Letter on Gluten Free

Written By:
Sam Wylde, III, president of Ener-G Foods, Inc.

Dear Editor,

I enjoyed your November 2011 Foods for Sensitive Diets article entitled, “Allergen-Free for All." I would like to make a few comments.

One of my concerns is the 20 ppm allowed limit in gluten-free foods does not take into account that gluten is accumulative. If someone who has Celiac disease eats a slice of gluten-free bread containing 20 ppm, then eats a gluten-free brownie with 20ppm and follows-up with gluten-free soup with another 20ppm, they have ingested 60 ppm. Further, we don’t know how long such accumulated gluten remains within digestive and immune systems.

Labs are down to 5 ppm in their testing. See the certificate of analysis for Pretzels Wylde Sesame Pretzels from Ener-G Foods. I think the lowest detectable limit should be the standard for “Gluten-Free.”

Sincerely,
Sam Wylde, III
President
Ener-G Foods, Inc.
Seattle, WA

Published in WholeFoods Magazine, January 2012