Girl Scout Cookies

[blondebombshell]

when looking at the girlscout cookie menu, it seems as if they all have 'traces of wheat, dairy, etc.'

are there ANY that are gluten free?

[jerseyangel]

when looking at the girlscout cookie menu, it seems as if they all have 'traces of wheat, dairy, etc.'

are there ANY that are gluten free?

No, unfortunately, all contain gluten.

Open Original Shared Link

[HAK1031]

no I've been a girl scout for 9 years, cookie time is going to be soooo hard! anyone know of a gluten-free cookie that could support my thin mint addiction?

[blondebombshell]

thats like RIDICIOULOUS!

AT this point! 2008! no gluten free girlscout cookies!

[mamaw]

Thin Mint Addiction...... here is what we do.

BiAglut crackers ( scalloped edges) , melt our fav good choc add mint falvoring to your taste & dip the cracker into the mint choc. Kids love it...

The crackers may be hard to find in the US at present as the labeling issues has plagued this company......

mamaw

[blueeyedmanda]

I miss Thin Mints.....bad!

[Cherry Tart]

I'm afraid nothing will replace the Thin Mint However, I stumbled across the Gluten Freeda mint double chocolate chip cookies at my local healthstore and let me tell you, they were pretty awesome! My friends didn't know they were gluten free! You can find them in the freezer section. The dough comes in premade balls, sealed in a bucket-like container - all you have to do is bake them! If your store doesn't carry them, I'm sure you can buy them online

[razzlephrat]

I'd kill for a tasty (gluten-free) thin mint! booo.

[cruelshoes]

I know it isn't really the same but here are some gluten-free recipes for Open Original Shared Link and Open Original Shared Link. I haven't tried them yet, but I am going to as the GS cookie season gets going.

[buffettbride]

My daughter is a scout and has Celiac. Needless to say, she hates the cookie activity.

Anyway, in the spirit of awareness, I sent GS main office an email about the possibility of a gluten-free GS cookie in the future. This was the response from them:

In the best of all worlds we would be able to address everyone's needs; however the Girl Scout cookie products are driven by what sells to the public. Currently neither of our companies offers gluten free cookies for the general markets-- the product seems to be a nitch market (as you probably well know). Each company has developed a cookie that addresses caloric concerns (a sugarless LBB chocolate chip and a portion control pack by ABC) and has addressed concerns about transfats in the past. At this point, we do not have plans to develop a gluten free cookie.

Although its hard, I would encourage your daughter to participate in the cookie activity to learn about selling and to support her troop and council. Others can eat the cookies and she may be able to eat the nuts and other products that are on sale in the fall. Work with her troop to educate them about gluten free needs, and snacks that are healthy for all of the girls at meetings. This might also be necessary at camping events as well. I volunteer for an organization that works to raise money and educate folks about intestinal diseases, so I know the issues your daughter is facing.

Thank you for writing and sharing your concerns.

Since my BS meter goes off very easily, this was my response...

Thank you so much for your response. We work with the troop and local camps to ensure my daughter has a safe, gluten-free GS experience.

However, if no one ever expresses a need/desire for a gluten-free cookie then it is likely never to come to fruition, which is my responsibility as the parent of a Celiac sufferer to continually raise awareness and opportunity for those eating a gluten-free diet. As many as 1 in 133 people cannot eat gluten, which is hardly a "niche" but more of an untapped resource.

In fact, there are more people with Celiac Disease than there are with diagnosed diabetes. It is estimated as of 2005 approximately 210,797 people were diagnosed with diabetes (type 1 and type 2). With a US population of 301,139,947 and estimated that 1 in 133 people have Celiac Disease. That means 226,421 people in the US who cannot consume gluten. Additionally, many sufferers of Type 1 diabetes also suffer from Celiac Disease which is the inability to digest wheat, barley, oats or rye, so even a portion of those people to whom the sugar-free cookies are targeted, cannot eat them. So, it seems to me, creating a sugar-free cookie is also a "niche" but one with better PR. Far more people are aware of diabetes than celiac disease, so it makes sense on the surface that a sugar free cookie is mainstream while a gluten-free cookie is not. It is only in the last few years any kind of publicity has been given to those following a gluten-free diet.

I would encourage Girl Scouts to not dismiss the gluten-free opportunity, even if now is not the right time to continue the pursuit. While it is not likely one would be developed while my daughter is still in scouts, I think you will see, over time, it will become a necessity.

[HAK1031]

Thin Mint Addiction...... here is what we do.

BiAglut crackers ( scalloped edges) , melt our fav good choc add mint falvoring to your taste & dip the cracker into the mint choc. Kids love it...

The crackers may be hard to find in the US at present as the labeling issues has plagued this company......

mamaw

brilliant! I never thought to make my own! thanks!

[jerseyangel]

Buffettbride,

I thought your response was fantastic! The more people speak up, the greater the chance of change. Thanks

[Ridgewalker]

Buffettbride, LOVE your response!!!

[buffettbride]

It's a good thing I didn't major in math because my figures were wrong.

22.6 MILLION have Celiac

20.8 MILLION have Diabetes.

Now I feel kind of dumb for sending that email. Even though my numbers were wrong, the dynamics are the same.

I just need to make sure I tell my little girl, honestly, that I've tried everything to make her most sacred foods available in a gluten-free variety.

