Gluten Free Watchdog’s updated position statement on Cheerios
This position statement may not be reposted without the express written permission of Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC.
***Note: What follows is the opinion of Gluten Free Watchdog. Whether or not you choose to eat Cheerios is your personal decision and you do not owe anyone an explanation. Please make decisions based on the totality of information available to you, including the position of Gluten Free Watchdog, the statement at the end of this post from General Mills, and Gluten Free Watchdog’s updated position statement on oats.***
BOTTOM LINE
General Mills has always been transparent with Gluten Free Watchdog about the protocols used for gluten-free Cheerios. And for this, we are truly appreciative. However, Gluten Free Watchdog cannot in good conscience recommend gluten-free Cheerios. This is due largely to the testing protocol followed by General Mills versus our recent test results. Because General Mills uses sorted oats*, testing protocols take on added importance as a benchmark of oat safety. We truly wish General Mills would adopt a testing protocol similar to the one followed by Quaker Oats, another manufacturer also using sorted oats in labeled gluten-free foods.
*Sorted oats are traditionally grown (standard) oats that undergo a mechanical and or optical screening at the mill to remove gluten-containing grain based on a variety of grain properties (e.g., size and color).
THE DETAILS
Test results:
Results from our 2021 spot testing are an improvement over 2015 spot testing for both Original and Honey Nut Cheerios.
Yellow box/Original Cheerios
- 2021: No quantifiable gluten was found in the 3 boxes tested.
- 2015: Over half of the extractions tested from 5 boxes contained quantifiable gluten at or above 5 parts per million.
Honey Nut Cheerios
- 2021: One extraction from the 3 boxes tested contained quantifiable gluten at or above 5 parts per million.
- 2015: One-third of the extractions tested from 2 boxes contained quantifiable gluten.
General Mills testing protocol: updated & reconfirmed on January 28, 2021
Bottom line: General Mills continues to use mean test results from a composite sample made up of sub samples taken from 12 to 18 boxes of cereal to determine if a lot (24 hour production cycle) is gluten-free.
Finished product testing
- General Mills is producing gluten-free Cheerios using what they term “validated gluten-free flour.”
- General Mills determines gluten-free status of a “lot” of oat flour via a lot mean.
- Further, General Mills determines gluten-free status of a “lot” of gluten-free Cheerios via a lot mean.
- In both cases, General Mills defines a “lot” as a 24-hour production cycle.
- To arrive at a lot mean for gluten-free Cheerios, the following protocol is followed:
- Twelve to eighteen boxes of cereal are pulled during a production cycle or “lot”.
- The contents of each individual box are ground.
- A sub-sample of ground product is taken from each box.
- The sub-samples are composited—meaning they are combined.
- The combined sub-samples are subject to additional grinding.
- A minimum of six, 1-gram sample extractions are taken from this combined, ground sample.
- Extractions are tested using the Ridascreen Total Gluten assay R7041.
- All lots of oat flour and all lots of gluten-free Cheerios are placed on hold (not shipped) until gluten testing has verified that the lot is gluten-free.
- Any lot of flour and/or Cheerios not verified as gluten-free would not be used or shipped.
This testing protocol continues to baffle.When Gluten Free Watchdog sends Cheerios to the lab for testing, each individual box is tested separately. If a result from any given box comes back with quantifiable gluten, the lab can regrind the sample and test additional extractions and/or grind another sample from the same box for testing. This helps us assess the extent of cross contact within the box. If testing from General Mills reveals high results, they have no idea which box is to blame. Therefore it is not possible to test boxes produced around the same time as the box containing gluten.
It is genuinely curious why General Mills does not follow a testing protocol similar to the protocol followed by Quaker**. Quaker also uses standard oats that have been sorted to remove wheat, barley, and rye in their labeled gluten-free oatmeal.
**According to information provided to Gluten Free Watchdog and reconfirmed by Quaker on February 3, 2021:
- Quaker grinds the contents of individual packets or cartons of oats.
- Each individual ground packet/tube is tested in duplicate.
- If any single extraction tests above 12 ppm the entire lot is discarded.
