January's been a tough old wheat free month

First let me start with an apology to all those people that religiously read the wheat blog. Sorry there hasn't been one for a while but wheat-free.org has been relocating offices.

Okay, so I hear you say "what's so time consuming about moving?" Well we've actually moved 4,400 miles give or take a mile or three. So it took a bit more than a few cardboard boxes in the back of a lorry.

But wheat-free.org is alive and well and ready to get back into the saddle as it were. So thank you for bearing with us, and welcome to 2006. We do still have staff in the UK, so don't worry, we won't be missing out on all those UK titbits, product reviews etc.

So did you have a good wheat free festive season? I certainly did here at wheat-free.org, with the one exception of eating some Green & Black's Organic Dark and Almond Luxury chocolate. The ingredients on the label don't lead you to believe that it contains wheat. Unfortunately their website does not have this particular bar on the nutritional info list either at the moment. [Is it my imagination or are they going downhill since being bought by the manufacturer of vegetable fat in a bar, Cadbury's?]

Well it certainly contains wheat. I had one of the most severe wheat allergy reactions I can remember, what a Christmas present, head down the pan yaking up chocolate. And what a waste of chocolate!

Stiff fingers for a few weeks too, which appears to be one of my particular peculiar wheat after effects, and one which I haven't found anyone else in the same position reporting as suffering from (I expect to be proven wrong now I've said it). Must just be me being a bit physically odd...

So thanks Green & Black's for the crap labelling, it was delicious chocolate going down, but not so good going the other way.

I've always had a thing about M&M's. Unfortunately in the UK they contain wheat, surprise surprise. But in North America they are made with corn starch, thank you, thank you, thank you... I was always surprised that on my re-entry into the UK I wasn't charged import duty on the massive bags of M&M's that I just had to bring home with me. Though I will say that their website sucks, no useful nutritional advice at all, apart from how many calories pigging out on them will add to your hips.

There really is no need to add wheat to the majority of sweets, chocolate or general confectionery. It's sheer and simple greed and laziness on the behalf of the manufacturers. Wheat is a cheap filler, it's crap, it's used to adulterate all manner of foods because it bulks out other more expensive ingredients.

So someone please explain to me why Green & Black's Organic Dark and Almond Luxury chocolate, which is dark chocolate and caramelised Sicilian almonds, nothing else, should contain wheat.

For a start I would dispute the word luxury, it contains wheat in it, it's meant to be chocolate and nuts, how can you justify calling it luxury with a bulk filler in it.

Come on chocolate manufacturers, you don't need to add wheat to everything in sight. Stop cheating and go back to providing good quality ingredients in your products, you certainly charge enough for the privilege of eating them.