[Ridgewalker]

It's a good thing I didn't major in math because my figures were wrong.

Well I didn't notice, and never would have known. And the accurate numbers only strengthen your point, not weaken it.

[blondebombshell]

UGH I LOVE YOUR REPLY!

i just e-mailed them, too!

[Green12]

Excellent letter buffetbride!

Colleen, your thin mint link isn't working...maybe it's for the better in my case

My neice started selling this year's cookies already, I always order some to pitch in and support her troop even though I can't eat them.

It really does surprise me they haven't considered a gluten-free option since so many have celiac and/or gluten intolerance.

I miss tagalongs too

[cruelshoes]

Colleen, your thin mint link isn't working...maybe it's for the better in my case

No such luck - I fixed the link. here it is again: Open Original Shared Link

[Green12]

No such luck - I fixed the link. here it is again: Open Original Shared Link

Thanks Colleen!

These do look good.

[buffettbride]

I'm not saying don't support GS or buy cookies. In fact, support those scouts and donate your cookies to a local food bank or the troops.

[Joni63]

buffettbride,

Your letter was awesome! I think it's great that you are working toward raising awareness with them. It's important to get the word out and let them know how you feel. If their was enough pressure and awareness, they would probably work towards a change. You know, the squeeky wheel...

I can tell you this was brought up at a meeting this week and they don't even make the sugarless cookies locally because the company that bakes the cookies won't do it. Each area uses a different baker and Girl Scouts tend to go by the baker's recommendation. That also makes it difficult because each area relies on different baking facilities. I really think if it were up to the Girl Scouts themselves, they would want to see a cookie made that everyone could have and they would want to accomodate all people. What it really comes down to is money, like everything else. Yes, it could be done but they would not cost 3.50/box like they do for the other cookies because of the 'extra' ingredients and research the baker would have to do to make the cookie work.

It's sad, but true.

[cruelshoes]

My Co-leader asked our council cookie manager about a gluten-free cookie, and he said that if the demand were high enough and they had a viable recipe they would consider it. I honestly don't think the demand WOULD be high enough to justify them making a gluten-free GS cookie. And even if they did, I'm sure a lot of celiacs wouldn't eat them because they would definitely be made on shared lines with the other types of cookies. Our local baker (Little Brownie) says that the only cookies guaranted to be free of nuts is the thin mints because they produce so many of them they are run at a different plant. If they can't keep the nuts out of the other cookies, they definitely would have trouble keeping gluten out if they were to attempt a gluten-free cookie.

It would be nice to have a gluten-free thin mint, but I don't really see it happening. I'm probably better off for it anyway. Pre-gluten-free, once I opened a box of mints, I couldn't stop eating it until it was gone.

[buffettbride]

My Co-leader asked our council cookie manager about a gluten-free cookie, and he said that if the demand were high enough and they had a viable recipe they would consider it. I honestly don't think the demand WOULD be high enough to justify them making a gluten-free GS cookie. And even if they did, I'm sure a lot of celiacs wouldn't eat them because they would definitely be made on shared lines with the other types of cookies. Our local baker (Little Brownie) says that the only cookies guaranted to be free of nuts is the thin mints because they produce so many of them they are run at a different plant. If they can't keep the nuts out of the other cookies, they definitely would have trouble keeping gluten out if they were to attempt a gluten-free cookie.

It would be nice to have a gluten-free thin mint, but I don't really see it happening. I'm probably better off for it anyway. Pre-gluten-free, once I opened a box of mints, I couldn't stop eating it until it was gone.

I think I know in my heart that you are right. Unless they were to charge $5 a box to ensure the gluten-free cookies were made in a gluten-free environment it's not likely to become a reality.

Now, what would be ideal is if an existing baker of gluten-free products could contract to make a gluten-free GS cookie. I think a gluten-free version of Thin Mints would be great. I don't think I'm going to make this my life's mission, but I was torqued I got the response that gluten-free was only a "niche" market. Pish Posh!

[buffettbride]

Oh yeah. And there are 2.7 million Girl Scouts which means approximately 20,300 of them have Celiac Disease.

That doesn't include wheat allergies or non-Celiac gluten intolerance.

[Bill in MD]

Well, I was a math major, back in the day (not admitting how far back, though ). So I did a little figuring. Hope I don't embarrass myself here.

Give a U.S. population of 303,253,405 (right off the census website), and the 1 in 133 figure we've all come to know, that does indeed give us about 2.28 million U.S. celiacs.

What was overlooked is that the vast majority of those celiacs are undiagnosed and untreated. According to Dr. Peter Green at Columbia, as many as 97%, and those people probably are not in the market for gluten-free anything. Using that figure, that gives us 68,403 diagnosed and presumably gluten-free U.S. people. That amounts to 0.0225% of the U.S. population. Fewer than 3 in 10,000. I think that would sound like a "niche" market to most companies.

My point here is not to be pedantic or to convince folks to give up trying to change the marketplace. It just seems to me that not much is going to change until the U.S. medical community gets on board with more awareness and more access to testing, much like they have in parts of Europe. Then we'll have a "celiac constituency" with some real clout. Things are changing; it just seems interminably slow.

I, too, miss the tag-alongs and the thin mints. My sister is a life-long Girl Scout, and I buy the samoas for my girlfriend.