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

I'd like to clear up a potential misunderstanding regarding shopping
guides such as the ones put out by CSA/USA and TCCSSG.

Question:  If a product is not listed in the shopping guide,
does that mean it is not gluten-free (GF)?

Answer:  Not necessarily.  It could mean one of several things:

  -- The product might not be GF.

  -- The company which makes the product might not have been contacted,
     or might have failed to respond to a letter sent asking for
     information.

  -- A company may have responded by saying they didn't know if their
     products were GF or not.

  -- A newer product might be GF, but be too new to appear in the
     company's list of GF products.

  -- In some cases, companies only respond to questions about specific
     products; in that case the GF status of any other products made by
     these companies is not known.

Unless a shopping guide lists a product or specifically states that a
product is NOT GF, then you cannot really draw any conclusions about it.
So if a product is not listed, contact the company or read the
ingredients and use your own judgment.  And remember that even if a
product is listed in a shopping guide, check the ingredients since
sometimes the ingredients do change.

Jim Lyles ..... Holly, Michigan, USA ..... [log in to unmask]