Whole Foods - Salad Bar And Prepared Food Area

[munchkinette]

What kind of experiences have people had with the labeling in the Whole Foods salad/prepared area. I've had a few clearly labeled things from the deli before with no problem.

Today I noticed something- I got all my salad at the bar, and went for the dressing. I wanted the balsamic vinaigrette. It was labeled "contains soy" but the label said it contained "shoyu soy sauce." Isn't that regular soy sauce? There was no "contains wheat" but I stayed away from that! I've had stuff from the deli that just has tamari and "contains soy" with no problem. (I am only mostly soy free.)

Has anyone had trouble with what they think is mislabeled stuff at Whole Foods? As opposed to cross-contamination?

[Gemini]

What kind of experiences have people had with the labeling in the Whole Foods salad/prepared area. I've had a few clearly labeled things from the deli before with no problem.

Today I noticed something- I got all my salad at the bar, and went for the dressing. I wanted the balsamic vinaigrette. It was labeled "contains soy" but the label said it contained "shoyu soy sauce." Isn't that regular soy sauce? There was no "contains wheat" but I stayed away from that! I've had stuff from the deli that just has tamari and "contains soy" with no problem. (I am only mostly soy free.)

Has anyone had trouble with what they think is mislabeled stuff at Whole Foods? As opposed to cross-contamination?

Check this article out: Open Original Shared Link

Also click on the Shoyu link in the upper right corner of the page and read about that. Sounds like it's another case of the seller being technically correct about the product but I would not eat any soy sauce that wasn't labeled gluten free. This article seems to liken it to distilled alcohol....while technically it is gluten free, there are those who become ill from distilled alcohol. Whether it's the grains from the process or something else, people are known to become sick from them.

I eat a lot of food from Whole Foods and have never come across mislabeled items. That doesn't mean it doesn't happen though. The Whole Foods that I shop at do a fantastic job with allergens but many of the people who work there have food allergies and intolerances themselves. That makes for higher awareness for me.

[psawyer]

If wheat was present it would, by federal law, have to be explicitly stated (just like soy). The contains statement lists only soy, so there is no wheat in the product. Not all soy sauce has wheat.

[larry mac]

.......This article seems to liken it to distilled alcohol....while technically it is gluten free, there are those who become ill from distilled alcohol. Whether it's the grains from the process or something else, people are known to become sick from them.......

With all due respect, I feel it's important to note that people are also known to not become sick from distilled grain alcohol. I wish there were data to indicate what percentage of Celiacs are sensitive to distilled grain alcohol. I suspect it's very low.

best regards, lm

[munchkinette]

With all due respect, I feel it's important to note that people are also known to not become sick from distilled grain alcohol. I wish there were data to indicate what percentage of Celiacs are sensitive to distilled grain alcohol. I suspect it's very low.

best regards, lm

Is that from Celiac though? I don't drink any grain alcohol, but I've got some degree of allergy to wheat. I get really stuffy if I drink grain alcohol, but that happens a lot less or not at all with other hard alcohols like real tequila.

[Gemini]

With all due respect, I feel it's important to note that people are also known to not become sick from distilled grain alcohol. I wish there were data to indicate what percentage of Celiacs are sensitive to distilled grain alcohol. I suspect it's very low.

best regards, lm

The reason I put that in is because if I didn't, someone would have piped in how dangerous it is for Celiacs to consume grain alcohol. I agree with you....I think it is safe to drink as far as Celiac Disease is concerned but I am also not negating the fact that some people have some kind of reaction to it. Since alcohol can be irritating to the GI tract, I would suspect that could be the reason for a reaction but I am not a researcher so don't really know. When the vast majority of Celiacs do fine with a considered "safe" product, I would have to agree that the product is just that...safe. All reactions are not gluten reactions.

I do not consume grain alcohol but for a different reason...I have no taste for it.