GLUTEN-FREE
The gluten-free market was once targeted only towards those suffering from Celiac disease--an autoimmune disease that adversely affects the small intestine.
Americans first started being diagnosed as celiacs in the 1940s, and The Joy of Cooking has featured gluten-free recipes since 1975. But not until the past five years have the terms "celiacs", and "gluten-free" resonated with the general population
- One of the challenges for modern manufacturers is that it is tricky to make a gluten-free product tasty. When you bake gluten-free, the principles that apply to normal baking don't apply anymore. Gluten binds. So you have to replace that.
- One way to eliminate cross-contamination concerns is to have a dedicated gluten-free manufacturing facility.
- Look for products that have been certified gluten-free, and remember that recipes with gluten-free ingredients may take some trial and error. Some ingredients, such as various flours, combine differently.
Gluten, a thickening agent and filler in everything from ketchup to vitamins, is not always listed as an ingredient on a nutrition label, which makes finding gluten-free foods challenging.
A solution may be the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) proposal for a standardized definition for the term "gluten-free". Bob's Red Mill, and Oregon-based pioneering manufacturer of gluten-free products, participated with the FDA in its mission to define the standards. Once the FDA label is approved, some researchers think it will be the point after which the food market explodes with gluten-free products.
Currently, the Gluten-Free Certification Organization (GFCO) provides an independent service to supervise gluten-free food production according to a consistent, defined, science-based standard that is confirmed by field inspections, in order to achieve heightened consumer confidence and safety. One of the first specialty food companies to seek GFCO certification was Nelsen-Massey Vanillas in Waukegan, IL.
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