ARCHIVED - Mercadona offer new gluten free products for coeliac sufferers

Mercadona carry 850 special products for those who need gluten free foods

19 million euros invested in separate gluten free production lines
Moving to Spain there are always lots of factors to take into consideration, particularly for those with special dietary needs.

Knowing where to find Gluten free products is also something of interest for those with visiting family who have special dietary needs.

So it’s useful to know that last year supermarket chain Mercadona widened its range of special products for those suffering from coeliac disease to 850, meaning the addition of a further 50 items to the selection on their shelves.

During 2013 the stores received a total of 750 requests and suggestions through their customer services department regarding gluten-free products, and this has resulted in the new foods making their way into Mercadona stores throughout Spain.

In order to be declared suitable for coeliacs a product must contain fewer than 20 parts per million of gluten, and to guarantee that this threshold is not exceeded there has to be continuous quality control on the production line all the way from raw materials to finished products. This means that suppliers often have to set up separate production lines, an adaptation which has been made by Grupo Siro (who provide Mercadona with sliced bread, biscuits and confectionery) and Casa Tarradellas (pizzas), where the investment necessary in order to provide coeliac products cost as much as 19 million euros.

So if you need gluten free dietary products for yourself or a visitor, the Mercadona chain is a useful port of call to know about.