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I am rejoining this list today after having removed my name for a few
months due to not having access while I was out of the office for a
while.   All of that to say I realize this may be old news but bear with
me.
 
I was checking the ingredients online of the cereal that my daughter
eats (Malt-O-Meal Corn Bursts and DynoBites). You can go on their
website and view the nutrition and ingredients panel. I saw that they
have added wheat starch.
 
I called this morning and spoke with Shannon, who is basically the
consumer affairs manager. I got to her after speaking with a
representative who gave me the standard food manufacturer response. We
had a 20 minute conversation in which I explained that by adding the
wheat starch they were taking away this food from thousands of people. I
asked why and here is the response I got:
 
Paraphrasing: Because this cereal is not made on a dedicated line we
feel it's better to go ahead and add the wheat starch so we can cover
ourselves. We cannot put a warning on the panel that says the product is
made on the same equipment that processes wheat products because that
does not meet the FDA standards. So, we are taking the decision out of
the consumer's hands by adding the wheat starch and eliminating the
problem.
 
She gave me no other reason for adding the wheat starch than this. They
have done this because they believe this will eliminate a headache for
them. They have three plants in the country that process their products.
You can't tell me that they don't sell enough of this cereal to dedicate
one line to GF products. I am hoping that the people on this list
(whether you eat the cereal or not; whether you agree that it was safe
or not) will flood her office with phone calls. The number is
1-800-743-3029. The person you need to speak with is Shannon, Consumer
Affairs Manager.
 
This is IMPORTANT! We need to rally together in cases like this so our
voices will be heard. We need to make companies know how many people
they are affecting.
 
 
Mandy Kavanaugh
 

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