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Gluten Labeling Feud Continues in Canada

February 3, 2011

Gluten Labeling Feud Continues in Canada

Canadian Celiac Association and food allergy groups ask Prime Minister to hold strong against beer industry.

The celiac and food allergy community is continuing to fight for proper food labeling. Anaphylaxis Canada has published a letter to the Prime Minister signed by several organizational supporters, including Jim McCarthy, executive director of the Canadian Celiac Association. The letter called upon the Prime Minister to follow through with new food labeling regulations as planned.

The new regulations would require all food and beverage products to display a warning when allergens may be present. While many approve the move, beer makers believe adding a gluten warning would be costly and excessive. Individuals on a gluten-free diet typically know that beer contains gluten and should be avoided, the brewers argued. Celiac and food allergy advocates countered that failing to label beers would be too high a risk.

The letter to the Prime Minister is the latest effort to push the regulations forward. Along with the letter, Anaphylaxis Canada published the results of a poll noting that nearly 70% of Canadians supported food labeling with no exemptions for the beer industry. Previously, the organizations published press releases about the food labeling struggle, and individuals like Shelley Case, RD, have made personal appeals for help from the community.

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