Food manufacturers advertising gluten-free products are now required to ensure foods are just that, gluten free, as new rules from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s came into effect Tuesday. Before, the term “gluten-free” was unregulated in the food industry and the meaning unclear.
“This standard ‘gluten-free’ definition will eliminate uncertainty about how food producers label their products and will assure people with celiac disease that foods labeled ‘gluten-free’ meet a clear standard established and enforced by FDA,” Felicia Billingslea, deputy FDA commissioner for foods and veterinary medicine, said in a media release Tuesday.
The FDA defines gluten as a mixture of proteins that occur naturally in wheat, rye, barley and crossbreeds of these grains.
These new rules mean that food manufacturers are now required to ensure all of their products labeled as gluten-free contain no more than 20 parts per million of gluten. This is the lowest amount that can be detected in foods, and generally tolerated by people with celiac disease.
These new requirements are particularly helpful for people with celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder that can occur in genetically predisposed people where the ingestion of gluten leads to damage in the small intestine.
Left untreated, celiac disease can lead to potentially serious health problems, including the development of Type I diabetes, multiple sclerosis, anemia, osteoporosis, infertility and miscarriage, epilepsy, migraines, and intestinal cancers, according to the Celiac Disease Foundation.
The FDA also found that before manufacturers were required to meet federal standards, an estimated 5 percent of foods formerly labeled “gluten-free” contained 20 parts per million or more of gluten. Manufacturers were given one year to bring their gluten-free products up to compliance, since August 2013.
Camille Humphreys, marketing manager of Kirk Market, one of Cayman’s supermarkets that sells gluten-free products, said the store had not been notified of any recalls for its gluten-free products but that staff would stay vigilant and would pay special attention to any recall notification sent by the FDA.
“We support the FDA regulation of special dietary foods such as gluten-free products. It is extremely important for food manufacturers to provide consumers who have serious food allergies such as celiac disease, with more concise and transparent labeling,” she said.
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