Latest news from Food Allergy Canada – December 2024

Discover our 2024 holiday campaign and find out how you can be an important part of creating a better #FoodAllergyFuture. Save the date for our 2025 National Conference and learn about our inaugural fundraising gala, Embrace Every Bite. Plus, find tips and resources for celebrating this holiday season confidently and join us in taking a moment to thank our funders this year, and our GivingTuesday supporters.

You are Canada’s #FoodAllergyFuture

Over the years, our members have been instrumental in helping us advocate for transformative change in the food allergy community!

As we head into the new year, we’re counting on your support to keep our important work going. Donate now to help us continue making a difference in 2025 and beyond!

Learn more about our key initiatives and how you can support a brighter #FoodAllergyFuture.

Help save lives

We need your help to remove barriers to life-saving treatment, empowering more Canadians to act quickly and confidently during anaphylaxis.

Learn more

Make dining out inclusive and safe

We need your help to ensure that every Canadian has a seat at the table and can dine out with confidence.

Learn more

Ensure access to treatments

We need your help to break down the barriers preventing Canadians from accessing life-changing treatments like OIT.

Learn more

Be a part of Canada’s #FoodAllergyFuture and donate now. Donate $20 or more and get your year-end tax receipt right away! 

Save the date: 2025 Food Allergy Canada National Conference: Unlocking the food allergy future

Mark your calendars! Our National Conference is on Saturday, May 10^th, 2025 in Toronto, Ontario. This year’s theme is “Unlocking the food allergy future”, where you’ll hear from experts on the latest in food allergy and where the future is headed. Plus, you’ll get a chance to connect with others and visit exhibitors who support this community.

Concurrent sessions

• Teens: Youth 12+ can take part in the teen sessions where they will get a chance to learn how to manage food allergy confidently from various experts, while making new friends from around the country.
• Dietitians and allied health professionals: Healthcare professionals can participate in sessions on prevention, non-IgE-mediated forms of food allergy, like FPIES and EoE, and more.

Registration will open soon! Stay tuned for more details – we can’t wait to see you there!

Embrace Every Bite fundraising gala

On November 20^th, 2024, we hosted our inaugural Embrace Every Bite fundraising gala in Toronto, Ontario. Guests united in compassion, nourished hope, and ignited change for the food allergy community.  

A heartfelt thank you to the incredible supporters of our gala. Their generous contributions will help fund essential resources, advance education initiatives, and strengthen our advocacy efforts aimed at fostering a safer, more inclusive world.  

Special appreciation goes out to inspiring #FoodAllergyChampions, Roxana Tavana and Charissa deKoninck, for co-chairing this gala and driving awareness with passion and dedication.

Check out some photos of the evening below. Join the evening’s supporters and become a #FoodAllergyChampion by donating to Food Allergy Canada.

Photo credit: George Pimentel (social handle: @georgepimentel1)

Celebrate with confidence

For many of us, the holiday season is right around the corner. As you prepare for meals, parties, and get-togethers, take a look at our resources below to help you celebrate with confidence.

In our food allergy and holidays section at foodallergycanada.ca/holidays, you’ll discover a variety of practical tips and resources designed to help you navigate this year’s festivities with confidence, including:

• Party hosting tip sheet 
• Allergy-friendly recipes  
• Tips for preventing reactions 
• Holidays with family 

Plus, in this season of giving, find: 

• How you can help make an impact this holiday season  
• Different event ideas for fundraising 

Shop safe, shop smart – tips from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency

Make informed shopping decisions over the holidays by understanding how to check for allergens and spot and report food fraud. Check out the CFIA’s “Shop safe, shop smart” content to learn more. Plus read one parent’s story on how the CFIA took action when they were contacted about undeclared allergens.

Shop safe, shop smart

Tips from the CFIA

Learn more

Understanding food labels

Learn how to read food labels

Learn more

Sign up for Allergy Alerts

Be in the know when there are food recalls, get an alert right in your inbox

Sign-up now

#FoodAllergyChampions: Thank you to our funders for their generous support! 

With the generous contributions of our funders, we are able to advocate on key issues that are important to the food allergy community, improve quality of life, develop priority educational initiatives, and create awareness activities so the public takes food allergy seriously.  

Join us in thanking these individuals and organizations for helping to #MakeFoodAllergyCount. 

GivingTuesday Thanks

This past Tuesday, December 3^rd, was GivingTuesday. Whether you donated, spread the word, or took time to learn more, you are an integral part of Canada’s #FoodAllergyFuture. Thank you for being a food allergy champion! 

You and other members of our food allergy community have been instrumental in helping us advocate to make big impacts. While much progress has been made, we need your help to continue making transformational change for next year and the years to come.   

If you did not have a chance to donate during GivingTuesday, you can do so now. Be sure to donate before the end of the year to get your tax receipt.