R.I.P. Quorn

I'm sure that I'm not the only one out there that likes Quorn and finds it a really good alternative to use for meat free cooking. And that's what makes the recent changes to their nutrition information so irritating.

The packaging never used to say "...may contain wheat..." this is entirely a new message. So has it always been at risk of contamination? Have all of us on a wheat free diet been risking a reaction every time we used Quorn mince or chunks? I'm obviously ignoring all the other products because they've always contained wheat, except the Chicken style deli, which does now too according to the packaging.

Quorn has always had a bit of a controversial place in the food chain, including the fact that it used to be touted as being distantly related to mushrooms, when in fact it's vat grown from a mycoprotein, a posh word for fungus, and is properly called Fusarium venenatum.

But this aside, it still made good chillies or curries, and I for one am going to really miss not being able to eat it anymore.

But why the change to the packaging? Again is it because it's always been at risk? or is it because they can't be bothered to clean up properly after using wheat in their other products? My particular favourite at the moment is that they've decided that it's too risky not to cover all the angles on allergies, because their lawyers have recommended it, whether it really is at risk of contamination or not. It's always a damn sight easier to tell people en masse that they can't have something than worry about minorities.

So whether the changes to the Quorn packaging are merely to cover their asses or absolve them from proper manufacturing hygiene, then the one thing they can be certain of is that they've lost more of their market.