Walmart And Gluten Free Section

[HeazerHacker]

So, I sent my husband out for some gluten free Pita chips at my local Walmart, and he brings back Pita Chips with Wheat, turns out he got them from the middle of the gluten free section. I called the Walmart to ask them to remove them, and the manager hung up on me.

[mbrookes]

At least they have a gluten-free section. My Walmart mixes it all together (gluten-free cereal on cereal isle, gluten-free bread on bread isle etc.) I do not shop at Walmart for that and other reasons.

[HeazerHacker]

At least they have a gluten-free section. My Walmart mixes it all together (gluten-free cereal on cereal isle, gluten-free bread on bread isle etc.) I do not shop at Walmart for that and other reasons.

Yeah, my husband and I are not shopping there anymore. And also, wow I can't believe they don't have anything for a section where you are, how frustrating. Where do you usually shop for gluten free? I need store suggestions.

[mushroom]

Yeah, my husband and I are not shopping there anymore. And also, wow I can't believe they don't have anything for a section where you are, how frustrating.

I know whereof she speaks. After hearing of everyone shopping at Walmart I thought, Wow, they must have changed!. Well, not in Nevada they haven't. They have gluten free Chex in with the other cereals and apart from that it is almost impossible to find a labelled gluten free product. Certainly not easy enough to make it worth the effort.

[CarolinaKip]

I have gone to their website before and written the home office about my experience in one of their stores.

[Adalaide]

All of the Wal-Marts in my area have a gluten free section. Of those, none of them separate things that are common products that simply happen to be gluten free and popular with us such as Chex.The section is used exclusively for specialty products such as pastas, crackers, and cookies. Annie's mac & cheese is with all the other mac & cheese, cereal is with the cereal unless it is one of those specialty brands. Could they do better? Sure. Then again, it is Wal-Mart. I don't shop there for their superior customer service, the ease of finding products or any number of other reasons that make my life as a shopper better, I go there because it is cheaper. My expectations are ridiculously low, because I know exactly where I am going. One day I may have the money to change the world by having principles, until then I will continue to shop at the place with the lowest prices regardless of how must less convenient it is.

I also never call places to complain, they can't hang up on you in person and having a rapt audience of other customers usually yields results. I worked in customer service for long enough to have a few tricks up my sleeve. Complaints should be made in person, and during the busiest parts of the day, lunch hours are good and so is the time when people are getting off of work and stopping in during the evenings on their way home. I may be just a little evil inside.

[shadowicewolf]

I'm greatful they have a section. Most stores mix products, its just a fact of life. I'm just greatful they have them.

[mushroom]

Yes, if there is a gluten free section, who's complainin? You're in and out. I just don't have the time to look at every price tag in the store or read the packaging of every product. And I sure don't have the energy to walk the whole supermarket at Walmart and end up with ONE product I only complain when you have to be a sleuth to find the stuff.

[HeazerHacker]

All of the Wal-Marts in my area have a gluten free section. Of those, none of them separate things that are common products that simply happen to be gluten free and popular with us such as Chex.The section is used exclusively for specialty products such as pastas, crackers, and cookies. Annie's mac & cheese is with all the other mac & cheese, cereal is with the cereal unless it is one of those specialty brands. Could they do better? Sure. Then again, it is Wal-Mart. I don't shop there for their superior customer service, the ease of finding products or any number of other reasons that make my life as a shopper better, I go there because it is cheaper. My expectations are ridiculously low, because I know exactly where I am going. One day I may have the money to change the world by having principles, until then I will continue to shop at the place with the lowest prices regardless of how must less convenient it is.

I also never call places to complain, they can't hang up on you in person and having a rapt audience of other customers usually yields results. I worked in customer service for long enough to have a few tricks up my sleeve. Complaints should be made in person, and during the busiest parts of the day, lunch hours are good and so is the time when people are getting off of work and stopping in during the evenings on their way home. I may be just a little evil inside.

Going in person is a great idea. Yeah, a lot of people are like "shop at Whole Foods", but I am not rich, so I was shopping at Wal-Mart. I am switching to HEB because I noticed they are pretty cheap and have a great gluten free selection. It is a little farther from my house, but a friend let me in on their gluten free section so it may be worth the gas. I should have read the label truthfully, I just got diagnosed this past month after a stay in the hospital due to malnutrition.

[HeazerHacker]

I'm greatful they have a section. Most stores mix products, its just a fact of life. I'm just greatful they have them.

It seems like its more a "pretend" section, most the products are still mixed. I think it is more for people who are on a fad diet than people like me who actually get sick. Also, products like Amys , cereal , and most other products are still separate. I guess I should be grateful they have anything though as it seems

Houston (where I live) is better than most places.

[Adalaide]

Going in person is a great idea. Yeah, a lot of people are like "shop at Whole Foods", but I am not rich, so I was shopping at Wal-Mart. I am switching to HEB because I noticed they are pretty cheap and have a great gluten free selection. It is a little farther from my house, but a friend let me in on their gluten free section so it may be worth the gas. I should have read the label truthfully, I just got diagnosed this past month after a stay in the hospital due to malnutrition.

