<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> I thought I ;would share with the list the results of my gluten testing on several products. These products are pretty exotic, but since my son requires gluten/casein/egg free foods, and insists on being a vegetarian, I wind up with some unusual products in the house. Disclaimer: this is not intended as any product endorsement or criticism. I tried to perform the test as best I could, but it is possible that I made mistakes. For absolute confidence, better to do your own testing! I used the Gluten Home Test Kit made by Medical Innovations Ltd, in Sydney Australia and sold by Food Analytics of Massena New York (800) 263-3677. The same kit is also sold by at least one major gluten-free mail order house.. The Gluten Free Pantry. Testing involves putting drops of various solutions into test tubes, and several timed steps. The kit includes a test tube with a pale blue color standard. The literature says: 'A very pale blue color of an intensity clearly less than the colour standard indicates the presence of extremely low and acceptable amounts of gluten ... acceptable under Codex guidelines. A well washed 'A Grade' wheat starch acceptable for gluten free food manufacture would show this level of color in the test' Another part of the literature defines the Codex standard as 0.3% protein from wheat, oats, barley or rye (although this test cannot detect oats). It has previously been discussed on this list that the UK and some other countries have more lenient standards than the USA for the acceptable amounts of gluten in foods, and there is not agreement amongst the various celiac groups on this issue. Here is each product tested, and the results: 1) Aztec cereal by Erewhon, a division of US Mills, Omaha Nebraska. Ingredients listed: yellow corn meal, ground whole amaranth, apple juice concentrate, sea salt. Test result - (tested twice, a month apart) - absolutely no color, which implies, if the test was done correctly, essentially no gluten. However, the test cannot detect oats. 2) Poppets cereal by US Mills. Ingredients: brown rice flour, maple syrup, natural flavors (lemon and orange), colors from natural sources (annatto extract and tumeric extract). I personally called US ;Mills and was told in clear terms that they were very familiar with the requirements of celiacs, and that there was no gluten in the natural flavors -- steam extraction process. I ;was also told that the annatto extract did not use grain alcohol and was gluten free. Test result - - (tested twice, a month apart) - distinct pale blue color, clearly less intense than the 'colour standard' from the kit. If tested correctly, this indicates a small amount of gluten. 3) Tofu-Vegie Burgers by Wildwood Natural Foods, Santa Cruz California (an excellent tasting food!). Ingredients: Tofu, nigari, magnesium chloride or calcium sulfate, onions, carrots, kale, potato or rice flour, sea salt, garlic powder, high oleic safflower oil. Test result - absolutely no color, which implies, if the test was done correctly, essentially no gluten. 4) The Ultimate Meal -- this is a powdered mix for making shakes and is sold by a company with the same name, phone (800)-THE-MEAL in Santa Barbara. The ingredients appear to be excellent, healthy stuff: Rice protein concentrate, millet, quinoa, amaranth, spirulina, flax seed, lecithin, horsetail herb, green papaya, vitamin c, calcium, zinc, vitamin E, bioflavonoids, pycnogenol, octacosanol. I personally spoke to the owner of the firm who assured me that the rice protein was not from California Natural Products (who sometimes uses barley enzymes in making rice protein). He told me he was totally confident the product was gluten free, and that he rigorously researches each supplier to be sure of this. Test result - tested twice about 90 minutes apart - distinct blue color, clearly more intense than the 'colour standard'. If the test was done properly, this appears to indicate presence of unacceptable amounts of gluten. Although some celiac groups avoid millet, quinoa and amaranth, Dr. Kasarda and several groups which I ;personally feel are the most state-of-the-art feel these are almost certainly gluten free. I am more suspicious of the rice protein and other ingredients. 5) Matzoh. Ingredients: wheat flour and water. I tested this just to be sure the test kit worked, and the resulting color was the most intense of all, even more intense than The Ultimate Meal. ---comments--- Like most of you, I find the process of calling manufacturers tedious and frustrating. It is really disappointing to find this evidence suggesting the two supposedly gluten-free products actually contain gluten. The gluten test kit is expensive (roughly $50 for 8 tests) and time consuming. It is not practical to test everything one eats. I tested these because they were exotic and because my son eats Aztecs and Vegi Burgers daily. If any of you have used the gluten test kit, I hope that you will share your results. Bill Elkus