Did General Mills Deliberately Ignore Complaints About Problems with Gluten-Free Cheerios?

If General Mills tested every batch of final product BEFORE sending it to stores, these boxes would not have made it into the hands of consumers. This is clearly a total failure in their process. Yet, they continue to ignore the very real danger to consumers by continuing to use this flawed testing process. If General Mills was honest about wanting to produce a gluten free product, they would have made changes so such a situation can never happen again. They have been secretive from the start.

If General Mills tested every batch of final product BEFORE sending it to stores, these boxes would not have made it into the hands of consumers. This is clearly a total failure in their process. Yet, they continue to ignore the very real danger to consumers by continuing to use this flawed testing process. If General Mills was honest about wanting to produce a gluten free product, they would have made changes so such a situation can never happen again. They have been secretive from the start.

No company tests every box or package of everything they label "gluten-free," not even gluten-free certification organizations would require this, as the associated costs would make the price of the product astronomical.

True, no company tests every box but they should test every batch - especially if they have a new production line and/or a shared facility. This case is critical because if the courts don't take it seriously, other manufacturers will know there are no consequences to claiming "Gluten Free" erroneously in the future. When I've contacted other food companies in the past over various issues, they track by batches and they take action, they follow up. Now that I know General Mills doesn't take my health seriously, I can take my own actions by not buying their products. I certainly wouldn't give Cheerios to children with known gluten issues, given that GM treats it so casually. At a very bare minimum, simple training of their staff about what is required for gluten free manufacturing would have avoided the entire event. But again, they apparently don't take it seriously.

The "Gluten Dude" was one participate invited to visit the manufacturing plant back when gluten-free cheerios was first developed by the company. *see Open Original Shared Link

True, no company tests every box but they should test every batch - especially if they have a new production line and/or a shared facility. This case is critical because if the courts don't take it seriously, other manufacturers will know there are no consequences to claiming "Gluten Free" erroneously in the future. When I've contacted other food companies in the past over various issues, they track by batches and they take action, they follow up. Now that I know General Mills doesn't take my health seriously, I can take my own actions by not buying their products. I certainly wouldn't give Cheerios to children with known gluten issues, given that GM treats it so casually. At a very bare minimum, simple training of their staff about what is required for gluten free manufacturing would have avoided the entire event. But again, they apparently don't take it seriously.

With all of the people supposedly having gluten reactions to General Mills products, not one person has provided the batch info that is printed on every box of Cheerios. To date, no one we know of has confirmed reporting such information to the FDA, or to General Mills. This information would easily enable such cases to be verified or debunked. It's also possible that adverse reactions may be due to oat sensitivity, which affects about 8% of celiac sufferers. Until clear evidence is presented to the contrary, claims that General Mills knowingly disregards the health of people with celiac disease and gluten intolerance seem unsupported by the facts. Plenty of people with celiac disease have reported tolerating Cheerios just fine, though our own position is for individuals to exercise their own judgement in matters of their own health and diet.

Whether or not GM knew or takes steps to remedy their processing of gluten-free grains, I'm not sure why anyone with celiac or gluten sensitivity would indulge in mass produced food products. After having been sick most of my life (thank you antibiotics), I've learned that even if everything checks out ok, there's always the chance that someone, somewhere, either believes gluten-free is psychosomatic or wants to do people harm, and will take steps to make it so. The more processed the food, the more hands that touch it, the higher the chance that something goes awry. If you're willing, or strong enough, to take that risk, more power to you, but I am not.

Whether or not GM knew or takes steps to remedy their processing of gluten-free grains, I'm not sure why anyone with celiac or gluten sensitivity would indulge in mass produced food products. After having been sick most of my life (thank you antibiotics), I've learned that even if everything checks out ok, there's always the chance that someone, somewhere, either believes gluten-free is psychosomatic or wants to do people harm, and will take steps to make it so. The more processed the food, the more hands that touch it, the higher the chance that something goes awry. If you're willing, or strong enough, to take that risk, more power to you, but I am not.

Thanks for your comment. Yes, eating minimally processed, whole foods is likely a smart nutritional practice. However, I would remind you that many of the gluten-free products that celiacs know, trust, and consume regularly would be considered "mass produced," so I´m not sure that mass production necessarily means more gluten-contamination.