I haven't had time to visit this thread for a couple of weeks, but I'm very pleased to see it's been lively. Anyway, without plugging the show inappropriately, I thought I might be permitted to respond to a couple of questions.
The show is in two parts - an exhbition which is where (mostly) commercial organisations have paid for space in order to promote their products and services, but also includes stands from patient groups like Asthma UK, National Eczema Scociety, Anaphylaxis Campaign that will be staffed by experts and offer advice untainted by commercial interest. This commercial exhbition space funds a free seminar programme which is completely without commercial sponsorship and features a line up of world class speakers.
We think the exhbitors cover a good range to suit all tastes, both mainstream and complementary. They have not been tightly vetted, largely because if we required double blind clinical trials data before we admitted an exhibitor, the show would have only pharmaceutical companies exhibiting. We tried asking an expert panel, but found they could not agree. According to one top allergy professor we spoke to, even snakeoil has its uses - the placebo effect helps many millions of people's symptoms measurably improve. We believe in informed choice - presenting people with a wide range of options and letting them decide for themselves.
In answer to some specific questions - I don't know why peanut oil is used to oil food machines, but I tend not to be cynical. Companies view nut-free as a small market, and if they want to address it, excluding nuts from a complete factory is quite a commitment (and a risk - they get sued if there is contamination). We hope by raising the profile of the allergy market, to do our bit to help encourage manufacturers to see the potential.
Floors / carpets and vacuums - My personal view is it's horses for courses. Different products suit different families, and different budgets. It's also not quite as clear-cut as saying hardfloor good, carpet bad. Dustmite allergen tends to keep low off the ground in carpeted homes - away from lungs. Allergen falling on hard floor is much more likely to get airborne and hence inhaled unless frequently damp dusted.
Hope this helps.