Almendra's Blog

I am really beginning to feel that when I contact a company and I get a list of ingredients to avoid - even when I've asked about gluten-free - that the "list of ingredients" is nothing more than "proceed at your own risk - and not at our liability".

Celiac.com Sponsor (A13):
 

These lists don't address cross-contamination. They don't address the sources of the ingredients that could be wheat derived in a process that does not remove gluten. These lists don't take Celiac Disease seriously. They are evasive. They treat me as though what I don't know can't hurt me - as if I'm a hypochondriac and not a diagnosed celiac whose body produces evidence of contamination.

Celiac Disease is not a new disease. People have been asking the same companies the same questions for years (as evidenced by forums on this site). Customer service representatives often still lack the training to answer my questions. The answers are not included in company FAQ's. A search of the website does not yield any information. I've worked in corporate America; I do not believe that they are just "too busy". It is an evasive strategy.

I'm beginning to appreciate the companies that simply tell me that they get their ingredients from random sources - and, as such, they cannot assure me that their products are safe for me. I'm really beginning to love them for that. Instead of tacitly allowing me to proceed to consume their products at my own risk. A company who takes me seriously, who cares for consumer safety will simply say "no."

If a company does not come out and explicitly say gluten-free, the company looses my respect, and, as I find better, safer products, my business and that of my family and friends.