Email From Mcdonalds

[killernj13]

Here is an email I received from McDonalds. The funny part here is now they are claiming there was confusion with their hash browns as well. I don't think that was ever thought to be a problem. At least not on these boards.

I am just passing along the information. It is everyone's personal choice on eating these products again or not.

Hello Kevin:

Thank you for contacting McDonald's with your questions concerning the recent reports about the presence of gluten in our French fries and hash browns. First and foremost, please understand that we care about our customers and that is why McDonald's communicates nutrition information about its menu items on its website and in its restaurants.

We recently shared information on our website regarding the presence of ingredients derived from wheat in the natural flavoring for our French fries and hash browns in the United States. We want to take this opportunity to explain how we became aware of this information and what it means.

The recent new law, called the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act, requires producers of packaged foods to communicate on their labels the presence of the main eight allergens and their derivatives. In conjunction with the new law, the supplier of the natural flavoring used in our French fries and hash browns informed McDonald's of the use of wheat as a starting ingredient in the natural flavoring. While the new law applies to packaged food products--not the restaurant industry--in our ongoing efforts to communicate to our customers we thought it was important to share this information.

In order to provide you with additional information, we have included in this e-mail a link to a statement from the Celiac Sprue Association (CSA) posted on their website Open Original Shared Link. The CSA statement summarizes their evaluation of the commercial manufacturing process for the natural flavoring and the preparation of the French fries and hash browns. We understand that this information is important to you because it enables you to make individual choices about the foods you eat. We also recommend that you continue to seek advice from your health care provider who is familiar with Celiac Disease and your particular sensitivity to gluten.

We appreciate the valuable perspectives we have received on this important topic. We hope that you find this information helpful and we thank you again for your patronage and the trust you place in McDonald's.

Sincerely,

Catherine E. Adams Ph.D, R.D.

Corporate Vice President Worldwide Quality Systems and Nutrition

McDONALD'S CORPORATION

Here is the link to the Celiac Sprue Association's response:

Open Original Shared Link

[jerseyangel]

I got the same email this morning, too.

[jenvan]

I think that link is helpful...thanks!

[Moongirl]

They must have sent out a mass email to everyone who emailed them about the issue initially, cause I got the same one too

[jerseyangel]

Yep--that's what I thought too

[Guest nini]

I got it this morning too. I was going to post it when I got home from work (now) but I see you beat me to it!

[VydorScope]

I got my copy 2 days ago. But I was not gonna restart the McDonalds thread o mania LOL

[kirst4588]

McDonalds send the exact same boilerplate email to everyone - ver batem - I received this same one. My response, in part, was this:

"Under Nutrition Info section, if I click on Ingredients

Open Original Shared Link

I see that the fries contain natural flavoring via wheat sources.

Albeit, if I go to the Food Allergy and Sensitivity Listing

Open Original Shared Link

it says that the fries are Wheat Free and Gluten Free"!!!!!

And as of today - I have yet to receive accurate information from any restaurant location via handouts or managers etc

~K

Here is an email I received from McDonalds. The funny part here is now they are claiming there was confusion with their hash browns as well. I don't think that was ever thought to be a problem. At least not on these boards.

I am just passing along the information. It is everyone's personal choice on eating these products again or not.

Hello Kevin:

Thank you for contacting McDonald's with your questions concerning the recent reports about the presence of gluten in our French fries and hash browns. First and foremost, please understand that we care about our customers and that is why McDonald's communicates nutrition information about its menu items on its website and in its restaurants.

We recently shared information on our website regarding the presence of ingredients derived from wheat in the natural flavoring for our French fries and hash browns in the United States. We want to take this opportunity to explain how we became aware of this information and what it means.

The recent new law, called the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act, requires producers of packaged foods to communicate on their labels the presence of the main eight allergens and their derivatives. In conjunction with the new law, the supplier of the natural flavoring used in our French fries and hash browns informed McDonald's of the use of wheat as a starting ingredient in the natural flavoring. While the new law applies to packaged food products--not the restaurant industry--in our ongoing efforts to communicate to our customers we thought it was important to share this information.

In order to provide you with additional information, we have included in this e-mail a link to a statement from the Celiac Sprue Association (CSA) posted on their website Open Original Shared Link. The CSA statement summarizes their evaluation of the commercial manufacturing process for the natural flavoring and the preparation of the French fries and hash browns. We understand that this information is important to you because it enables you to make individual choices about the foods you eat. We also recommend that you continue to seek advice from your health care provider who is familiar with Celiac Disease and your particular sensitivity to gluten.

We appreciate the valuable perspectives we have received on this important topic. We hope that you find this information helpful and we thank you again for your patronage and the trust you place in McDonald's.

Sincerely,

Catherine E. Adams Ph.D, R.D.

Corporate Vice President Worldwide Quality Systems and Nutrition

McDONALD'S CORPORATION

Here is the link to the Celiac Sprue Association's response:

Open Original Shared Link

[psawyer]

Okay, let's take a deep breath and summarize.

There is a wheat extract used in the preparation (in the USA) of the flavoring which is added to the oil in which the potatoes are partially fried before being frozen. The extract does not contain any detectable protein (gluten). It is a small component of the oil, which in turn is a small component of the product shipped to your local McDonalds. Independent testing at the University of Nebraska* has shown that there is no detectable amount of wheat protein in the final product.

The wonderful new law, FALCPA, does not allow for such a case, and so, since wheat is used at some point in the process, wheat must be disclosed on the label by the company that supplies McDonalds. McDonalds has chosen to include the same disclosure in their ingredient lists. This is entirely voluntary on their part, as the new law applies to packaged food sold in stores, but not to restaurants.

I think that this is accurate information available from multiple sources. You must make your own decision as to whether or not you choose to eat the fries, but the facts do not seem to be in doubt. If you carefully read the message from McDonalds you should not be confused.

As Vincent said, we have beaten this horse to death several times over.

* Dr. Steven Taylor of the Food Allergy Research and Resource Program of the University of Nebraska conducted the tests.