When buying packaged food in the UK, manufacturers must list all the ingredients. These must be labelled following certain guidelines. In this blog, we’ll take a look at some food labelling and how gluten and other allergens are identified.
Food containing gluten and other allergens
Any allergens must be emphasised on the ingredients list. They usually appear in bold.
Food labelled as gluten free
Food can only be labelled as gluten free if it contains 20 parts per million (ppm) or less of gluten. This is safe for those with coeliac disease.
Foods with no gluten containing ingredients but risk of cross contamination
You may also see labels such as ‘may contain traces of gluten’ and ‘made in a factory also handling wheat’. The manufacturer has determined that there is a risk of gluten contamination to the product. These foods are best avoided if you have coeliac disease.
Food with no gluten containing ingredients
Some foods naturally do not contain any gluten but are not labelled as gluten free. If these do not carry any warnings about cross contamination, they should be safe to eat for those with coeliac disease.
Gluten free wheat starch
Occasionally you may come across a product with gluten free wheat starch. This is where the wheat contains a level of gluten that is within the minimum requirements for coeliacs. An example is the label below from a packet of Juvela flour. It states that the wheat starch is complies with the Codex Alimentarius standard for gluten free food.
Is vinegar gluten free?
Vinegar always confuses me! Regular vinegar or white vinegar is usually labelled as barley malt vinegar. The ingredients list shows barley in bold to indicate that it’s an allergen. This immediately makes me think that I need to avoid this product.
However, according to the coeliac society, barley malt vinegar is safe to eat as it is made using a fermentation process. The level of gluten in the end product is below the safe level for those of us with coeliac disease.
Barley Malt Extract
Foods with barley malt extract will have barley highlighted in the ingredients list. It’s often found in breakfast cereals. As the levels can vary in different products, I only use the product if it specifies that it is gluten free or if I am able to confirm with the coeliac society that the product is gluten free.
Hi Em, thanks for your response. We contacted our local Trading Standard and as you indicated, all we had to do was test the batch of Barley malt vinegar we use, so we had a certified certificate. Was on our labels ensure we just emphasise the word ‘barley’ in the ingredients in all language’s. Thank you for responding, these changes in norms truly can be a minefield year after year
Can anyone help me, I use malt vinegar in my product., I have just tested my Malt Vinegar and the product I make at they come under Gluten Free. My question is how do I present this in my ingredients ., Malt vinegar (from barley) “not in bold” as it is gluten free or how?? Please help
Hi Glenn, it’s best to refer to Coeliac UK for the latest guidance. Their FAQs (on 3/5/24) suggest that for Barley malt vinegar used in a food product, the manufacturer must list and emphasise the word ‘barley’ in the ingredients list in line with European allergen labelling law.