How and why to go
Gluten-averse consumers may be a small slice of your clientele, but treat them right and they could be among your most loyal.
BY ALAN RICHMAN D
o you off er decaf coff ee? Of course you do. Do you off er gluten-free foods? Chances are you don’t. Yet
many researchers, health experts, coff eehouse owners and, most important, consumers would argue loud and clear that featuring gluten-free options on your menu is just as important as brewing up a cup of “unleaded.” Gluten-free may be the trend for this decade. Packaged
Facts says that gluten-free product sales reached $2.6 billion in 2010, following fi ve years of 30 percent compound annual growth. And, the research fi rm asserts, this sector is expected to more than double, to $5.5 billion, by 2015. Th is would be a compound growth rate of about 17 percent a year. Few other categories can match these projections.
WHAT IS GLUTEN? So what’s all the fuss about? What is gluten, and why are
millions of Americans trying to avoid it? According to Beckee Moreland, director of gluten-free
Sandwiches with gluten-free bread should not be made
too far ahead of time, because the bread is absorbent. Photo courtesy National Foundation for Celiac Awareness
industry initiatives for the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA), nearly 21 million U.S. residents have some form of sensitivity to gluten, a protein found in all foods and products containing wheat, barley or rye, and some products containing oats. About 12 percent of these—almost 2.5 million—have full-blown celiac disease, which may trigger such gastrointestinal symptoms as diarrhea, fl atulence and abdominal bloating. Even worse, celiac suff erers may experience malabsorption of nutrients, leading to dental and bone disorders (such as osteoporosis), depression, irritability,
July 2011 • www.specialty-coffee.com | 25
