Snack Foods Account for Majority of Gluten-free Food Sales—Is That a Problem?

This is an interesting article. It makes sense that at some point the gluten-free snacks market might become somewhat saturated. However, there will likely always be room for improvement on current gluten-free products and room for competitors with superior products. More and more I find myself looking for items marked "certified gluten free" not just "gluten free". Knowing the certified gluten-free products undergo testing for gluten and are certified adds a level of confidence. Also, some products that are labeled only "gluten free" have cross-contamination issues and even say in the fine print that they were manufactured in facilities where wheat is handled. I also imagine that I'm not the only one who in addition to looking for "certified gluten free" is also looking for "GMO-free". Knowing what a sensitive thing the gut can be, I don't want to take chances with GMO foods since we are definitely in the human beings as guinea pigs stage with GMOs and understanding their long-term safety/health risks.

People buy gluten free snacks for their friends that can't eat gluten and then when that friend is over they eat gluten free too because the crackers, cakes and pretzels taste great. The gluten free market is not limited to just the households where someone has celiac or an intolerance to gluten.

I am disgusted when I go to local markets and even so called "health food" stores and find that most of the gluten free products that are carried are mostly what I consider "junk food" and nutritionally empty calories. Most are snack foods. Yes, we celiacs want treats too, but it would be nice once in a while to find something gluten free that tastes good and is good for you.

I wish more attention would be paid to finding "real" (read as Artisan) breads, bagels that look and taste like bagels, and entrees and snacks that were not just expensive empty calories.

I thought the introduction was a bit misleading or perhaps it was me. I interpreted it to ask if gluten-free snacks were a problem for buyers not sellers. I think it could be a problem for buyers (the public) because there is rarely any nutritional value in many of the gluten-free snacks.

I think this was a bit misleading also.

I think that the snack foods being the majority of gluten-free sales makes a lot of sense.

I think gluten-free folks are more likely to make a lot of our food from scratch. We've learned how to, its what we are used to and what we know and trust. The majority of my meals I make are from whole foods, so I'm not out there buying a lot of gluten-free packaged anything.

When I do buy a product that is packaged, and labelled "CGF" its because its something that I can't do easily or simply don't have time to do or any given day at home. Yes, it could be cookies or crackers, etc. My parents also keep these snacks around at their home too, as someone else mentioned, its just easier to serve everyone the same snack, and often the gluten-free version is very good.

I thought the introduction was a bit misleading or perhaps it was me. I interpreted it to ask if gluten-free snacks were a problem for buyers not sellers. I think it could be a problem for buyers (the public) because there is rarely any nutritional value in many of the gluten-free snacks.

There isn't much nutritional value in the non-gluten-free snacks either!