I haven't read the whole article, but is this really the case -- it's one or two individuals inconveniencing an entire school? (I doubt it, but I suppose anything is possible.)
I know that in my daughter's 4-year old pre-school class alone (consisting of 16 kids at a private Catholic school,) there are 3 who have peanut allergies. As a result, parents are asked to cooperate to ensure the safety of all the little ones, since kids at this age will freely share their food.
Those who are not familiar with food allergies might want to do a little research before they claim that food allergies are not "bona fide" health issues (as one poster suggested.) Food allergies can kill.
Where they came from? Modern medicine is still working on that, but one theory is that we tend to develop allergies to things we consume in large quantities. So in this country, where peanuts are such a common food for children, there are a lot of peanut allergies. (In Japan, for example, there are more rice allergies than in most other countries; In Italy, it's tomatoes.)
Anyway, I doubt that an entire school is being invonvenienced for one or two individuals. (But like I said, I haven't had time to read the entire article.) It is probably because peanut allergies are so rampant (probably the most common allergy among kids) that these rules have been set in place. And while there are many other types of food allergies, you'll notice that not every food allergy is being considered -- only the most common one. Although I'm sure that's what the outcry is all about -- today, it's peanuts, tomorrow, who knows? Right? Well, I just don't think there's need to panic. (When schools start to ban peanuts, corn, wheat, soy, milk and all the other common allergens, well, maybe then I'll start getting a little upset, but for now, I'll just chill.) I mean, is it really THAT hard to cooperate?
Maybe the schools go too far, but since every kid can't be supervised as to each morsel that enters their mouth, and school administrators don't want the legal liability (can't say I blame them) it isn't unreasonable to ask parents to cooperate. How'd you like to be the parent who's responsible for some kid's death because your child shared her peanut crackers with some allergic kid without knowing the harmful effects that such a simple act of generosity could bring?
Or worse, how'd you like to be the parent of the severely allergic child? (Don't they have enough problems?) Of course, it is the allergic child's parent's responsibility to teach their child to stay away from whatever they're allergic to. However, realistically, depending on the child's age, strict adherence may not be possible when unsupervised.
I'm sorry, but I just don't think that cooperation and simple consideration is so hard, and it's just not enough to make such a fuss about. That's my point of view.