Nut allergic pre-schooler and bird seed issues

[cartblanche]

My 4 year old daughter goes to a lovely playgroup with a nice outdoor space with a veg patch and garden. The staff there would like to make some bird-feeders by loading bird-seed laden fat into pinecones and hanging them up in the trees. My daughter has a nut allergy that was diagnosed at 15 months - we have had no dramas as we have controlled her diet and she hasn't had any accidental exposure. The nursery have said that they have been unable to find any packets of bird seed (sesame seeds, sunflower seeds etc.) that haven't got a nut warning on and are therefore not going to make these bird-feeders this year. I am sad about this and want to try and find some seeds or packets that don't have a nut warning - I feel though that I may be on a hiding to nothing!

It seems a shame that the children will miss out on this fun activity and am thinking there must be some way round it. FYI my daughter is allergic to all nuts plus pine nuts but is fine with sesame seeds (she hasn't had the skin-prick test for sesame but has always eaten Homous without any reactions)

Any thoughts?

I just googled for you and this came up:

One year we made birdfeeders by stringing cheerios onto a pipe cleaner. Once it is almost full all the way around, bend it into a circle and twist the ends closed. Then the kids can just hang it on a branch. Great for peanut-free schools, and good fine motor practice!

Thanks Lilpickle08 - that's a cute idea and I think I have to come up with something "outside the box" like that! Unfortunately Cheerios are a no no because "All Nestle cereal sold in the UK contain nuts or display a nut traces warning on pack as nuts are used extensively as an ingredient in our products"

If I could find someone who has had sunflower plants over the summer and I could harvest their sunflower seeds then we could use them plus breadcrumbs - that would work - just need to find them! I really want to find a solution to this!

cartblanche, it's lovely of you to be thinking about this

Some health food shops sell big packets of sunflower seeds and various other seeds (but they might be expensive, and are probably packaged in factories which also handle nuts).

Some supermarkets sell their own brands of 'imitation cheerios' which may or may not have the nut warning - not sure.

Good luck with finding a solution.

Just checked our packet of Asda Choco Hoops; of course they are stuffed full of sugar, so not a very healthy option for the birds (or for my DS!) but they do not have a nut warning.

However, as vigglewiggle and others pointed out on this thread recently, nut warnings can be fairly meaningless anyway as they are voluntary and there is no legal requirement to include them on packaging.

Thanks for the link to that thread greenbananas. Yes the labelling thing is an issue - I know that in the past I have been stumped when I've found a product that has NO allergy warnings on it ) - do I assume that if there was a risk of contamination with nuts then they would HAVE to put something on the packaging? (Wrong!) or should I just steer clear because they are obviously not obliged to put such warnings on and therefore it would be hugely risky to allow my child that product?

Back to the birdseed thing i am genuinely saddened by the fact that the Playgroup will miss out on this activity because of my child's allergy. BUT I would not like my child to be involved in this hand's-on activity if it meant that she might be handling stuff that could be contaminated with nuts. I wonder if I got some Sunflower seeds from a garden centre that were meant for planting whether that would be a safer bet? I imagine that the sunflower seeds that are processed for human consumption are more likely to have come into contact with nuts on a production line that also handles nut mixes for eating??

I'm determined to find a way round this!

Just thought I'd report back. Was in a pound shop at the weekend and found some National Trust branded packets of birdseed that had no nut warning on. I know I shouldn't take this as meaning that there is absolutely NO risk but the ingredients do sound very seedy ie. not made in a foody environment. Am wondering if I am being a bit over optimistic in thinking these will be OK? The ingredients are: Sunflower hearts, black sunflower seeds, kibbled maize, flaked naked oats, red dari, millet and English wheat.

I KNOW that if I contact the National Trust they will probably give the "cannot guarantee nut free" line but what does everyone else think. Would you think was a safe option? Obviously the children will wash their hands after handling the seed and I would probably volunteer to help out on the day.

Right off to contact the National Trust

How did you get on with this??

Hi everyone... I know this is an older post but in case it might benefit any of you, or any others who find their way to this post, I just wanted to send a quick note to say that our certified peanut free bird seed is now available on Amazon in the UK. You can find more info here https://www.wallisjohns.com/ (you can find links to the seed on Amazon here https://www.wallisjohns.com/where-to-buy , just scroll down to UK). Enjoy the birds!

And 12 years later…

Thanks WallisJohns my DD is now 16 so we’re no longer in need of this but I love that you’ve linked to a peanut free birdseed. This might be of help to others.

Gotta love an update 😊

https://amzn.eu/d/f4rClMs

finally a certified nut free bird seed