“It’s gluten-free, really!” It says gluten-free so it must be! Can you trust it? Are you sure? What do you really know? Has everyone in that bakery looked at the allergen statements of every ingredient? Do they have policies and procedures in place to ensure safety? Do they test their products? How do you know?

The gluten-free category has experienced growth of 136% from 2013-2015, with sales of $11.6 billion in 2015. It’s getting harder for celiacs to know which brands they can trust and because gluten can be a matter of life and death for some, it is imperative that they can trust that the companies they buy from are in fact safe and 100% free of gluten. People with celiac disease are vigilant about avoiding foods that could be cross-contaminated with gluten because for them, like insulin for diabetics, a GF diet is their portal to managing their disease.

As far as my company Delicious Without Gluten is concerned, we are in the final stages of getting our gluten-free certification. It’s been a labour of love to get to this point especially since our company is still in its infant stages. All ingredients in the facility have undergone extensive research to ensure safety. Allergen forms, audit certifications and gluten-free letters have been collected for every single one of them. Every allergen has been identified to avoid cross contamination and every lot number of every ingredient of every recipe is recorded to ensure traceability. We are testing for gluten and other allergens in ingredients and in final products. We train each of our staff members to use the best practices in food preparation and also in understanding gluten and allergen contamination and safe practices. We never buy ingredients that are on sale or convenient – we receive ONLY what is researched and approved ahead of time.

And why do we stick to such rigorous standards each and every day? Because it has become increasingly more difficult to trust gluten-free manufacturers and we don’t want our customers to ever, ever have to worry about what they buy from us.

The gluten-free food industry is populated by companies who make everything in the same facility, some that change their ingredient statements to fit a gluten-free profile and those that never planned to produce gluten-free products but badge their products ‘gluten-free’ because there’s money to be made in this market.

For us it’s simple; we guarantee no nuts, peanuts, dairy or gluten in every product we make. We develop each product as yummy and as safe as possible because one without the other just won’t do. I do it for my own children, and now we do it for you. I want you to feel safe too, to trust and to build trust that my goods are safe and delicious. I need you to know that we take no risks with your health when you consume our products. When you see the Gluten Free Certification Logo on my products you will now know that much work goes into this logo. It is a stamp of approval, a knowing that we take pride in doing what it takes to ensure the safest gluten-free products. While not easy, it is important. Even though we serve anyone who chooses to live on a gluten-free diet, the GF certified stamp of approval allows us to confidently, wholeheartedly and honestly serve people with Celiac disease who have zero tolerance for gluten. I thank all of you who buy my products and hope we continue to please you and keep your trust!