The other day I Tweeted that I was amazed to see, in very small print the words” gluten free” on the back of a Heinz ketchup bottle. It is funny how the little things in live sometimes leave the biggest impression. Well, last night, while constructing the perfect gluten free hamburger with a Schär roll and a fresh patty procured from one of the ever wonderful stalls of the Grand Central Market I had yet another epiphany. While carefully layering all of my condiments in perfect sequential order, mayonnaise on the bottom, burger topped with melted cheese, mustard, ketchup, pickles, top of bun –I noticed that after aligning the condiments on the dining room table another “gluten free” was smiling back at me. This time is was again, very small, but gracing the Hellman’s Mayonnaise (Reduced Fat version). Now as a self-proclaimed gluten free aficionado I don’t ever recall seeing it before. Funny, I always go straight for the ingredient list to verify “gluten freeness” of products which leads me to my next minor rant. Okay, ketchup and mayonnaise really should have the most basic of ingredients to begin with. Alas, this is America, land of the food additives and flavor enhancers, so I always read the ingredients. That being said, wouldn’t it be nice if the gluten free recognition was, oh, I don’t know, placed on the freaking front of a package – or at LEAST in something other than a size 6 (and I am being generous) font.
Oh, well, Rome was not built in a day and I will happily accept my little gluten free wording with the hope that perhaps one day some major labels might feature gluten free on the front of the package in all its glory. Rant over.
Tags: celiac, celiac disease, gluten free, product labels
