On the Hunt – WHERE to find Gluten Free products
Posted on: October 21, 2010
First things first. WHERE do you find gluten free products? They aren’t highly advertised either on TV or in grocery store flyers. I am sorry to say this, but to eat a gluten free diet, and to be sure that what you are eating is 100% gluten free, you have to go to the higher-end grocery stores. This includes Sobey’s, Loblaws, Independent, Zehrs, and Metro. They have special areas just for gluten-free products (normally found in the health food section), and there is normally a big sign to point you in the right direction if you get lost. I noticed that Sobey’s has a section for gluten-free products right in their bake shop! I went to discount stores like No Frills, Food Basics, and Price Choppers, and none of the staff, not even the manager, could tell me what they had that was gluten free. They definitely do NOT have a section specifically for gluten free items, I will tell you! I found the best place to shop gluten free though is at Health food stores and places like the Bulk Barn. The staff seems to know better what they are talking about, and can even help you further uncover what does/does not have gluten in it. They also have a wider selection of items. At all of the places I mentioned you can find flours, granola bars, cereals, breads, pancakes, waffles, mixes of all kinds (cake, bread, pastry, frosting, brownies, biscuits, cookies, etc), frozen dinners, macaroni and cheese boxes, pastas, chips, fish sticks, chicken fingers, hamburger buns, bagels, English muffins, pies, cheesecakes, cakes, etc. The pastas are really cool – some are even a dark purple colour!
I will admit that among all the gluten free products out there, most of the ones that I have seen either contain rice or are “rice” something. I’m not saying that it’s a bad thing, but I thought that I would let you know that rice is just the most common gluten free item out there. It’s like the rice flour in a gluten free diet is the wheat flour of a regular diet. You can even get rice noodles!
But hey, you don’t have to get everything at these more expensive places. Fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh meats, most dairy products (everything around the perimeter of the grocery store) naturally contain no gluten. So go ahead and get these products at your regular grocery store, no problem! The inner aisles are the ones where you need to be reading labels on EVERYTHING – this is where gluten tends to hide (I will discuss this in a later post)
Key Message: The fresher the food, the more likely it is to be gluten free, and the more processed and convenient it is, the riskier it is for those with celiac disease
So on your next grocery outing, drop in to take a look at one of these stores, and see what you can find – you will be amazed at all the options available to you!
Here are a couple short videos that introduce shopping for gluten-free items (it’s mainly geared towards shopping for kids, but the principles are the same no matter what age!).
I also noticed that the main brand that I see that is gluten free is “Bob’s Red Mill” – they sell all sorts of things like many different flours, mixes, oats, xanthan gum, etc. here is a picture of what the typical package looks like:
I found that in any of the stores I was at, this brand was the most common! Except, this brand is useful to you only if you want baking ingredients! So here are some other brands that I found to be popular in the stores I visited that provide all types of ready-made items ( I apologize that these are just pictures from the internet – I wasn’t allowed to take any pictures in any of the stores!):
– Glutino
– Kinnikinnick Foods
– El Peto Products
– Pamela’s Products
Hopefully this list and the videos can give you a starting point to your gluten free shopping, and can help you out a little bit!
References
-Boston Children’s Hopstial (2010). Shopping Gluten Free. Retrieved October 8th from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Mlf5kJiNUA
– Day trip to stores mentioned in post – Guelph, Peterborough and Lindsay locations (October 2nd, 2010)
– Dr. Gourmet. (2010). Chicken Penne Alfredo. Retrieved October 22nd, 2010 from http://www.drgourmet.com
– El Peto Products Ltd. (2010). Best-Sellers. Retrieved October 22nd, 2010 from www.elpeto.com
– Grande Prairie Celiac Site. (2010). Gluten-Free Breads and Alternates. Retrieved October 22nd, 2010 fromwww.celiacgp.blogspot.com
– Lapid, N. (2010).Where to shop for gluten Free Food. Retrieved October 8th, 2010 from http://celiacdisease.about.com/od/glutenfreefoodshopping/a/GroceryStore.htm
– Personal communication with store employees at all locations (October 2nd, 2010)
– Twoney, Amy. (2010). Gluten-Free Products. Retrieved October 22nd, 2010 from momsblog.dallnews.com.
– youtube video (2010). Shopping Gluten Free. Retrieved October 8th, 2010 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVtjn7RwcFE&feature=&p=84EC2FAD70BFAE20&index=0&playnext=1
Is Gluten-Free Hassle-Free? 
Leave a comment