Nuts about labels

If you're anything like me, you'll seldom check ingredients of things that you buy on a weekly basis at the supermarket but already know to not contain wheat. Recently however, one of my regular products changed the recipe.

I'm talking about nut bars. Once upon a time, there were two brands of nut bars sold in supermarkets that were marked gluten free, but located amongst the standard nut bars, muesli bars and other such snacks. Earlier this year, both brands changed to "made on a production line that also handles cereals containing gluten" and I accordingly removed the products from Gluten Free Land along with the fantastic reviews that both had received from myself and others because although they are probably safe for most Coeliacs, this website is only for products that are definitely gluten free. However I continued to happily eat these bars without becoming noticeably ill.

Last week, however, somebody pointed out to me that the two boxes of Nice & Natural Nut bars that I had bought (but not yet opened) had a little triangle on the top of the box with the text "New Improved Recipe". It turns out that this new improved recipe contains "the goodness of wheat". This is a real shame as these bars really were delicious, but obviously, I can no longer eat them.

This brings me to my point. How often do you take the time to check the labels on things you buy? This is a clear reminder that products can and do change their gluten status so it pays to be vigilant as it is not always in the helpful direction!

So what do you reckon? Feel free to make a comment below and please vote in the poll on the top right of the Gluten Free Land home page -do you usually check the ingredients every time you buy something or only the first time?

Posted by Rory on Dec 8th, 2009 under Gluten In Unexpected Places | Permalink | Comments(1) | Tweet | Facebook