Wellness Foods - February 2008 - (Page 14)

Baking amaranth, brown rice ﬂour, buckwheat, chocolate chips, ﬂax, kamut, quinoa, raisins, spelt, sorghum housands of gluten-free products have been released in the past few years with sales climbing by double-digits, toward $750 million yearly. Although most other grains contain elastic storage proteins, “true” gluten comes from wheat and persons with a sensitivity react the strongest to wheat, the primary source of gluten in the diet. “A gluten-free diet is not the same as a grain-free diet,” says Cynthia Harriman, Director of Food and Nutrition Strategies for the Whole Grains Council, a Boston-based consortium committed to increasing consumption of whole grains for better health. “Many delicious and healthy whole grains – including amaranth, buckwheat, corn, millet, quinoa, rice, sorghum, teff and wild rice – are gluten-free and contribute important phytonutrients to people who can’t eat grains like wheat, oats, barley, and rye.” Processors apparently are keeping up with the crush to meet demand for this former niche category with help from milling companies such as Milwaukie, Ore.-based Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods (www.bobsredmill.com). Bob’s has a dedicated testing facility also to test all products labeled ‘gluten-free’ in adherence to a strict standard of less than 20 parts per million. Bob’s was a pioneer processor of less mainstream grains, such as quinoa, buckwheat, barley, sorghum, amaranth, spelt, kamut and ax. Its The hot gluten-free 30 year-history positioned it for the rush for alternatrend has gone tives to wheat. beyond cookies and Laval, Quebec-based Glutino Food Group (www. crackers to such items glutino.com) offers more than 100 gluten-free products as organic frozen under its Gluten-Free Pantry brand, including frozen dinners, sauces, breads and bagels, baking mixes, cereals, crackers, soups and even ice breakfast bars, skillet meals, avoring blends, pastas, cream and beer. cookies, frozen entrées and pizzas. Glutino is one of the world‘s largest gluten-free food processors. Arico Natural Foods (www.aricofoods.com) has T grown steadily since launching its rst line of glutenand dairy-free cookies in the spring of 2005. The Beaverton, Ore.-based company recently attained national distribution and is also ranked as one of the fastest growing gluten-free product companies in the U.S. Gridley, Calif.-based Mary’s Gone Crackers (www. marysgonecrackers.com) CEO Mary Waldner attributes her company’s explosive sales growth partly to the growing demand for gluten-free and partly to the surge in the organic food category. Waldner added brown rice, quinoa, and amaranth to replace glutencontaining cereals, and oil-rich ax seeds and sesame to replace functional hydrogenated fats and chemical additives in the formulation. Gluten-free baking involves more than grains. Pulses – peas, beans, chick peas and lentils – are of inestimable mutual value to both the gluten-free trend and their own renaissance. Making up the majority of the edible legumes, they have the capacity to provide processors with formulation solutions that carry phenomenal marketing value. Pea our, for instance, can be blended with nongluten ours to replace wheat and provide a balanced source of protein. Moreover, ours from peas and other pulses, like beans and chickpeas are high in ber and contain multiple minerals and vitamins, including folate. To top it off, products made from and with pulses can cash in on the “green” trend: they’re an environmentally friendly crop that xes nitrogen instead of requiring large amounts of fertilizer. Another legume, soy, has made multiple inroads into the full spectrum of healthful products, including baked goods. But several cracker and cookie manufacturers using soy are taking advantage of its gluten-free status. The exciting thing is that the companies doing the most are the small, boutique bakeries. It’s the perfect t a relatively new category like gluten-free opens, especially when it’s related to health and digestion. It allows a wide variety of high-quality products to win otherwise reluctant consumers. What remains is to see how the giant baking concerns choose to enter this fast-rising, hot market. 14 | February 2008 www.wellnessfoodsonline.com Food Processing’s Wellness Foods™ http://www.marysgonecrackers.com http://www.marysgonecrackers.com http://www.bobsredmill.com http://www.glutino.com http://www.glutino.com http://www.aricofoods.com http://www.wellnessfoodsonline.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Wellness Foods - February 2008

Wellness Foods - February 2008 Well Noted Healthbites New Ingredient Profiles Cover Story: Women Take Heart Going Gluten Free Not Your Momma's OJ Aloe - Nutrition Beyond the Trends On the Shelf Expert Opinion - Soy Update

Wellness Foods - February 2008

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