11
Nov
2024
30
Jan
2024
Yeast extract confusion redux
In 2019, we wrote about a consumer complaint we received for a labeled gluten-free soup. The product includes the ingredient “flavors (including yeast extract).” Long story short, the consumer who contacted us was told by customer service representatives that brewer’s yeast is the source of the yeast extract. However, she did not receive a definitive answer regarding whether the brewer’s yeast is spent brewer’s yeast. Fast forward to 2024. Gluten Free Watchdog received a consumer inquiry about the autolyzed yeast extract...
21
Jan
2024
Gluten Testing of Food Containing Barley Amylase: Poster Presented at AOMSC 2023
To download the poster presented at the Asia-Oceania Mass Spectrometry Conference, please see: https://www.glutenfreewatchdog.org/news/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/PosterAOMSC20230703_AO-MSC_MN_Poster.pdf AOMSC 2023 Poster Abstract Investigation of foods containing beta-amylase for gluten content Mitchell G. Nye-Wood (a), Tricia Thompson (b), Margaret Clegg (b), Michelle L. Colgrave (*a) School of Science, and Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, Edith Cowan University, Perth, WA, Australia (a) Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC, Manchester, MA (b) Gluten proteins are unique food allergens that are a common dietary component for many...
06
Jul
2023
Gluten-Free Claim Removed from KA-ME Hong Kong Express Rice Noodles
In May 2022, Gluten Free Watchdog (GFWD) reported KA-ME Hong Kong Express Rice Noodles to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) via the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) Adverse Event Reporting System (CAERS). At the time, product packaging included a gluten-free claim yet barley amylase was declared in the ingredients list. In February 2023, GFWD submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with FDA to find out what action was taken on our complaint. One of the...
24
Apr
2023
Gluten Free Watchdog Special Report on Barley Amylase: Is this enzyme safe to include in a gluten-free diet?
To help find out, products containing barley amylase were tested for gluten using high sensitivity liquid chromatography- multiple reaction monitoring-mass spectrometry. The full report is available HERE.
17
Feb
2021
Dandy Blend Instant Herbal Beverage: Where is the enforcement FDA?
This herbal beverage is labeled gluten-free and lists as ingredients “extracts of roasted barley, rye”. After seven years of reporting this product to FDA, it remains on store shelves. What follows are the nitty-gritty details. Initial correspondence with FDA Gluten Free Watchdog first made FDA aware of this product via email on January 10, 2014—over SEVEN years ago!FDA’s initial email response received January 17, 2014:“As far as the product, “Dandy Blend Instant Herbal Beverage”, we do not have enough information to be able to...
23
Jun
2020
FOR FOOD MANUFACTURERS: SOME HELPFUL INFORMATION ABOUT INGREDIENTS CONTAINING GLUTEN
During this period of food shortages and supply disruptions as a result of COVID-19, FDA is allowing manufacturers to make certain ingredient substitutions without changing the ingredients list. FDA stated in a letter to Gluten Free Watchdog that their COVID-19 food labeling flexibilities: "... are not to be used when they may pose a health or safety issue. This would include the introduction of an ingredient containing gluten. Substitutions, in any amount, are not appropriate without a corresponding label change...
08
Mar
2019
When beer “crafted to remove gluten” is wrongly advertised as “gluten-free”: How to report to the TTB
If you come across a bottled malt beverage in the US market that has been “crafted to remove gluten” (e.g., made using malted barley but treated with an enzyme) yet is represented in advertisements from the brewer as “gluten-free” please email the TTB market compliance division at Market.Compliance@ttb.gov. Photos representing the issue are useful to include. The regulation of beer is not straightforward. What follows is a primer that hopefully makes a complicated topic easier to understand. Please read it carefully....
02
Mar
2019
Yeast extract confusion made worse by the lack of manufacturer transparency
Gluten Free Watchdog received a consumer complaint about Health Valley Gluten Free Café Chicken Noodle Soup. The product includes the ingredient “flavors (including yeast extract).” Long story short, according to the consumer who contacted us, she was told by Health Valley customer service representatives that the source of the yeast extract was brewer's yeast. However, she never received a definitive answer regarding whether the brewer's yeast was spent brewer's yeast. Generally speaking, we do not advise contacting manufacturers about labeled gluten-free foods containing yeast extract. The...
11
Jun
2018