I found very early on I had a deep emotional need to replace everything I was used to having with those gluten free replacement foods. I now rarely buy any of them. It comes with time, but I feel a whole lot better for not eating all that processed crap. And that is what it is, crap. I shudder to think that I used to eat food with ingredient lists that long.

It seems like its more a "pretend" section, most the products are still mixed. I think it is more for people who are on a fad diet than people like me who actually get sick. Also, products like Amys , cereal , and most other products are still separate. I guess I should be grateful they have anything though as it seems

Houston (where I live) is better than most places.

When it comes to Amy's in particular, they don't just do gluten free so we don't specially "own" them. A lot of other companies are the same way that do the specialty foods. A lot of retailers, with little room for a "specialty diet" section lump it all into one area. Having already labeled it gluten free they simply leave it labeled that way since we are the largest part of the 1% so to speak. There are plenty of other people on special diets that if there are other foods that are specialty foods that end up in my gluten free section I tend to not say anything unless the store has separate health food and gluten free sections. We get super defensive about it, and we do need to be extremely vigilant but we can never, ever just buy something because it was in a particular section of the store. Not even if it is the same brand we have always bought. (Example: Alexia sweet potato fries, which have recently stopped labeling as gluten free due to a new shared processing plant.) My life motto is every label, every time. I bought Classico pizza sauce yesterday, which I know darn well is gluten free... it's Classico after all. I still read the label. Read the labels on cheese, on a soda, on literally everything that goes in your mouth until it is so habitual that you won't put anything into your mouth (or cart) if you haven't read a label. Sure, it is annoying. Sure, it takes time. One day though it will save you, and will all be worth it.

[Cristina4268]

Wow how rude, I can't believe he didn't even attempt to address your concern. How infuriating.As far as suggestions. I'm recently diagnosed so I don't have alot to offer. Where I live, Wegman's Supermarket is a lifesaver. They have a nice Gluten/special dietary needs section. There is also Feel-Rite Markets and local co-op markets that specialize in organic/local foods, which is fantastic because they have a good assortment of Gluten free Foods

I feel like if a store has taken the time to seperate an aisle for gluten free foods, or even any other sort of limited diet, they should at least insure that the foods in the section belong there

Hopefully you checked in advance and didn't get gluttened,

I will check out my walmart now for a gluten-free section to see what we have.

[HeazerHacker]

Wow how rude, I can't believe he didn't even attempt to address your concern. How infuriating.As far as suggestions. I'm recently diagnosed so I don't have alot to offer. Where I live, Wegman's Supermarket is a lifesaver. They have a nice Gluten/special dietary needs section. There is also Feel-Rite Markets and local co-op markets that specialize in organic/local foods, which is fantastic because they have a good assortment of Gluten free Foods

I feel like if a store has taken the time to seperate an aisle for gluten free foods, or even any other sort of limited diet, they should at least insure that the foods in the section belong there

Hopefully you checked in advance and didn't get gluttened,

I will check out my walmart now for a gluten-free section to see what we have.

I totally got glutened - rookie mistake. I will see if any of those stores are in my area and get better at checking labels.

[HeazerHacker]

Wow how rude, I can't believe he didn't even attempt to address your concern. How infuriating.As far as suggestions. I'm recently diagnosed so I don't have alot to offer. Where I live, Wegman's Supermarket is a lifesaver. They have a nice Gluten/special dietary needs section. There is also Feel-Rite Markets and local co-op markets that specialize in organic/local foods, which is fantastic because they have a good assortment of Gluten free Foods

I feel like if a store has taken the time to seperate an aisle for gluten free foods, or even any other sort of limited diet, they should at least insure that the foods in the section belong there

Hopefully you checked in advance and didn't get gluttened,

I will check out my walmart now for a gluten-free section to see what we have.

And yeah thats what I felt like about the whole situation.

[luvs2eat]

I totally got glutened - rookie mistake. I will see if any of those stores are in my area and get better at checking labels.

I'm no rookie and got majorly glutened when I assumed all of Rudy's stuff was gluten-free. It just made me remember that no matter where they place stuff, I still need to read the labels.

WalMart in my town has no gluten-free section!

[love2travel]

Our WM has no gluten-free section - just a couple of things literally under the wheat flour. No loss - I really dislike WM anyway and would not go there unless I absolutely had to.

[Juliebove]

Our Walmart has a small gluten-free section but you will also find gluten-free products mixed in on other aisles. We have learned the hard way to check every label on the items that Walmart sells and to look for things that are made on shared lines. There isn't much in the way of food that we can buy there.