- Quaker uses the formally validated Ridascreen Gliadin R5 ELISA (R7001) to test oats for gluten.
For more information about the process followed by Quaker, see https://www.glutenfreewatchdog.org/news/oats-revisited-quaker-gluten-free-oats/
Statement from General Mills (provided February 4, 2021):
We remain fully confident that our gluten free Cheerios comply with the FDA regulations of less than 20 parts per million of gluten. General Mills continues to execute an extremely robust finished product testing protocol where each and every lot of gluten free Cheerios products are rigorously tested to verify compliance with the FDA gluten free regulations. This robust testing protocol is a confirmation of all the other work we are doing to ensure the final product is gluten free. Our purchasing requirements, mechanical sorting process of the oats and industry standard food safety programs are examples of steps we take to ensure that the final product is gluten free. On top of those steps, we grade the oats, test the oat flour and final product as well. Our oat flour is not put into production until it is verified to be gluten free, and our gluten free Cheerios products are not released to customers until they too have been verified to be gluten free as a part of that robust testing program.
As we have stated in the past, there are not enough certified gluten free oats to meet Cheerios needs, they would last less than a month. Our sourcing team works hard to purchase oats as free from gluten containing grains as possible. But we know that even oats grown this way, and even certified gluten free oats, may contain stray grains and that is why we have a mechanical sorting process. All of our oats go through this mechanical sorting so that we can remove stray gluten containing grains.
Testing of the finished Cheerios is the final confirmation that the product is gluten free. We test every lot of final product, we test every lot of oat flour and we grade the oats before they are even run through our mechanical sorting machine. We have more than five years of testing data that supports our products are gluten free and this, along with every other step we take are the reasons we are confident in our gluten free Cheerios.
© March 8, 2021. Gluten Free Watchdog, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Comments (26)
I’m confused about one thing – according to above, Quaker test to 12 ppm, but you have Cheerios test to 5 ppm. I’m guessing it’s not the ppm achieved that you object to, but the process of testing (grinding everything together, rather then by box).
Hi William, Thanks for reaching out. Internal manufacturer testing controls should not be compared to testing done by Gluten Free Watchdog. We have also tested Quaker gluten-free oats. All extractions have tested below 5 ppm. Quaker tests individual packets/tubes of finished product from each lot. If any single extraction tests above 12 ppm, the entire lot is discarded. General Mills tests extractions from a composite sample of finished product and then averages the results to determine if a lot qualifies as gluten-free. General Mills has not stated what ppm level they consider gluten-free. In 2015 they reported to GFWD that original (yellow box) Cheerios were testing at a mean lot level below 15 ppm. General Mills has not provided GFWD with any updated numbers.
My child was recently diagnosed with Celiac Disease. We cut out ALL gluten from the house, down to replacing cookware, small appliances, and storage containers. However, we kept buying Cheerios because they were labeled GF and had the Celiac Association label on them. He kept showing symptoms for months. Finally, I researched everything I thought could possibly still be allowing gluten in. I stumbled upon info saying Canada doesn’t allow Cheerios to be sold with a GF label and a lot of other Celiacs have had issues. So, I tossed the Cheerios. Since then, he has done a lot better. His symptoms are subsiding. I will not be buying Cheerios again until their testing protocol is changed and Canada agrees they can be labeled GF. I figure our neighbors to the north are onto something with this one.
Please let your child’s physician/dietitian know about his reaction to Cheerios.
I’ve been eating cheerios for months and all of a sudden I’m sick with my celiac that’s been good now for six years, General Mills has definitely changed something! No longer eating them and I don’t have diarrhea! What a sad thing to put us through, kidneys are suffering from this, no more cheerios . Gluten free people be careful!
Hi Gloria, If you believe Cheerios made you sick, it is really important to file a complaint with the FDA. Please see https://www.fda.gov/safety/report-problem-fda/consumer-complaint-coordinators
Cheerios are NOT gluten-free. I believed the label on the package. BIG MISTAKE. I ate one bowl of Cheerios yesterday (8/30/2021) and was having a severe reaction to gluten within the hour. Nausea, brain fog, bloating, diarrhea, headache, sore joints–the works. I was in bed all day and all night, and still–24 hours later–have not yet recovered. It may be safe for the “gluten-free by choice” crowd, but fellow sufferers of celiac diseases beware.
