Background: A localized Th2 milieu has been observed in the intestine of subjects with food allergic disorders, however the role of T cells in the pathophysiology of these disorders remains poorly understood. Aim: Our aim was to examine sites of T cell activation in response to food challenge, identify potential factors responsible for T cell recruitment to the gut, and to determine the role of T cells in disease. Methods: Balb/c mice were systemically sensitized to OVA and repeatedly fed with OVA to induce allergic diarrhea. Local cytokine and chemokine expression was assessed by qPCR, and cytokine secretion in the mesenteric lymph node (MLN) determined by ELISA. Homing molecule expression was determined by flow cytometry, and the role of CD4+ T cells in promoting disease was tested by adoptive transfer. Results: Mice developed diarrhea associated with changes in epithelial ion transport, mast cell infiltration, intestinal IgE secretion, and local upregulation of Th2 cytokines and the Th2 chemokines CCL1, CCL17, and CCL22 in the small intestine. T cell activation occurred in the MLN prior to symptom onset and a single feed of OVA induced T cell proliferation, 47 upregulation, and CD62L down-regulation. Cells from the MLN, including purified CD4+ T cells, were able to transfer allergic diarrhea to naive mice. Conclusions: The combination of a gut homing phenotype induced in the MLN and selective upregulation of Th2 chemoattractants are likely important factors in the gastrointestinal recruitment of pathological Th2-skewed CD4+ T cells in food allergy.