Megan Weir
May 2026
At the Coeliac Society of Ireland, we often hear concerns from members about how anxious they can get about something so normal yet something that can go horribly wrong, eating out. Understandably, this is a huge concern for person with Coeliac disease and gluten intolerance.
Members tell us about very different experiences when it comes to eating out when having Coeliac disease. Whether how good or bad the dining experience was, we can all agree that hospitality staff play a huge role in your meal being 100% gluten free or not. Anecdotally, there are a wide range of feelings regarding coeliac disease from hospitality staff. Many take it seriously, while others…not so much.
We set out to investigate Irish hospitality staffs’ knowledge of coeliac disease, experience with coeliac disease in the workplace and attitudes towards catering for coeliac disease.
For this, we conducted an anonymised questionnaire aimed at all types of hospitality staff currently working in the industry in Ireland with questions relating to how long they have worked in the hospitality sector, the type of facility they work in, participant knowledge of gluten-containing foods, perceived difficulties in catering for Coeliac disease among more.
The main findings of this study included:
- 57% of chefs surveyed did not feel confident when catering for Coeliac disease
- 88% of facilities investigated didn’t offer Coeliac disease training for staff
- Some participants shared that they felt concerned for the lack of Coeliac disease
- Knowledge by some of their colleagues, potentially posing risk to the coeliac customers
- Confidence in food allergy communication and Coeliac disease knowledge were closely linked. We found that the more food allergen knowledge that the hospitality staff member had, the more confident the participant was in communicating food allergies with staff and customers.
This study found that hospitality staff who deal with customers directly (e.g. floor staff and managers) felt more confident dealing with coeliac customers compared with those who weren’t in customer facing roles such as chefs.
Among chefs, mixed testimonials regarding preparing gluten free meals were seen. Some of the chefs surveyed felt confidence on both their own abilities and that of their co-workers while others felt that many coeliac customers are unaware of the additional burdens required for catering to coeliac disease. Participants’ mixed knowledge of gluten-containing foods and concerns regarding workplace hazards demonstrated that catering for coeliac disease can only improve if businesses provide resources and training for chefs and other hospitality staff.
Within this study, participants worked in 8 different types of hospitality facilities. concerningly, 7/8 facilities didn’t offer training for coeliac disease when they first started working in their
workplace. The only type of facility to offer training in coeliac disease in all of the establishments was fast-food chains.
In our investigation, pub & lounge facilities were the only establishment that didn’t have an Allergen Management System in place out of all 8. Though not always restaurants, there is still room for error with cross contamination in these establishments. This is also an indication of inconsistencies in food law adherence.
Hospitality staff knowledge of Gluten and Coeliac Disease
There were also inconsistencies seen between participant factual knowledge of coeliac disease and their self-perceived knowledge. Of all participants, only one 1 scored 100% when tested on gluten-containing foods. Oats were selected as a gluten containing ingredient by majority of the participants.
What does this mean?
Participant confidence in communicating food allergies to colleagues was consistent with knowledge of coeliac disease. This study showed that with increased factual knowledge of gluten and coeliac disease, participants felt they were more capable at informing colleagues of food allergies for customers. What this study demonstrated most is the importance of Allergen Management Systems and staff training for food allergies, or in this case Coeliac disease. Hospitality staff will not inherently have an understanding of Allergen Management Systems and should be given mandatory training in this. Hospitality staff allergen knowledge and feelings towards catering for coeliac disease seen in this study gives insight into an area that requires further research. Currently, there is a very small body of research that is published on coeliac disease in the hospitality industry in Ireland. We hope that in the future, this topic will be researched further. With increased knowledge and factual based evidence upon the Irish hospitality industry, change for improvement of guidelines and Coeliac disease in Irish law can become apparent. From this, the quality of life for the Irish coeliac population can improve.
