is Kirkland Imported French Brie gluten free?

[Deb67]

Does anyone know?  

On 11/27/2024 at 6:34 AM, Deb67 said:

Does anyone know if Kirkland Imported French Brie is gluten free?  

 

[Deb67]

• Does anyone know if Kirkland Imported French Brie is gluten free?

[Scott Adams]

Yes, cheeses are generally considered to be gluten-free with very few exceptions.

Our family eats that particular one regularly with out issues.

[Aretaeus Cappadocia]

As a more generalized response to your question, I've been contacting Costco customer service for several Kirkland products because they are either unlabeled or contain the generic warning label about being packaged in a facility that handles all major food allergens.

Each time I ask, my question is assigned to a specific person who researches it and emails me an actionable response that says, more or less, "no risk", "possible risk", or "definite risk". All of the answers have the caveat in the example below. Also, they recommend that you buy the product, submit the question ***with the lot # of your purchase*,** and then return it if you don't like the risk profile. This is because some products are made at different facilities with different risk profiles.

Here is an example of a recent email response:

"This is [name] with the Costco Member Service Resolutions Team. I am happy to let you know we got a reply back from our Kirkland Signature team. Here is their response:

This item is gluten free. This information reflects the sender's knowledge on the date the information is being provided. Ingredients and processes are subject to change without notice.

I hope this satisfies your inquiry about  [product name and stock #]. If you have a follow up question for me about this item please don’t hesitate to ask. I am happy to help! If I do not hear back from you within 48 hours I will consider this case closed. "

Like pretty much every food source, you have to decide who you trust and then live with that. I tend to trust these responses because a person investigates it, their answers are detailed (not generic), and also because sometimes they say "nah, don't eat it".

Hope this helps.

[Scott Adams]

This is great info, so thanks for sharing it. I had no idea Costco provides this service, yet I've been a member for over two decades.

In the United States, all food manufacturers, including any that ship foods for sale in the USA, are required to comply with the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) of 2004, which mandates clear labeling of major food allergens, including wheat, to protect consumers with allergies. Under this law, manufacturers must explicitly list wheat as an ingredient if it is present in the product, either in the ingredient statement or through a separate "Contains" statement (e.g., "Contains wheat"). This regulation helps individuals with celiac disease or wheat allergies avoid potentially harmful ingredients. FALCPA covers all packaged foods sold in the U.S., ensuring transparency and safety in food labeling while holding manufacturers accountable for accurate allergen disclosure. Failure to comply can result in regulatory action by the FDA, including product recalls or penalties.

While the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) requires clear labeling of major food allergens like wheat, it does not include barley in its list of mandated allergens, despite barley containing gluten, which can be harmful to individuals with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity. Since barley is not classified as a top allergen under FALCPA, manufacturers are not required to highlight it in allergen statements or use a "Contains" label, even though it poses risks similar to wheat for some consumers. Instead, barley may be listed under its common name (e.g., "barley malt" or "malt extract") in the ingredient list without additional emphasis. This regulatory gap means that individuals avoiding gluten must carefully scrutinize ingredient lists, as barley-derived ingredients can be less obvious than wheat. Advocacy groups continue to push for stricter gluten-related labeling, but currently, only wheat—not barley or rye—is subject to FALCPA’s allergen disclosure requirements.

In general, this means that everyone with celiac disease should learn to read ingredient labels to be safe. 

The following two lists are very helpful for anyone who is gluten sensitive and needs to avoid gluten when shopping.

 

 

 

[Aretaeus Cappadocia]

Agree with everything your wrote.

Just to clarify my earlier comment, I was specifically focusing on cross-contamination risk, as opposed to identified, obfuscated, or occult ingredients. I've noticed that Costco does like many other manufacturers and errs on the side of caution by putting the major allergen exposure label on products that are actually safe. My first bump into this was buying their Kirkland quinoa online, where the website says it is gluten free but the package says it was/might have been/ made in a facility that processes wheat. They were able to tell me that the package I bought was certainly safe, but they explicitly stated that that could change at any time (so don't count on their answer today being relevant for next month's purchase).

[Scott Adams]

In general, and I've visited many boutique cheese manufacturing facilities here in Sonoma County, CA, there is no wheat anywhere near them. Dairies generally don't process wheat products, and in cheese making cleanliness is next to godliness--they tend to keep things very clean to the point of sterile so their cheeses won't get contaminated with bacteria that might ruin them.