Raw agricultural commodities and cosmetics are not covered.

Restaurants and Other Non-Packaged Foods

This is the gap that catches most people off guard. The FASTER Act does not require restaurants, bakeries, cafeterias, or food trucks to disclose sesame on menus or signage. Federal allergen labeling reaches packaged foods with a label; a sandwich wrapped in paper at the counter after you order it does not trigger those obligations.⁵ Some states have begun to fill the gap with their own restaurant disclosure rules, so anyone with a sesame allergy who eats out regularly should check state law.

Cross-Contact and “May Contain” Statements

The labeling rules govern intentional ingredients. Unintentional contamination during manufacturing is a separate issue. The FDA defines allergen cross-contact as the unintentional incorporation of an allergen into a product, and facilities that handle sesame alongside other ingredients must have a food safety plan under 21 CFR Part 117 that identifies cross-contact hazards and applies preventive controls.⁷

Advisory statements like “may contain sesame” or “produced in a facility that processes sesame” are voluntary. The FDA does not require them, and they are not a substitute for manufacturing controls. A product cannot carry both a “Contains” statement declaring sesame and an advisory statement warning of possible sesame presence for the same allergen, because that combination would be misleading.⁸ For consumers with severe reactions, the absence of a “may contain” line does not guarantee the product is sesame-free, and the presence of one is not standardized across brands.

Enforcement and Older Inventory

A packaged food that contains sesame without declaring it is considered misbranded or adulterated. The FDA takes complaints through its Consumer Complaint System and inspects facilities to verify allergen controls.⁵ Enforcement can involve warning letters, import refusals, seizures, and recalls, though most recalls for undeclared allergens are initiated voluntarily by the manufacturer. Since the sesame requirement took effect, the FDA has issued multiple recall notices for products with undeclared sesame.

Products manufactured before January 1, 2023, were not required to be pulled or relabeled. Those items were allowed to sell through. Anything manufactured or newly introduced after that date has to comply.³

A Framework for Future Allergens

Before the FASTER Act, adding an allergen to the federal list required an act of Congress, and sesame took years of legislative work to get there. The law directs the Department of Health and Human Services to build a permanent regulatory framework for designating new major allergens, including a petition process open to anyone, criteria for evaluating petitions, and a public comment period.¹ The intent is to let the FDA act on emerging science without waiting for new legislation each time the list needs to change.

1
GovInfo. Public Law 117-11 – Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education, and Research Act of 2021
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 21 USC 343 – Misbranded Food
3
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Allergic to Sesame? Food Labels Now Must List Sesame as an Allergen
4
FoodSafety.gov. The Food Allergy Safety, Treatment, Education, and Research Act of 2021
5
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Food Allergies
6
Federal Register. Alcohol Facts Statements in the Labeling of Wines, Distilled Spirits, and Malt Beverages and Major Food Allergen Labeling
7
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Sec. 555.250 Major Food Allergen Labeling and Cross-contact – Draft Compliance Policy Guide
8
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Frequently Asked Questions – Food Allergen Labeling Guidance for Industry