*Reminder*: ‘Vegan’ does NOT automatically mean Gluten free
Although these terms seem to now be well-known, they are not always well understood. I encountered two small businesses: one was a food truck, and I met the owner of the other business in person at a networking event where she was trying to market her baked goods. Both said the particular items I asked about were gluten free, but I double checked and they were made with spelt. Spelt is not gluten free.
Although people who are gluten free typically ask if a menu item is gluten free, I – who am also gluten free – usually double check, and when I double checked these two small businesses, they were in error.
Bakers and other food businesses run a risk of getting sued if they market something as gluten free and it is not. Bakers and other food businesses are not well informed about what ingredients are and are not gluten free can land a gluten sensitive customer in the hospital, or with a very uncomfortable set of symptoms that may leave them feeling unwell for up to several days.
Examples of Vegan but NOT Gluten free:
-Wheat flour
-Spelt flour
-Couscous
-Semolina
-Farro
-If anyone or any package label says just the word ‘flour,’ they are usually referring to wheat flour, and they are usually particularly referring to bleached wheat flour.
Examples of Vegan AND Gluten free:
-Rice flour
-Sorghum flour
-Almond flour
-Coconut flour
-Rice, quinoa, amaranth, millet, buckwheat
-Oats marked as gluten free on the front label (particularly important for those who are seeking to 100% abstain, oats without this label may have cross contamination with gluten-containing grains like wheat)
If you know any bakers or other food businesses who are thinking about selling gluten free items, please forward this article to them.
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