View Full Version : Gluten free people - I'm angry with Tesco's. Nowhere else to post this
shakey1961
07-09-13, 23:56
I was having a few friends round tonight (Saturday) to watch the Last Night of the Proms. Thought I'd get some nibbles in from Tesco as they have a great Free From Aisle.
Anyway, I'm looking at the products when I come across some Crisp Thins by The Food Doctor company. Expensive as always but looked tasty.
As always I tend to look at the ingredients as I'd had a bad reaction to some crisps that I though were gluten free and there was nothing on the packet to say they'd been contaminated.
Anyway, back to Tesco's.... So I looked on the back of the packet and these were the ingredients...
Corn Masa Flour, Whole Wheat Flour, Rice Flour, Corn Grit, Oat Flour, Sugar, Barley Flour, Sodium Bicarbonate, Sunflower Seed Flour, Salt
I thought "What the ........" These are on the gluten free shelf and not only do they have Wheat flour in them, they have Barley Flour!! Wheat and Barley both have gluten in them so this product is double trouble.
Someone could pick them up from the gluten free shelf and think they're ok and they could be very ill eating these.
SO I THOUGHT I'D JUST WARN THOSE OF YOU ON A GLUTEN FREE DIET - DON'T EAT THE FOOD DOCTOR CRISP THINS!!!!!!!!
Took a packet to customer services and the lady behind the counter looked at them as if she didn't understand and said in an confused way "Well I'll inform the store manager!"
I shall be getting onto Coeliac UK AND Tesco customer services to complain very strongly that they could have made people very ill.
Just goes to show though, even the stuff on the Free From shelves you have to look at the ingredients to be truly sure.
Fuming I am!!!
nomorepanic
08-09-13, 00:00
Wow that is so bad - they need to get that sorted!
AuntieMoosie
08-09-13, 01:42
I agree. That is disgusting!
I would be on the phone to Tesco's main customer service department at their head office, no use speaking to those in the store, the messages wont get through to those who need to know.
My youngest Grandson, who's only 8 months, can't have anything with gluten or lactose in it and I know my Daughter would be spitting fire if she had of given him something that claimed to be gluten free!!!!
It just goes to show that whatever is on that front label, it's always best to read the small print on the back too.
I hope you get some success with Tesco's, please let us know how you get on :)
It sounds pretty much like the Sainsbury's Free From aisle where I get some of my lacto/dairy free products.. that aisle is for dietary restricted foods of all kinds, including some gluten free, some dairy free etc.. & yeah you have to be careful & make sure it has the right label on the front for your particular restrictions.
shakey1961
08-09-13, 05:41
To be honest I don't think the product claimed to be gluten free, it's more the fact that the staff of the store put the product on the shelves in with the gluten free stuff. I wrongly presumed (before I looked at the bag) that they were gluten free. If it's free from other stuff, I can't see it.
Shouldn't be in with the gluten free products.
The reason I'm contacting customer services is to see if this a country wide policy, or is it just a mistake by my local store?
How can you be lactose-intolerant if you are eight months old, when breast milk is largely lactose?
How can you be lactose-intolerant if you are eight months old, when breast milk is largely lactose?
Some babies are lactose intolerant and need to be fed lactose free baby formula. It's rare, but it can happen.
Shakey, I think many people would see a product by Food Doctor and just see it as "health food" and put it in the Free From section without really understanding the issues. The customer services desk staff are only on the minimum wage and don't really have any clout. You're much better to get in touch with the central Tesco customer services department like you plan.
It is a stupid place to put the product. It's not even wheat-free (some people have a problem with wheat, but not other gluten-containing items like barley). Good for you for pointing this out to Tesco.
shakey1961
08-09-13, 11:48
Just called Customer Services and the guy said he'd get onto it right away as it shouldn't have been put there.
Let's see what happens
---------- Post added at 11:48 ---------- Previous post was at 11:43 ----------
And as for Lactose intolerance at 8 months, if the little lad is gluten intolerant/coeliac disease then the way the stomach gets damaged with gluten it's almost a certainty he'll be lactose intolerant. The two almost go hand in had.
The enzymes needed to breakdown lactose come from a part of the stomach that gets damaged by gluten. Little or no enzymes produced = lactose intolerance.
Stay on a gluten free diet and this can usually reverse itself, though for small amount of people they can be permanently lactose intolerant.
Sorted - Next patient please..... lol
AuntieMoosie
08-09-13, 23:24
How can you be lactose-intolerant if you are eight months old, when breast milk is largely lactose?
I can assure you that he is most definitely lactose and gluten intolerant, he's been seen by a specialist and had tests and that was the result :)
He has to now have special milk with no lactose in it and he eats a very special diet. Since he's been on these things he's improved massively :)
Moosie - sorry, this wasn't a question about your grandson. It was about how lactose intolerance occurs.
shakey1961
09-09-13, 19:12
SUCCESS!!!!!
Went into my local Tesco's earlier and they've moved the offending crisp thins!!!
See, it does pay to complain!
AuntieMoosie
09-09-13, 23:33
Moosie - sorry, this wasn't a question about your grandson. It was about how lactose intolerance occurs.
No problem at all :)
I'm really not at all sure how it comes about. I've not really studied it in great detail, I'll have to do a bit or research :)
Good work checking the label before eating..you always have to.
Shakey1961 - In any Tesco I've been in the Free From aisle is for foods for all kinds of dietry restrictions or products that are considered to be more healthy. They're not all automatically gluten free and Tesco have never advertised this section as gluten free in particular. If I'm looking in this section I still read the labels if I'm looking for gluten free foods. Really it's up to the individual to check the ingredients of the product you're buying, people with CD should always double check these things. I don't say this to give out to you, but just to urge you to be more cautious so that you don't get sick again, I hope that you're feeling better now x
hanshan - I was diagnosed as lactose intolerant as a baby, I don't know exactly what age but it was definitely under 1 year. I was in hospital for a short time with digestion problems and they found I was lactose intolerant so I was raised on soy milk! Many children can be diagnosed as babies and they grow out of it. I'm now no longer considered lactose intolerant (it doesn't show up in blood tests) but if I eat too much dairy or have it on a regular basis it makes me sneeze and my nose run!
AuntieMoosie
10-09-13, 18:04
SUCCESS!!!!!
Went into my local Tesco's earlier and they've moved the offending crisp thins!!!
See, it does pay to complain!
Well done shakey :yesyes: I just wished more people would complain, us Brits are getting bad at it and we just seem to lie down and take it all, not me though!! lol :winks: I have friends in America and they seem to be much better at complaining and making their point, we should all take a leaf out of their book :)
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