Jello Gelatin, Gluten Free?

[mama2two]

Is jello gelatin gluten free? I looked at the ingredients and did not think it contained gluten, but now I am wondering because my daughter is acting like she has had gluten. We also try the blue diamond nut crackers ranch flavored, now those have milk and she does not really tolerate milk well, so it may be this, she loved these and has begged me to buy more, but I don't think I will.

[Lisa]

Is jello gelatin gluten free? I looked at the ingredients and did not think it contained gluten, but now I am wondering because my daughter is acting like she has had gluten. We also try the blue diamond nut crackers ranch flavored, now those have milk and she does not really tolerate milk well, so it may be this, she loved these and has begged me to buy more, but I don't think I will.

Jello is infact gluten free.

On the other hand, Blue Diamond Crackers, if you look at the box, I believe it says that is "is processed on a facility that processes wheat..." There might be a cross contamination issue with the crackers. They have never bothered me.

Milk products may also be an issue if she is in the early stages of healing.

[jerseyangel]

Between the Jello and the Blue Diamond--I'd go with the crackers being the cause of her symptoms. I've not had them, but I've seen on here that several have had problems with them. If she is sensitive to dairy, that could have made it worse.

Jello is definately gluten-free.

[Pame]

you might also consider that jello contains an msg in the citric acid at the least and other food colorings that might be the problem. I can't have jello due to the msg. Makes gluten free even harder when you ad the msg problem but I feel a whole lot better if I can not eat it. It's not easy. If you are interested in learning more tryo out the truth in labeling website for other msg hidden sources

Pame

[jackay]

you might also consider that jello contains an msg in the citric acid at the least and other food colorings that might be the problem. I can't have jello due to the msg. Makes gluten free even harder when you ad the msg problem but I feel a whole lot better if I can not eat it. It's not easy. If you are interested in learning more tryo out the truth in labeling website for other msg hidden sources

Pame

Jello contains msg? That's news to me. I normally avoid it because of the artificial flavoring and coloring.

[sb2178]

You can use plain gelatin with something like cranberry juice. (Or, cider, champagne and strawberries, plum puree...)

[maximoo]

Jello is made from the hide of animals like goats, pigs, horses. Once I found that out I will never eat or let my kids eat it again. Many people do not care and will continue to eat it but really theres no nutritional value in it, its not filling, Its just like jellied kool aid! Hospitals should discontinue feeding jello to their patients IMHO It is worthless.

[Kelleybean]

Along the lines of what someone else said, could she be reacting to the food coloring? My son gets crazy sometimes after having food dye - he'll start running laps around the house. I don't buy anything with the food dyes any more.

[RL2011]

Jello is made from the hide of animals like goats, pigs, horses. Once I found that out I will never eat or let my kids eat it again. Many people do not care and will continue to eat it but really theres no nutritional value in it, its not filling, Its just like jellied kool aid! Hospitals should discontinue feeding jello to their patients IMHO It is worthless.

Looks like I will never eat Jello again. Yuk, made from hides.

[psawyer]

Gelatin is typically derived from animal tissue, although not often from hide. It is a concern for those who keep Kashrut or Halal, since it can be derived from porcine sources. It is gluten-free.

[stanleymonkey]

could it be the colours? we discovered our daughter goes crazy from red or orange jello

[kareng]

Gelatin is typically derived from animal tissue, although not often from hide. It is a concern for those who keep Kashrut or Halal, since it can be derived from porcine sources. It is gluten-free.

I feel like our ancestors made use of every bit of the animal, wasting nothing, so we can too. But my boys have friends that can't have anything with gelatin listed (in a lot of candies) because it could be from pork.

[maximoo]

sawyer I have read many sources and all concur that jello is made from the hides not other parts/tissue. In any event it is nasty and I'll never

eat it again.

Karen I agree that ancestors wasted nothing but in modern times we know better or should know better. Now all the by products(eyes, talons, feathers, etc) are put in pet food.

[psawyer]

sawyer I have read many sources and all concur that jello is made from the hides not other parts/tissue. In any event it is nasty and I'll never

eat it again.

Karen I agree that ancestors wasted nothing but in modern times we know better or should know better. Now all the by products(eyes, talons, feathers, etc) are put in pet food.

Most of the cases of gelatin that I have looked into have come from bones or hooves. Gelatin is a binder, so you want strength, not stretch.

I don't know what your source for the pet food claim is (post it if you have one), BUT your post implies something that is not true.

Some pet foods contain "byproduct meal" but most do not. Not all meal is "byproduct meal." Organs, such as kidneys and spleens which provide good nutritive value, are classified as "byproducts" for labeling purposes. Just because an ingredient could legally contain something does not necessarily mean that it does.

As a counterexample, "lamb meal" is the clean meat from a lamb, rendered to remove fat and moisture. It is a concentrated, high-quality protein source.

I know my post isn't going to change your thinking, but I do want members to see both sides of the question.

[kareng]

sawyer I have read many sources and all concur that jello is made from the hides not other parts/tissue. In any event it is nasty and I'll never

eat it again.

