Cheese… Mmmmm! Yummy, dairy goodness.
So why are my daughter and I both desperately gluten-poisoned after eating a big cheese-y meal?
Having eliminated all the other ingredients beyond doubt, I was left starting at a package of Kraft cheese. A block of cheddar cheese, not slices, or shreds, or anything “fancy.”
Cheese shouldn’t have gluten in it. Cheese should be in the category of “naturally gluten-free.” Let’s see…
Ingredients: Cheddar Cheese (Pasteurized nonfat milk and milkfat, cheese culture, salt, enzymes, annatto [color]), natamycin (a natural mold inhibitor). Contains: Milk
Doesn’t sounds like gluten, does it?
So I called Kraft.
First, I got transferred from the regular Customer Service desk to a specialized department because I made the mistake of saying that I had had a bad reaction. And the woman at that department didn’t have lists of ingredients for given products, so was not actually set up to answer my question.
I grabbed the block of cheese and read her the ingredient list, and she confirmed that none of those ingredients were glutinous.
In the way of all the “good guys” big food companies these days, Kraft would have labeled anything that had wheat. And even anything that was “processed in a facility that produces things made with wheat.”
But gluten is not a “Major Allergen.”
They have no requirement to list any possible exposure to other potential problems, like rye, barley, malt, or oats.
And furthermore? They don’t care.
Really?
Well, that’s good to know.
All Kraft foods are now making an exodus from our home. There are other brands that do care about my health in this regard, not to mention the tasty option of making many of these products myself.
