Help
As much as I would love to think I would actually complete that, honestly, I just never will. (I will really, really mean to though)...
Instead, what I am doing is posting the email I sent to them, and you all can copy, paste, and ammend as needed. (At least it will give you a base from which to start - I know first-hand how difficult and discouraging it can be to type up one of these leters while you are in the aftermath of a glutening -- hey, we should make a celiac horror movie, and call it "The Glutening"
)...Anyway, here's the letter:
Hello,
My name is Lillyth Keogh, and I am writing in reference to your Fish & Chips with Malt Vinegar and Sea Salt.
I have celiac disease, which means that I am allergic to gluten in any form. Your Fish & Chips claim they are gluten-fee. Please know that this is not the case. I ate the product last night, and after consuming two pieces of fish, promptly got sick. The culprit is the Malt vinegar. From Wikipedia: "Malt vinegar is made by malting barley, causing the starch in the grain to turn to maltose. An ale is then brewed from the maltose and allowed to turn into vinegar, which is then aged." Barley contains gluten.
I realize you may not know this information, so I am sharing it with you. As a person with celiac, I was excited at seeing the words "gluten-free" on the package, and, though I know that malt vinegar is not gluten-free, chose to trust your claim that it is gluten-free. I do know that the tests for gluten allow a certain amount of gluten to be present and still be considered "gluten free".
I want you to know that no matter what your tests say, your product does contain gluten. I know because I got sick from it. I know within ten minutes of consuming a product whether or not it contains gluten, and, sure enough, ten minutes into my consumption of your product, I got sick.
Please do one of two things:
1) Make the Fish & Chips without the malt vinegar and make certain that you purchase new equipment on which to make the new fish & chips so that the new gluten-free variety does not get cross contaminated by the malt vinegar that is on the equipment you now use to manufacture it.
2) Take the words "gluten-free" off the box. The words "wheat-free" may stay. There are lots of people who merely have a wheat, rather than gluten allergy who can still consume this product (which was very yummy by the way, and for someone who can tolerate barley gluten but not wheat gluten, your Fish & Chips would be a welcome treat, as most if not all Fish & Chips are battered with wheat).
And, finally, please contact all the stores who sell this product for you and ask them to do one of two things:
1) Send back (recall) all the boxes that contain the words "gluten-free"
2) Put a notice by them on the shelf that they are NOT gluten free.
I know you do not want your customers to get sick, as I did last night.
Please remedy this situation immediately, as I do not want anyone else to get sick - there is probably someone out there right now with celiac who is purchasing your product and I do not want any more celiacs to suffer from the devastating effects of gluten-consumption. Please keep me informed as to what steps you are taking. I look forward to sampling a truly gluten-free product from your company.
Thank you,
Lillyth Keogh
