24 Jan Celiac Expo Review
Products to the left are healthier options and to the right are made with processed soy and corn which is inflammatory.
I drove quite a ways to go to the Celiac Expo May 2nd in Pasadena because I wanted to see what new and exciting foods are hitting the market this year. I have to say I was a bit disappointed in some of the products. There are still a lot of companies (large ones in particular) who are still putting out foods that are not made with good ingredients. I still see a lot of processed soy used which is cost effective for the manufacturer but no healthy for the consumer. In fact 90% or more of the soy in the US is GMO (genetically modified). Soy is not only one of the top 8 allergens it is also estrogenic. The only you should have soy if you are not sensitive to it is fermented soy (miso, tempeh, natto, etc.). In addition to soy was still seeing a lot of products using dairy ingredients. Dairy is second to gluten for intolerance so manufacturers need to do a lot more research if they are trying to appeal to the Celiac community who want to be healthy.
The few companies that stood out were the ones who had that knowledge of ingredients and the compassion to make a positive impact with their products. I remember fitting into that category with Karmic Krunch several years ago when I started the Krunch. I have since moved on from manufacturing for good reasons. It’s very tough and very expensive to stay on top and keep the integrity of the product so I have a great respect for those companies who continue to succeed with integrity intact. The more we as consumers demand optimal ingredients the more will be available.
Was happy to see some of the up and coming companies I’ve enjoyed like Mary’s Gone Crackers coming out with new flavors that are – yes – dairy free – yeah! Look for them summer of 2015.
Was disappointed in Pamela’s because all of their products except I think one from what I saw have dairy in them. They need to expand and get a greater audience by going dairy free or at least use goat dairy. Goat dairy is easier to digest and is closest to mother’s milk so the body knows what to do with it.
So Delicious as usual is wonderful with their dairy free, gluten free options. They still have sugar so eat their yummy ice cream bars as a treat. I tried the strawberry bar. Very refreshing. They also have dairy free milk options worth a try.
Two Moms in the Raw who I’ve always enjoyed had some great samples and now have raw truffles worth a try. You can find their product in the raw section at natural food stores.
Enjoy Life who has done a great job targeting children with multiple allergies. Their products don’t contain any allergens including nuts. They were sampling some new flavors of their Plentis chips. Really like the flavors which will be out this summer.
Another surprising new product was gluten free imitation crab. I’m one of those who would much rather have the real thing when it comes to crab but it’s great to see a gluten free version of the imitation. I couldn’t resist asking if they were talking with Sushi restaurants and bars because all of them use the crab with gluten. Wouldn’t that be awesome to go to a sushi bar and have a lot more options? Yeah! By the way, yes they are looking at that market.
Look for individual reviews on products in our Sandi’s Review Page.
