Bizs Cater To Non-Gluten Niche
Clyde Canino, owner of Canino’s Italian Restaurant in Fort Collins, keeps some gluten-free pasta in his kitchen, ready to serve up to any customers who cannot eat gluten, a protein in wheat, rye and barley.
Canino’s is part of a growing trend of restaurants, bakeries and stores offering gluten-free options for those with celiac disease, a digestive disease that damages the small intestine from gluten intake, or the milder form of gluten intolerance that causes a variety of symptoms but does not damage the intestine.
“Food companies noticed they could make a profit out of us,” said Mary Schluckebier, executive director of the Celiac Sprue Association in Omaha, Neb.
Schluckebier, who has celiac disease, said awareness about gluten arose after the federal government began requiring in January 2006 that allergens be listed on product labels and by consumers contacting food companies to identify the ingredients in products.
“There’s a market here,” she said. “We have this for life. It’s not a come-and-go diet, like the low-carb diet.”
Photo by belriose .
Selena on May 12th, 2009 6:09 am
As someone who is gluten free, this new trend is incredibly welcomed. Just last week for the first time ever, I was able to eat a gluten free citrus cake from Starbucks. It was wonderful.
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