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Personally, this McDonald's lawsuit makes me afraid that all of the progress made in having restaurants accomodate our diet will go down the drain because companies will become afraid of lawsuits if they make a mistake. Couldn't this McDonald's ff issue have been addressed some other way?   
My perception is that  McDonald's didn't disclose the wheat before because they thought it was okay for us in that form.  That certainly can happen.  Look how some people eat McCann's oats and some don't!  Some people feel low gluten hosts are safe and some don't. There is definitely some variation on what is acceptable and safe in a gluten free diet.  No wonder they were confused, too.
In addition, I don't think they had a legal obligation to go back that far in the ingredient chain; now they do. 
I give McDonald's accolades for being one of the first restaurants to even try to accomodate the gluten free diet.  Think about how much trouble each of us had when we first started on the gluten free diet.  It is not easy to figure out.  But this huge corporation, who certainly could have gotten enough business without us, took the trouble and expense of trying to help us, even to the point of putting the granola from parfaits into separate packets.  
And, I look at this new labeling law as a learning experience for everyone, which hopefully will serve to benefit us greatly after these companies get it figured out, making life for the next generation of Celiacs a lot easier.
I realize labeling mistakes can be quite devasting for us, but I really liked the idea that sometime in the future we might actually be able to eat in most restaurants.  I miss the social aspect of eating in restaurants, it is difficult for business people to eat out, and it is very difficult for our gluten intolerant teenagers to have a social life without being able to eat out.  
What if this McDonald's lawsuit drives companies to add malt or wheat starch to everything, like some cereal companies do, so they won't ever have to worry about being sued by one of us?  
Just my personal opinion on this.
Laurie

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