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Celiac.com 01/26/2012 - A Canadian woman is fighting a battle with the government of British Columbia to protect the services that allow her 18-year old daughter to live at home in Quesnel, B.C., with 24-hour care — much of it provided by Shelley McGarry herself. The woman's daughter, Chelsea McGarry already has a long list of challenges — Down syndrome, autism, early onset Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, and celiac disease, among other conditions. The problem is that Chelsea turns 19 in December, at which point her responsibility for her care transfers from Ministry of Children and Family to Community Living B.C., the government agency that provides services to adults with developmental disabilities. Shelley McGarry says she's been battling for months with Community Living B.C. According to McGarry, Community Living B.C. has refused to approve the a plan for Chelsea. Moreover, the agency has threatened to reduce the minimal care Chelsea now receives, McGarry says. "It just turns my stomach to think of taking this public," she said. "But I don't know where else or what else to do." Independent provincial politician Bob Simpson and B.C. Representative for Children and Youth Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond both say Chelsea's case is a classic example of Community Living B.C.'s failure to work with families and find solutions. Instead, they say, the agency is worsening the McGarrys' situation. "This is a young woman whose life is in crisis," said Turpel-Lafond, who has been pushing Chelsea's cause since her family since Ausgust 2011, when they asked him to advocate on her behalf. Turpel-Lafond says that Community Living B.C.'s efforts have been lacking so far. "I've written, I've met with the head of CLBC, I've done just about everything I can," she says. "I've said to them very clearly, 'This is a case that needs a review by you, she added'" Simpson represents Chelsea and her family in the provincial legislature. He says that the family has followed all of the government's rules. Shelley McGarry has thoroughly documented Chelsea's fragile medical conditions. She developed a plan with the local non-profit society, also known as a micro-board. McGarry arranged for Chelsea to receive home care for about $340,000 a year. That amount is far less than the CLBC's plan to put Chelsea in a care home capable of managing her complex needs. Simpson called the plan that the McGarry's have offered the CLBC a 'very reasonable and appropriate plan.' However reasonable that plan may be, the CLBC has refused to approve it. Worse still, their proposed alternatives would either be unsafe, or cost up to three times what it would to keep Chelsea at home, Simpson said. Simpson says that he suspects the CLBC is punishing Shelley McGarry for her vocal and tireless advocacy on Chelsea's behalf. Simpson adds that he also suspects that officials, as he says they have done in other recent cases, have lost sight of Chelsea as a person. Both Social Development Minister Stephanie Cadieux and Community Living B.C. have declined to comment on specific cases. However, Cadieux said in an interview that she is aware of the file, and that she has appointed a new client support team, which she hopes can resolve the matter. "I agree that it needs attention," Cadieux said, adding that the new team includes a number of "high-ranking officials" from the Ministry of Social Development, and the Ministry of Children and Family Development. Source: http://www.canada.com/Disabled+woman+faces+battle+government+care/5593715/story.html

Celiac.com 07/20/2012 - Many of the millions of Americans who suffer from celiac disease and gluten-intolerance are eagerly awaiting the FDA's forthcoming standards for gluten-free product labeling. Until then, different agencies may apply differing standards, often with confusing results. The recent dust-up between Widmer Bros. brewing of Oregon, one of many breweries crafting gluten-free beers, and the Treasury Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau ("TTB") over the ingredients in Widmer's gluten-free brew, provides a good illustration of the confusion that can arise when different sets of standards and rules govern what can and cannot be called 'gluten-free.' Widmer Bros. is a division of Craft Brew Alliance (CBA), the nation’s ninth’s largest brewing company, and recently unveiled two new gluten-free beers, Omission Gluten Free Lager and Omission Gluten Free Pale Ale. Unlike most gluten-free beers, which are brewed from sorghum and usually taste very different than traditional beers, Omission is made using traditional ingredients, including barley--which contains gluten. Widmer then uses enzymes to reduce the gluten in both beers to a level that is well below the 20 parts per million (ppm) gluten threshold set by the World Health Organization for gluten-free products; the very standard likely to be followed soon by the FDA. Professional testing show gluten levels for Omission beers at just 5-6 ppm. Meanwhile, those familiar with the final products say they taste very much like traditional beers. However, it is not the gluten levels in the beer that seems to be at issue, but the fact that Widmer begins their brewing process with barley and other traditional ingredients. According to the TTB, wine, beer or distilled spirits made from ingredients that contain gluten cannot be labeled as ‘gluten-free.’ Certainly the commonly accepted European standard of 20 ppm means that the vast majority of products labeled 'gluten-free' still contain measurable levels of gluten, a good deal of those likely above the 5-6 ppm of Widmer's beers. For beer drinkers with celiac disease, finding a gluten-free beer that tastes like a traditional beer is like finding the Holy Grail. Given that Omission beers supposedly taste closer to traditional beers than most gluten-free beers currently on the market, and given that they come in well below the standard for products to be labeled gluten-free, there are undoubtedly a number of people with celiac disease and gluten-intolerance that are hoping Widmer will prevail in their battle against the TTB. What do you think? Should the gluten-free standard be based on scientifically established gluten levels of the final product, or on the gluten levels in the ingredients originally used to create it? Should Widmer be allowed to label and sell their Omission beers as 'gluten-free?' Source: KXL.com

Celiac.com 08/17/2012 - In an effort to promote the production of safe, reliable gluten-free food products, the Canadian Government has announced a $245,000 grant that will help the Canadian Celiac Association partner with ExcelGrains Canada, the Packaging Association of Canada and the Canadian Health Food Association to develop specific controls and the supporting tools for each of their existing food safety systems. The measure includes specific controls for gluten-free foods. The end result will be a group of gluten-free controls and guidelines that will help to eliminate the risk of gluten contamination in grains, packaging materials, and bakery products, across the entire product manufacturing chain. Once developed, these gluten-free controls and guidelines will be adaptable and transferrable to other producers and manufacturers across the Canada. The CCA's mission is to promote awareness of celiac disease and gluten intolerance, along with offering advice and information to manufacturers and distributors of gluten-free foods. ExcelGrains Canada is a farm food safety program for grain farmers managed by the Canada Grains Council. Member of Parliament Ron Cannan of Kelowna-Lake Country is a strong supporter of the measure. He says that food safety is one of the government's priorities, and that the investment "will help provide consumers with the gluten-free foods they need and boost consumer confidence in Canadian food." Thanking the government for passing the measure, Jim McCarthy, Executive Director of the CCA, noted how important it is for "government and industry to work together to ensure that foods labeled 'gluten-free' truly are safe for the consumers who need them." He added that the measure will help the three million or so Canadians who suffer from celiac disease and gluten intolerance to more easily and safely access a 100% gluten-free diet. The investment is part of the Canadian Integrated Food Safety Initiative, through which, the Canadian government helps organizations develop national, government-recognized on-farm and/or post-farm hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) or HACCP-based food safety systems.