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Gluten Free

Against the Grain: Plant-Based Without Compromise

For 10 years, Against The Grain has been going against the trend towards food industrialization. It combines the highest quality, whole ingredients in unique ways to produce naturally gluten-free, minimally-processed products. It doesn’t compromise in taste and texture either.

Plant-based products are a new departure for Against The Grain. Its best-selling gluten-free bread and pizza products have always relied on animal protein, but when faced with the opportunity to develop a new line of products, it asked, why not create a plant-based product that was both gluten-free and grain-free? The new 100 percent plant-based Ginger Cookies and Chocolate Chip Cookies are just that. They are rich and buttery-tasting, soft and chewy, and made with real ingredients and no gums, binders, emulsifiers or preservatives. What it offers is a very satisfying, responsible indulgence that is easier on the planet.

About Against The Grain Gourmet
Against The Grain Gourmet is a celiac family-owned wholesale manufacturer of frozen gluten-free bread, pizza and cookie products located in Brattleboro, Vermont. It is also the only national gluten-free and grain-free bakery. The company’s products are made with a minimal number of ingredients with no preservatives or additives in its dedicated gluten-free and nut-free facility. It prides itself on paying its production staff the highest wages and the best benefits package in the industry.

GrandyOats Launches Gluten-free Line

GrandyOats, a Maine maker of organic cereals and snacks, is launching a line of certified gluten-free products from its dedicated gluten-free production area in its new 100 percent solar powered headquarters in Hiram, Maine. This spring, GrandyOats will launch its certified gluten-free line starting with 12 skus of bulk trail mixes and nuts followed by two packaged products. GrandyOats expects to launch more certified gluten-free products later in the year.

Specifically, GrandyOats trail mixes and roasted nuts including High Antioxidant Trail Mix, Garlic Herb Cashews, Maple Roasted Cashews, and Nori Sesame Cashews, will all be certified gluten-free. GrandyOats granola will be next to go gluten-free, with its popular Coconut + Fruit Granola earning the designation shortly thereafter, followed by organic oatmeal and other products.

“Gluten-free will be a strong focus for us throughout 2016 and into 2017,” said Aaron Anker, Chief Granola Officer, GrandyOats. “Our customers have been asking us for organic, certified gluten-free granola and snacks, and in our new designated gluten-free space we are happy we can deliver.”

Consumers are choosing gluten-free products for many reasons, including disease, sensitivity, allergy, and other health concerns. In addition, gluten-free consumers are seeking additional benefits, such as organic and GMO-free, that go beyond gluten-free. Value-added propositions including current low-sugar and savory culinary trends, factor in highly as well. Improving the quality and selection of gluten-free foods available in mainstream channels will help sales in the category grow nearly 1.5 times through 2019, according to market analysis by Packaged Facts.

Like all GrandyOats cereals and snacks, the new gluten-free products are certified organic, non-GMO, and made by hand in small batches by the GrandyOats family in their 100 percent solar powered bakery in rural Maine.

Organic Granola has long been the keystone product of the GrandyOats bakery. GrandyOats Coconut + Fruit Granola is a savory-sweet, organic granola with a hearty blend of organic oats, rich coconut flakes, fruit juice-sweetened dried cranberries, plump raisins, wild flower honey, coriander and sea salt. GrandyOats Coconut + Fruit Granola will be gluten-free in both bulk and packaged offerings.

GrandyOats never uses refined sugar or artificial ingredients in its recipes. Both new flavors are sweetened with real, wild flower honey and have organic apple juice sweetened fruit.  Certified organic by Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) and certified Kosher, GrandyOats never uses products that contain antibiotics, synthetic hormones, toxic pesticides or GMOs. All GrandyOats organic granola is made with organic sunflower oil and does not use canola oil.

In November 2015, GrandyOats became the first net zero food production facility on the East Coast by constructing a state-of-the-art, 100 percent solar powered facility in rural Maine. The GrandyOats solar electric system will produce on average 95,622 kWh of clean, renewable electricity annually. It will offset over 145,000 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions each year, or the amount of miles equivalent to driving from Maine to San Francisco and back 25 times.

GrandyOats achieved 28 percent growth in 2015 producing 1.2 million pounds of organic granola, trail mix and roasted nuts and generating 5.3 million in sales. Also in 2015, GrandyOats expanded its food service presence in higher education cafeterias as the first independent, organic brand to be served at more than 75 colleges and universities from University of Maine at Orono to The State University of New York (SUNY) Buffalo. With the gluten-free product line, they hope to reach even more “real granolas.”

“We’ve been fortunate enough to grow slowly but steadily, while still making our products by hand in small batches in rural Maine,” continued Anker.

Consistent with its commitment to being net zero, GrandyOats will have a 100 percent solar-powered booth at Natural Products ExpoWest Conference in Anaheim, CA at booth #3313.

Certified organic by Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) and certified kosher, GrandyOats never uses products that contain antibiotics, synthetic hormones, toxic pesticides or GMOs. A wide range of GrandyOats organic cereals and snacks in a variety of sizes are available nationwide in natural food stores, food cooperatives, major grocery chains and online at www.grandyoats.com.

Genetic ID and CERT ID Offer Gluten Free Verification Program

 

Genetic ID NA, Inc., in conjunction with CERT ID, announce the addition of gluten-free verification services to their portfolio of food safety and food quality testing and certification services. Gluten-free is one of the fastest-growing categories in the food and beverage market.

The gluten-free verification services are based on the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) final ruling on the use of a gluten-free claim and are intended for products sold in North America. Services are risk-based and supported by a validated sampling and testing regimen. “We continue to identify value-added opportunities for our customers, and this program was specifically designed to provide the flexibility that the market demands,” said Dr. Heather Secrist, CEO of Genetic ID. “Companies can choose an individual service, such as testing, or adopt a comprehensive gluten-free certification and testing program where the CERT ID Gluten-free Trustmark can be applied to a product.”

“Our Gluten-free Product Certification Program is designed as an addendum to recognized system certifications such as organic, Non-GMO Project, and Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), said Rhonda Wellik, CEO of CERT ID. “This effectively allows companies to realize efficiencies and cost-savings when seeking product certification.”

The gluten-free verification services provide a third-party approach regarding label claims, and communicate a company’s commitment to producing safe, gluten-free products for consumers. The new services included in the Gluten-free Certification Program incorporate the rigor and reliability that Genetic ID and CERT ID’s customers have come to rely on.

For more information about Genetic ID and CERT ID, visit www.genetic-id.com and www.cert-id.com.