Which sweets contain nuts?

Nuts turn up in sweets in three ways. Some sweets are made from nuts, some contain nuts as one ingredient among many, and some contain no nuts at all but carry a may contain warning because of how they are made. If you have a nut allergy, you need to watch for all three.

Two different allergens

In UK food law, peanuts and tree nuts are two separate allergens among the 14 that must be emphasised in ingredients lists.

• Peanuts are not true nuts. They are legumes, members of the pea family, and their pods grow underground.
• Tree nuts are defined in the law as almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecan nuts, Brazil nuts, pistachio nuts and macadamia or Queensland nuts.

Coconut is not on that list, although some people are allergic to it.

Sweets made from nuts

• Marzipan is made from ground almonds and sugar, although some versions use other nuts or apricot or peach kernels. It is made into chocolate covered sweets and little fruit and vegetable shapes.
• Nougat combines sugar, honey or syrup with ingredients such as nuts, egg white and candied fruit. The usual Western European version is a mousse of whipped egg white with nuts or fruit added.
• Brittle is made of broken pieces of hard sugar candy with nuts such as pecans, almonds or peanuts.
• Chocolate peanuts are peanuts coated in a shell of chocolate.

Sweets that sometimes contain nuts

• Turkish delight. Premium varieties are largely made of chopped dates, pistachios, hazelnuts or walnuts bound in the jelly.
• Rocky road. It typically includes nuts, marshmallows and dried fruit set in melted chocolate.
• Fudge and tablet. Tablet sometimes has pieces of nut in it, and nut is one of the popular fudge flavours: see what is the difference between fudge and tablet?

May contain nuts

A sweet with no nuts in its ingredients may still carry a may contain nuts warning. Precautionary allergen labelling like this tells you that traces may have got into the product accidentally. It is voluntary, so a sweet without it is not a promise that it is nut free: see what does may contain mean on sweets?

Loose sweets

For loose sweets, such as pick and mix, businesses must give you allergen information for any item that contains any of the 14 allergens, in writing or out loud, and you can ask about ingredients. Loose sweets kept near nut sweets may pick up traces through shared scoops and containers, so anyone with a serious nut allergy should take great care.

If you have a nut allergy, always follow the advice of your doctor or allergy specialist.

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