Last week I was a guest blogger at FoodRenegade.com. Click the link at the bottom to read the entire article.
Recently, The Washington Post reported about the FDA’s reluctance to make a decision about gluten-free labeling. Under a 2004 law Congress gave the FDA until 2008 to establish a standard for food manufacturers who want to use the term “gluten-free” in their food label.
Alessio Fasano, medical director of the Center for Celiac Research and one of the authors of new research proving the existence of gluten sensitivity at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, feels it is a “no-brainer.” Fasano believes that the incidence of Celiac disease is skyrocketing in this country because changes in agricultural practices have increased gluten levels in crops. “We are in the midst of an epidemic,” he said.
Food manufacturers are jumping on this market potential with sales of gluten-free cereals, snacks and other foods projected to reach $2.6 billion next year. This is up from $100 million in 2003.
In typical fashion and because the labeling terms are unregulated at this point, many foods labeled by the manufacturers as gluten-free, in fact, have small amounts of gluten that could trigger an attack in a susceptible person.
Read more at FoodRenegade.com