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I come to FL in a small town near Tampa, every winter & it amazes & baffles me how poor the selection of GF foods is here in FL.  The supermarkets carry 1 item-- a breakfast cereal,-- on average.  

Trying to eat in a restaurant here in FL is a lost cause and if you ever peek into their kitchen you wouldn't want to eat in them anyway even if you weren't on a GF diet.  Most of the restaurants tell you flat out "don't eat here we can't stop ourselves from cross contaminating foods" when you inquire.

In the summer, I live in the Northern U.S. where we have health laws & standards for restaurants as to cleanliness and cross contamination & I am amazed & flabbergasted at the backwards in time attitude down South. 

The health food stores in FL have pitifully little to offer & "don't even think" of requesting they order something for you. 

Up North most every town has supermarkets that carry a large variety of cookies, cereals, cake mixes, breadmixes, flours, that are GF.  Health food stores have several aisles chock full of GF goodies that are top quality--not down in FL.

What is the matter with Florida?  Is it the grocers or the restaurant chains?  Don't you people have any celiac voice at all in Florida?  Heavens with 1 in a hundred people being celiac  & the number of people here in Florida you should have the best selection of anyone.  Don't you have support groups that contact restaurants & grocers as we do up North? 

I order my Glutino pretzels, vanilla wafers, breakfast bars, etc. on the internet while down South because there doesn't seem to be any choices. When I have complained about the lack of good GF goodies at a health food store, they tell me they are advised over & over that they are the best or that it is too expensive to carry GF foods. 

Sorry if I ranted too long, but it is sad & shameful to be so ill treated.  maryb GF 4 yrs.


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