<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

After I posted (several days ago) that, with the exception of the Almond
Butter Crunch bar, the Balance Bar Company had informed me there was no
added gluten in their bars (they were not ruling out cross contamination,
however), someone wrote to me and said they had checked Balance Bar's
website, which listed gluten containing ingredients in their "Outdoor" line.

I, too, checked it and found the same information.  I wrote to Balance Bar
and following is their response.

We rely heavily on Balance Bars for our picky three year old, so we are
relieved to get this cleared up.  Hope this is helpful to others as well.

Roni Lamb in NJ/USA
[log in to unmask]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Phil LeClair" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, December 12, 1999 3:00 PM
Subject: gluten in bars


 Dear Roni:

 We apologize for the confusion in regards to gluten-containing ingredients
in Balance Bar Products.

 With the exception of Almond Butter Crunch (it contains rolled oats), all
flavors of Balance Bars (including Balance Outdoor) do not contain
gluten-contributing ingredients.  However, very minute traces of gluten may
be indirectly present in the ingredients (such as corn sweeteners) and
equipment used in the manufacturing process.  Thus, we do not label or claim
our products to be "gluten-free".

The Balance Outdoor ingredient information found on our website is not
current.  Shortly after we launched these products, they were reformulated
to remove the ingredient containing the wheat bran, malt, etc.  We will
promptly take steps to update the website with current Balance Outdoor
ingredient information.

 Sincerely,

 Philip N. LeClair
 Quality Assurance Report