Sorry to hear this Carolyn. Please file a complaint with an FDA consumer complaint coordinator. For a listing see https://www.fda.gov/safety/report-problem-fda/consumer-complaint-coordinators.
Hi Tricia. I have filed a complaint with the FDA, thanks. My correspondence with General Mills has been fruitless. They apologized for “any inconvenience,” but did not request a sample of the gluten-infused cereal that made me very sick for two days. My recovery was gradual. After six days I was finally able to resume my normal diet without symptoms. A heavy price to pay for a yummy bowl of Cheerios!
Please keep me posted. Do you still have the Cheerios?
Thank you for this and for the work you do. We are only 4 weeks into a celiac diagnosis for my 6 year old. Within minutes of eating Honey Nut Cheerios, she exhibits her previous reactions. After the first two times, I thought I was going crazy. It’s so hard at the beginning of this lifelong journey to understand how to trust a label if a simple cereal destroys my daughter.
Hi Katie, I am so sorry to hear that your daughter has been sick. Please file a report with an FDA consumer complaint coordinator. A listing is available at https://www.fda.gov/safety/report-problem-fda/consumer-complaint-coordinators. Please also let your daughter’s gastroenterologist know about this reaction.
Cheerios are NOT gluten free. I find it curious that their standard is less than 20 PPM but other products, like beer, can not Claim to be Gluten Free even if they too meet the <20 PPM. To me Gluten Free means NO GLUTEN not " just a little bit". I still react to very small quantities no mater what product is discussed.
My Nima sensor has had multiple positive results for gluten when testing Honey Nut Cherrios.
Have you tested original yellow box gluten-free Cheerios?
No, I haven’t. I never really cared for original Cheerios so I just thought I would try the Honey Nut and these were my results
Thanks for letting me know.
You’re welcome!
Thank you very much for this and all your work. I continually tell my patients not to eat the cheerios. It is really hard to explain due to the GF label.
It of course, add to the difficulty with trusting the GF label at all for patients and familes.
I am not celiac but I cut out gluten about 10 years ago after listening to William Davis (wheat belly) and cut it out for heath reasons.I do not search out “gluten free”foods but just do not eat foods that contain it .Ate some Honey Nut Cheerios last night had bad acid reflux , and diarrhea the morning,gluten free Oreos did the same. Cocoa pebbles never give me a problem.
If you believe Cheerios made you sick, please file a complaint with an FDA consumer complaint coordinator https://www.fda.gov/safety/report-problem-fda/consumer-complaint-coordinators
I am on a gluten,fructose free diet! I read an ad on line that Original glutin free Cheerios would be a good choice for me! I ate 1 cup and got sick with nausea,headache, itching,stomach distress and diarrhea! I looked up regarding ingredient on this product to discover that trisodium phosphate is used in paint thinner and that oats have a protein avenin which causes these reactions! So it is not recommended that people with stomach disorders to eat this product! I wouldn’t even toss this stuff to my birds! Just saying!
Not only does GF Cheerios cause me problems, the rice & corn Chex do the same. There is something in these cereals that’s causes me problems!
F me, was so happy to return to cereal.
Just had a bowl of Honey nut Cheerios. Had my normal reaction to gluten, fingers feeling numb. Then wondered how that could be, so searched it; and came upon this (well third article I read on this first page of search results that say, you know what – cheerios; not so gluten free).
Expect I will sleep for 16 hours tomorrow, thanks G mills; needed a good nights sleep.
I had a HORRIBLE reaction to cheerios last year. I filled out and FDA complaint form but never heard anything back from it. I am looking forward to the day where someone makes a certified GF cheerios alternative.
Thanks for sharing. It is disappointing to hear that there was no follow-up from FDA. You could also contact them by phone https://www.fda.gov/safety/report-problem-fda/consumer-complaint-coordinators