Karen I agree that ancestors wasted nothing but in modern times we know better or should know better. Now all the by products(eyes, talons, feathers, etc) are put in pet food.

Why do you say we should know better? It's kinda gross but is it really dangerous to eat the eyes, or ligaments or hide in small quantities?

[stanleymonkey]

Why do you say we should know better? It's kinda gross but is it really dangerous to eat the eyes, or ligaments or hide in small quantities?

MY IN LAWS ARE CHINESE AND TRUST ME, NOTHING IS WASTED!! MY DAUGHTER WHO IS 2 WILL EAT BEEF TENDON, CHICKEN CARTILIDGE, AND CHICKEN'S FEET.

[maximoo]

@,Stanley, that reminds me of when i was in elementary school & chicken was served for lunch. I picked at the piece of chicken & left the skin, fatty bits, etc. A classmate asked me if I was done, and I said "yes" then she took my chicken scraps & ate everything but the bone. I was amazed & grossed out. She was from a different country.

@Sawyer: for further dog food info go to dogfoodanalysis.com

I heard about gelatin coming form hooves of animals & that's why I became curious & looked it up. I found out that that was a myth & gelatin comes from the hides instead. I don't remember which sites they were on but it was more than one. It is easily googled.

Do you agree jello has no nutritional value.

[jami9050]

Why do you say we should know better? It's kinda gross but is it really dangerous to eat the eyes, or ligaments or hide in small quantities?

ohhhh my... if people ever moved to Belgium you'd be in for a whole slew of things you'd never expected. Take for example we sell/cook/eat horse meat here, we have head cheese, we have almost any kind of wild animal for sale at local butchers from quail to pigeon to deer to yea well anything considered 'wild game'.

How can someone think that eating other 'parts' of an animal is bad? Hides and such are not used in this stuff, it produces no gelatine base so why use it?? Try looking this page.... Open Original Shared Link

It tells you above exactly what has been said here already, it's made from parts you most likely would prefer not to know about but you are making it out to be a lot worse then it actually is. And remember this is not just 'Jell-o' we're talking about. Out here we too have the powder and sheets of no-flavor/no-color gelatine and I can promise you that it is also made of animal parts but not out of skin/hides and what not.

People do have to rely on known truth rather then hear-say or at least open up their thoughts a bit more on foods. We already lose SOOOOO much having to live without gluten, some of use without milk, soy and other allergy stuffs... why close your mind off to those things we don't 'have' to leave from our diets?

Yes jello contains nothing but empty calories and additives but that is personally why hospitals feed it to people having just come out of surgery or having other stomach issues .... because it takes little or nothing to digest it but also giving the sense of having eaten 'something' as well as giving you liquid. If one can not keep jello down (which includes a VAST amount of liquid!) then they are not well enough to return to other things more solid.

I have to admit moving over seas has opened my eyes to a wonder of things... how many people here have eaten whole raw oysters, made razor clams, fried a piece of horse/boar/ostridge, eaten snails or frogs legs? You really have no idea some wonderful things you are missing out by being closed minded about things or mis-informed.

[mommytoethan]

Is jello gelatin gluten free? I looked at the ingredients and did not think it contained gluten, but now I am wondering because my daughter is acting like she has had gluten. We also try the blue diamond nut crackers ranch flavored, now those have milk and she does not really tolerate milk well, so it may be this, she loved these and has begged me to buy more, but I don't think I will.

I just got off the phone with Kraft (800-431-1001 (option 3)). I was calling about chocolate flavored Jell-O but got a (much) broader answer. Kraft cannot say that the particular Jell-O I was calling about is gluten free because, while Kraft will list any gluten-containing ingredients (including wheat barley, rye, spelt, etc.) when it uses in its own ingredients, Kraft uses ingredients acquired from third-party manufacturers in things listed as "flavoring, color or spice" and those third-party manufacturers are only required to identify wheat. SO, the upshot is that Kraft's more inclusive labeling is useless for any product that includes "flavoring, color, or spices" in the label because those ingredients may contain gluten.

The rep on the phone specifically confirmed that the words I read to her from the label, "contains less than 2% of natural and artifical flavor," were the type indicating ingredients that could contain gluten (b/c from a third-party manufacturer). When pressed, she also agreed that this hole in Kraft's labeling policy made Kraft's supposed inclusion of more than just wheat in its labeling somewhat useless. And, I'd add, though I didn't with her, also miseading.

So now I wish my four year old hadn't seen the box. Because while I appreciate that the gluten amount is likely miniscule, his doctor would like to see better bloodwork before we flirt with even small amounts.

[pricklypear1971]

I just got off the phone with Kraft (800-431-1001 (option 3)). I was calling about chocolate flavored Jell-O but got a (much) broader answer. Kraft cannot say that the particular Jell-O I was calling about is gluten free because, while Kraft will list any gluten-containing ingredients (including wheat barley, rye, spelt, etc.) when it uses in its own ingredients, Kraft uses ingredients acquired from third-party manufacturers in things listed as "flavoring, color or spice" and those third-party manufacturers are only required to identify wheat. SO, the upshot is that Kraft's more inclusive labeling is useless for any product that includes "flavoring, color, or spices" in the label because those ingredients may contain gluten.

