Safe School Snacks for Kids With Food Allergies

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Safe School Snacks for Kids with Food Allergies | Columbia SC Moms Blog

Our website has a lot of posts about food allergies, from how to prepare for play dates to a teacher’s perspective on responding to issues in the classroom.

I speak from the viewpoint of a mom who does not currently have kids with food allergies, but I do have to provide snacks for a preschool class with various food allergies. I called on my fellow Columbia Mom writer who does have a child with food allergies to ensure we provide you with a list of snacks that are acceptable. 

When my son first went to preschool, I got a list of allergies of children in the class, including milk, eggs, and nuts. At first, I was at a loss, as I never had to check for some of those allergies in snacks before. It can also be tricky because while the FDA requires companies to label with a “contains” statement they do NOT require manufacturers to add the “made in a facility that processes” or “MAY contain traces of…”

So you could pick up a snack that doesn’t “contain” allergens but “may contain traces.” Because of this, most of this list has specific brands that are safe for the top eight allergies, unless otherwise specified. 

Fruit

Check with the teacher to see if any of the students have a specific fruit allergy. Consider providing the following on kabobs or cut up.

  • Apple 
  • Banana
  • Mango
  • Pear
  • Grapes
  • Strawberries
  • Blueberries
  • Raspberries
  • Oranges
  • Peaches 
  • Plums
  • Pineapple
  • Papaya
  • Star Fruit
  • Honeydew Melon
  • Cantaloupe
  • Watermelon 

Vegetables

  • Carrots (you can even go fancy and do crinkle cut) 
  • Cucumber
  • Jicama
  • Cherry Tomatoes
  • Snow Peas
  • Cauliflower
  • Broccoli
  • Celery
  • Edamame
  • Olives
  • Avocado

Processed Fruit

Salsa

  • Wise – Medium or Mild

Tortilla Chips

These brands are free of peanuts, tree nuts, and eggs but may contain other allergens. 

  • Tostito’s original tortilla chips
  • Herr’s- Bite Size Dippers, Nacho Cheese Flavored, Restaurant Style, Traditional Authentic Cantina Style, or Yellow Round 
  • Utz Tortilla Chips – Dippable, Multigrain, Restaurant Style, White Round, Yellow Round 
  • Wise Bravos Tortilla Chips – Extreme, Nacho Cheese, Stadium Nacho 

Rice Snacks

Popcorn

  • Skinny Pop popcorn –  Dusted Dark Chocolate, Jalapeno, Naturally Sweet, Original, Sea Salt & Black Pepper, White Cheddar

Crackers

  • Honey Maid Graham Crackers
  • Honey Maid Teddy Grahams
  • Goldfish – Baby Cheddar, Cheddar, Colors, Mix-Up, Parmesan, Pizza, Pretzel, Saltine, Whole Grain 
  • Goldfish Flavor Blasted – XPlosive Pizza, Xtra Cheddar, Slammin’ Sour Cream & Onion
  • Rold Gold Pretzels – Thins, Sticks, Rods, Tiny Twists, Lightly Salted Tiny Twists, Tiny Twists Cheddar, Tiny Twists Honey Mustard, Sourdough, Honey Wheat, Cheesy Garlic

For moms who have never had to deal with food allergies until your child went to school, hopefully, this list helps give you a good start for snacks. Don’t be afraid to ask the parent of the allergic child what foods are safe for them. Allergy parents are always willing to help! I myself had help from an allergy parent for this post. I also found the Snack Safely website to be a great resource. 

What would you add to the list?

All products featured are independently selected and recommended by our writer. As an Amazon Associate, Columbia Mom earns from qualifying purchases.

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