New "gluten free" labeling rules in EU

Under new European Union food labeling rules, only foods that contain less than 20 parts of gluten in a million (ppm) will be allowed to use the term “gluten-free” on their packaging. Previously, a food with this label could have contained up to 10 times more than this.

Some foods made using cereals that have been specially processed to remove most of the gluten, but which contain less than 100 ppm, will be able to make the claim “very low gluten” on the packaging. Manufacturers can use the new labeling system immediately; however, products do not have to comply with the new rules until Jan. 1, 2012. For more information, see the Food Standards Agency release and EU Commission Regulation no 41/2009.