[fran641]

Our local WM has a small gluten free section. I have been doing this awhile so I watch all the labels. I noticed that they had a wheat based product (with similar brand name) mixed in with the gluten free. That product very easily could have been mistaken for gluten-free if a someone new to gluten-free didn't notice the small print. I ask a sales clerk why that was with the gluten-free items. In her most "uncheerful" voice her reply was "that is just where we put it".....duhhhhhh

[revolverblue85]

I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease today. I got off work at 9:45pm and went to Wal Mart to see if they had a gluten free section. They do not, and I didn't get home until 12:40pm. RIDICULOUS. I left with maybe 10 items, and I had to really search for them. Between figuring out where the gluten free products were to figuring out which ones were truly gluten free, I am exhausted. I will be trying our Food Lion, Farm fresh as I have heard they have gluten free sections. Then i guess ill try trader joes even though the food is awful.

[GottaSki]

I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease today. I got off work at 9:45pm and went to Wal Mart to see if they had a gluten free section. They do not, and I didn't get home until 12:40pm. RIDICULOUS. I left with maybe 10 items, and I had to really search for them. Between figuring out where the gluten free products were to figuring out which ones were truly gluten free, I am exhausted. I will be trying our Food Lion, Farm fresh as I have heard they have gluten free sections. Then i guess ill try trader joes even though the food is awful.

Welcome Revolverblue!

I remember well the frustration of reading every flipping label in the grocery store -- was reduced to tears a few times. Many here will suggest you stick to simple whole foods when newly diagnosed. This is great advice -- not only is it easier to find gluten free foods when you avoid processed items, you will heal more quickly.

When you hit the grocery store -- concentrate on the perimeter of the store -- where most of the naturally gluten-free foods are kept - produce, meat, dairy. Add a bag of plain rice and you'll have a basket full of food you know is gluten-free.

Good Luck to you

[revolverblue85]

Welcome Revolverblue!

I remember well the frustration of reading every flipping label in the grocery store -- was reduced to tears a few times. Many here will suggest you stick to simple whole foods when newly diagnosed. This is great advice -- not only is it easier to find gluten free foods when you avoid processed items, you will heal more quickly.

When you hit the grocery store -- concentrate on the perimeter of the store -- where most of the naturally gluten-free foods are kept - produce, meat, dairy. Add a bag of plain rice and you'll have a basket full of food you know is gluten-free.

Good Luck to you

Thank you for the advice. Luckily I have a very supportive wife. My only concern is passing it to my daughter. She eats great as it is but I do notice several symptoms on occasion. Thanks again

[Adalaide]

The only reasons I shop at Wal-Mart are because I am too poor to have principles, (an ongoing joke in our house. ) and because after a year I can flip a product over, read the ingredients list and decide if it is safe or not without consulting my 3-ring binder. I did initially stop shopping there for myself when first diagnosed because their fresh foods suck, I have three health food stores in my city and three grocery stores with either health food or gluten free sections. I'm not even including the other three grocery stores I don't ever go to or all of the ethnic markets that I love love love! Yes, by the way, I am in fact aware of the fact that I am a spoiled brat. I don't need Wal-Mart for their great selection I need them for their low low prices.

I agree that giving up all that processed junk is most healthy early on. It took some time for me. Emotionally I just couldn't let go for a while and looking back I see that while I felt better, I didn't see a significant improvement in my health until I gave up the bulk of those processed foods. And yes, it is also far less stressful. You'll get the hang of it in time.

[mommida]

We are so much better off than just 8 years ago! There are more products in normal grocery stores. In our early days we had to go to specific health food stores. You better believe gluten free products/ flours were right next to "extra" gluten mix bags. There are so many mainstream products that reformulated to be gluten free (some Chex cereals).

[Em314]

Most of my local supermarkets have a section for special dietary needs, but none that I've noticed actually have a gluten-free section. What I *have* noticed is that the gluten-free sections are crazy-overpriced and I haven't really been shopping from any of them since before I got officially diagnosed (when my bloodwork had come back "probably celiac" I started researching immediately). I haven't even bothered looking in WalMart though I might next time just out of curiosity. The special dietary needs sections in general are so random it's kind of amusing (like mommida mentioned, there'll be gluten-free products right next to a bag of stuff with extra, "wholesome" gluten).

Also worth noting is that Wal-Mart is notoriously crappy to its employees; it's nobody's dream job. The employees there are working there because they need they money, and they deal with stupid, irritating and rude customers all day. Most people, even well-meaning ones, don't know much about gluten unless they or someone they know can't eat it. It was unprofessional for the guy at walmart to hang up on the OP, but in general, it's kind of hard to totally blame a walmart employee for being clueless when being asked about gluten, because there's a good chance they don't really know what you're talking about unless they're gluten-free or someone they know is gluten-free.

[MoMof2Boyz]

there isn't a gluten free section at my wal-mart but there is at Kroger..that's where I shop the most. More expensive though..I think it's too bad that gluten-free stuff is more expensive..like pasta...gluten-free flours are pricey too for the amount that you get. I know I need to eat healthier but sometimes I want a donut, ya know!