Gluten free foods made on shared equipment

[Richwhitelady]

I keep seeing people post on social media that it's ok for celiacs to eat gluten-free food that's made on shared equipment. Early in my diagnosis I was told otherwise. Is it really safe for us to eat gluten-free food made on shared equipment? I'd like to hear from an expert if possible.

[Scott Adams]

Welcome to the forum. This would be a personal choice that you would need to make. I eat many different products that don't necessarily have "gluten-free" on their label, for example potato chips, salsa, tortilla chips, etc, while other people won't eat such products. If "gluten-free" is on the label, and it is made in a facility that also processes wheat, then technically it is supposed to be gluten-free, however, there is a possibility of contamination if the manufacturer doesn't do proper cleaning or handling of ingredients. 

[trents]

As Scott pointed out, there are too many variables to be able to give a black and white answer to your question. Another variable I would mention is the huge range in sensitivity to small amounts of gluten exposure that is found in the celiac community. What will trigger a reaction in one celiac may not in another. One more variable is the amount of gluten that will find its way into a food product from cross contamination in any given production run. It likely will not be the same each time.

[RMJ]

Some certified gluten free foods are made on shared equipment.  presumably they have excellent cleaning procedures that have been tested.  So safety for celiacs is really going to vary from one manufacturer to another,

[Richwhitelady]

So in essence it's really not safe because we have no idea what the manufacturers are doing in my opinion. 

[Scott Adams]

For you it sounds like this will be the case, but no two celiac diets are alike, and there is no "one size fits all" in this case. Another examples is how some celiacs choose to eat out at restaurants, while others never will.  

[Richwhitelady]

Thank you for the info!