Do you eat Wellshire Farm's "gluten-free" products?
Did you read this article?
Children At Risk In Food Roulette
Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. I don't even know what to say. I noticed that on the Wellshire Farm's website they still label their Chicken Bites for kids as "gluten-free". Uh, if kids are already being hospitalized over these, what is it going to take before they do something about their mislabeled products? Oh, and just for kicks check out this page about their "quality control" complete with a thank you letter from a mom gushing about how she "doesn't have to worry" due to their allergen database.
I checked in with Sam Roe, the reporter at the Chicago Tribune that wrote the article, hoping to find out that Wellshire Farms had tried to redeem their company name in some way. Perhaps that is why I procrastinated when it came to publishing this. Roe told me that yesterday they claimed to have "posted something on their website", but nothing has been seen. The products that are tainted are still being sold at Whole Foods. I could only find the Chicken Bites on the website. Did they remove the Chicken Corn Dogs and Beef Corn Dogs? And if so, why those and not the Chicken Bites too?
Maybe there is a positive side to this story? Maybe the timing for this story to break was perfect. You see, the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA) just entered into its 2nd phase, so hopefully this scandal will help to prove how important proper labeling and accurate testing is for products labeled as gluten-free.
I'm going to choose to be mindful of all of the companies that I really do trust and that have a great long-standing reputation within our community. If anything, I think this article leaves me with even more appreciation for the companies that really live up to the responsibility to be honest when they say their products are gluten-free. Some people still have standards!
BTW- If you still are a little foggy about FALCPA, Nancy Lapin wrote an extensive and easy to understand article about it and what it entails on About.com.
Anything you'd like to say?
Would you like to email Wellshire Farms and explain to them why proper labeling is important to you? Here's their email:Info@WellshireFarms.com
