A U.S. law which is to take effect on Jan. 1 will require food labels in the country to list in plain language allergenic ingredients.

The law covers food ingredients made from proteins derived from any of the eight major allergenic foods: milk, eggs, fish, crustaceans, wheat, tree nuts, soybeans and peanuts, which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says account for 90 percent of all food allergies.

U.S. food labels will have to list the common name of the source product of the allergen as well as the name of the specific allergen involved.

For example, a product containing a protein derived from milk called casein must list both "milk" and "casein" on its label.

Labels also must specify the type of fish, crustacean or tree nut the product contains.

FDA estimates show that in the United States, food allergies plague 2 percent of adults and 5 percent of young children, leading to about 30,000 cases of emergency room treatment and about 150 deaths.

Source: Xinhua