Julian's Bakery Breads - Lax Labeling

[Katja]

Hi -

I haven't posted here for a while, but feel i really need to share what I heard back from Julian's Bakery after inquiring about how "Gluten Free" their products really are.

To say I am frustrated and aggravated is putting it mildly. Yes, I am extremely sensitive to gluten so even minuscule amounts will make me sick for days or even worse when it's tiny doses over a prolonged period of time - weeks. I cannot wait until the labeling of "Gluten Free" really means it is and has been tested.

Maybe it helps if more people actually speak out directly to these companies - because i get the feeling they are not even aware what kind of damage they inflict on people by being this laissez faire with the labeling.

Here is the email exchange:

On Tue, Sep 21, 2010 at 8:56 AM, Katja <contact@celiacgourmet.com> wrote:

Hi!

I am interested in your gluten free breads, but can't find allergen information on your site. Do you do an Gluten ELISA assay test on your gluten-free products or certify with a third party that the breads are gluten free? Do you have a dedicated production line and/or facility for the production of your gluten free breads?

Thank you in advance for your help.

Kind regards,

Katja

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From: Julian Bakery Sales <julianbakerysales@gmail.com>

Date: September 23, 2010 8:24:04 AM PDT

To: Katja <contact@celiacgourmet.com>

Subject: Re: gluten free question

Are (Katja: I am assuming they mean "All" ) Purity Bread, Corn Bread and Bean Bread are all Gluten Free! We have not had any test done but sell to 1,000's of Celiac customers!

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Von: Katja <contact@celiacgourmet.com>

An: Julian Bakery Sales <julianbakerysales@gmail.com>

Gesendet: Donnerstag, den 23. September 2010, 16:40:29 Uhr

Betreff: Re: gluten free question

Hello:

Please don't take this as being disrespectful in any way, but it is extremely frustrating to constantly get "poisoned" from supposedly "Gluten Free" product because companies don't seem to care how accurate the labeling on the box is.

I appreciate the reply, but I would like to point out that this is as useful as no reply. I am not sure if you are aware that cross contamination is a huge problem for Celiacs and just because a person with Celiac does not react to a product that is contaminate and hence believes the product is safe does not mean they are not damaging their body.

"Gluten Free" should mean that the product has been tested, produced in a dedicated facility or at least dedicated equipment. Sourced flours can also be contaminated by gluten, so even if you bakery is extremely diligent it does not mean the product is gluten free.

I will be posting this on celiac forums, just to make sure people are aware of the issue.

Kind Regards,

Katja