The rep on the phone specifically confirmed that the words I read to her from the label, "contains less than 2% of natural and artifical flavor," were the type indicating ingredients that could contain gluten (b/c from a third-party manufacturer). When pressed, she also agreed that this hole in Kraft's labeling policy made Kraft's supposed inclusion of more than just wheat in its labeling somewhat useless. And, I'd add, though I didn't with her, also miseading.

So now I wish my four year old hadn't seen the box. Because while I appreciate that the gluten amount is likely miniscule, his doctor would like to see better bloodwork before we flirt with even small amounts.

I know it isn't the same, but chocolate pudding is super easy to make from scratch. Tons of recipes on the Internet and 95% are gluten-free.

Maybe if you let him have whipped cream or sprinkles on it???

I know, it's the box....as far as regular jello goes I believe Knox is gluten-free and you can add fruit juice as flavor.

[Gemini]

ohhhh my... if people ever moved to Belgium you'd be in for a whole slew of things you'd never expected. Take for example we sell/cook/eat horse meat here, we have head cheese, we have almost any kind of wild animal for sale at local butchers from quail to pigeon to deer to yea well anything considered 'wild game'.

How can someone think that eating other 'parts' of an animal is bad? Hides and such are not used in this stuff, it produces no gelatine base so why use it?? Try looking this page.... Open Original Shared Link

It tells you above exactly what has been said here already, it's made from parts you most likely would prefer not to know about but you are making it out to be a lot worse then it actually is. And remember this is not just 'Jell-o' we're talking about. Out here we too have the powder and sheets of no-flavor/no-color gelatine and I can promise you that it is also made of animal parts but not out of skin/hides and what not.

People do have to rely on known truth rather then hear-say or at least open up their thoughts a bit more on foods. We already lose SOOOOO much having to live without gluten, some of use without milk, soy and other allergy stuffs... why close your mind off to those things we don't 'have' to leave from our diets?

Yes jello contains nothing but empty calories and additives but that is personally why hospitals feed it to people having just come out of surgery or having other stomach issues .... because it takes little or nothing to digest it but also giving the sense of having eaten 'something' as well as giving you liquid. If one can not keep jello down (which includes a VAST amount of liquid!) then they are not well enough to return to other things more solid.

I have to admit moving over seas has opened my eyes to a wonder of things... how many people here have eaten whole raw oysters, made razor clams, fried a piece of horse/boar/ostridge, eaten snails or frogs legs? You really have no idea some wonderful things you are missing out by being closed minded about things or mis-informed.

Kind of funny, isn't it, that people pick apart Jello as if it contains nuclear sludge yet will then eat regularly at a fast food joint or other foods that are known to be nutritionally bad? Your post made me smile, Jami! I love Jello....especially with a little whipped cream! And you are correct about why it is used so widely in hospitals, plus the fact it is a hydrator. It's mostly water and is useful in helping people to not be dehydrated.

Food police...give it a rest, will ya? You'd eat it if you were hungry and that's all that was available........

[psawyer]

I just got off the phone with Kraft (800-431-1001 (option 3)). I was calling about chocolate flavored Jell-O but got a (much) broader answer. Kraft cannot say that the particular Jell-O I was calling about is gluten free because, while Kraft will list any gluten-containing ingredients (including wheat barley, rye, spelt, etc.) when it uses in its own ingredients, Kraft uses ingredients acquired from third-party manufacturers in things listed as "flavoring, color or spice" and those third-party manufacturers are only required to identify wheat. SO, the upshot is that Kraft's more inclusive labeling is useless for any product that includes "flavoring, color, or spices" in the label because those ingredients may contain gluten.

The rep on the phone specifically confirmed that the words I read to her from the label, "contains less than 2% of natural and artifical flavor," were the type indicating ingredients that could contain gluten (b/c from a third-party manufacturer). When pressed, she also agreed that this hole in Kraft's labeling policy made Kraft's supposed inclusion of more than just wheat in its labeling somewhat useless. And, I'd add, though I didn't with her, also miseading.

So now I wish my four year old hadn't seen the box. Because while I appreciate that the gluten amount is likely miniscule, his doctor would like to see better bloodwork before we flirt with even small amounts.

Your experience differs from what most of us have had in dealing with Kraft. I don't think the rep was following the script, but you may have interpreted what they said differently than I do.

Kraft does not label most products as "gluten-free" even when they are, in fact, gluten-free. They do obtain ingredients from outside suppliers, and do not test them for possible cross-contamination. While FDA regulations may only require disclosure of wheat, Kraft's contracts with their suppliers are another matter. If a supplier intentionally puts gluten in something they sell to Kraft, their agreement with Kraft would require disclosure. Which brings us back to accidental cross-contamination which Kraft does not test for--it would add to the cost of the product for everybody, not just the 1% or so who care.