Like Whole Foods, it looks like someone in the back room of Trader Joe's is hand-making gluten-free shelf tags. Whole Foods actually has way more GF products that TJ's, and for way more money. TJ's has products that look like they should be free of gluten but which have a suspicious-sounding CYA disclaimer about the possibility of allergen sneaking its way into the product. Even the GF markings on some products are accompanied by the statement "No gluten-containing ingredients," which is different than making a gluten-free claim and which leaves the door ajar for worrying about possible contamination.
All that said, the pre-fab Indian food pouches at TJ's are inexpensive and tasty, so I buy them despite all that. And I'm glad they now carry Udi's, though the price is just as high as everywhere else. Whole Foods did warn me on their website that they don't have people just standing by to answer random e-mails. I didn't think that meant they'd never answer my e-mail question about how they decide to label something gluten free. I haven't been back to the store since that day, but I think I'll try to find some time this week to see if they made any changes in the tea selection.
I'll keep you apprised. I fully expect that you are on the edge of your seat. At a recent shopping trip to Trader Joe's, I read a lot of labels. Many items that I thought looked like good candidates for being gluten-free had a tag line that, in effect, said: Our producers use good practices to avoid contamination with allergens. We make no guarantee that this food is not contaminated.
So, do I eat it or not? What does it mean: We try really hard but maybe we failed? Eat at your own risk? I visit the nutritionist that works out of my primary care doc's office in a couple of days. She's not a celiac specialist (I still haven't heard back from the GI doc's office for celiac-specializing nutritionist referal -- grrrr), but her dad has celiac and she's helped him deal with it for 30 years. I expect she'll have a lot of good real life advice. I also want to get advice on B vitamins. |
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January 2024
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