Gluten-Free Options Now A Must-Have in Region

The gluten-free trend is huge, and doesn’t seem to be going away.

Once a niche market found only in natural food stores, gluten-free products have established a massive presence on product shelves and in restaurants throughout the country and in Northwest Arkansas.

The industry has been on an upward trajectory since the mid-2000s, and especially in the last half-decade. U.S. retail sales of gluten-free products showed a compound annual growth rate of 34 percent during the five-year span that ended in 2014, when market sales reached $973 million, according to a report from consumer market research firm Packaged Facts.

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. The Mayo Clinic in 2012 estimated 1.8 million Americans have celiac, a disease that makes them intolerant of gluten and about 18 million people, or 6 percent of the population, have some level of gluten sensitivity.

Meanwhile, one-third of American families surveyed say they are looking for gluten-free products and deem them healthier than those containing gluten, according to analysis from consumer market research firm the NPD Group.

The pervasive trend has incited a lot of change within the food industry. It has generated headlines, from last year’s addition of gluten-free options to annual Girl Scout cookie offerings, to Pizza Hut’s debut of its gluten-free pizza in January.

 

Gluten-Free Bird

Local industry heavyweight Tyson Foods Inc. started producing gluten-free chicken nuggets and breaded chicken strips in April 2013, and sales of those products have continually grown nationwide, said Michele Bond, vice president of marketing at Tyson.

Most restaurants have responded in some measure to the trend.

Springdale-based Angus Jack advertises the area’s best gluten-free burgers, and Heirloom Food and Wine in downtown Rogers produces weekly menus that often heavily feature gluten-free options.

Menus at Bentonville-based Latin restaurant Table Mesa Bistro and Italian/Mediterranean eatery Tavola Trattoria, under the same ownership, show gluten-free items marked with a wheat-free symbol. About one-third of Table Mesa’s menu is marked as gluten-free, and many items on the menu at Tavola Trattoria are marked as well, with a notation that gluten-free pasta and pizza crust are available as well.

Farmer’s Table serves gluten-free toast, and Meji Japanese Cuisine has gluten-free soy sauce. Green House Grille features gluten-free menu items and sister restaurant Wood Stone Craft Pizza offers gluten-free pizza crust. All four are located in Fayetteville.

The list of gluten-free offerings goes on and on.

 

Par for the Course

Fresco Restaurant & Cocktails owner Michael Andrews has offered gluten-free options since opening a few years ago.

“It takes some time to make sure we have the right breads and pastas,” he said.

But Andrews believes offering gluten-free options is now essential.

“You want everybody to have what they need and want,” he said.

Menu items labeled gluten-free on Fresco’s lunch menu include crème brûlée, the truffle fries appetizer, eggplant parmesan, and several salads.

Andrews said he has gained a following because of his gluten-free offerings, and so have Tommy and Jennifer Rollins, who started selling food under the banner of Kind Kitchen about four years ago.

Jennifer Rollins, who has a wheat sensitivity, said she and her husband started their food truck with an acute awareness of food allergies, wanting to promote “food for everyone,” and gluten-free consumers make up about 10-15 percent of Kind Kitchen’s business, Rollins said.

 

Mindful Milling

Last February, Rollins also started the area’s first completely gluten-free bakery, Wild Grains.

“We tried to make gluten-free food that didn’t taste like crap,” Rollins said.

But in September, Rollins decided to spend more time with family and sold the business to experienced pastry chef Christian Spencer, who previously worked in a gluten-free kitchen in Portland, Oregon.

Spencer said it’s important for the region to have a completely gluten-free bakery because there are varying degrees of gluten intolerance.

“There are people who get very sick if they ingest any level of gluten,” Spencer said. “Cross-contamination is always going to happen in a non-gluten-free kitchen. Flour gets everywhere. There’s no way to contain it in a room.”

Spencer fills some orders from individuals, but Wild Grains is primarily a wholesale bakery. Its products, including brownies, sandwich breads, cinnamon rolls, tarts and scones, are found at Bentonville coffee shops the Pressroom, Brewed Awakening and Kennedy Coffee, at Farmer’s Table and at Table Mesa for brunch.

Within the year, Spencer plans to start selling granola and other products at Ozark Natural Foods in Fayetteville and at the Vintage Farmer in Bentonville, and she hopes to have a storefront soon.

 

Gluten is 86ed

Several local, traditional bakeries were prompted to learn gluten-free baking because of customer demand.

Rebiejo’s Fresh Eats (formerly Frankie & Lisa’s Baked Gourmet Goodies) started about six years ago and has been offering gluten-free products since about four, in response to overwhelming request, said co-owner Lisa Rebiejo.

She estimates wheat-free sales now make up 25-30 percent of her business at the Bentonville and Eureka Springs farmer’s markets.

Sweet D’z Bakery had a similar experience, opening in Bentonville about four years ago and quickly taking up gluten-free baking because of demand.

Co-owner Denise Hahn also estimates the gluten-free segment now makes up 25-30 percent of business.

Walk-in customers buy pre-made brownies and cookies, and the bakers make about one gluten-free cake a week. “We have two this week,” she said.

Other bakeries that offer gluten-free products include Rick’s Bakery in Fayetteville, which usually offers two gluten-free muffin options daily.

 

Gluten-Free Bliss

Bliss Cupcake Café co-owner Flint Harris said gluten-free products comprise about 25 percent of its sales, and the number of gluten-free flavors the Fayetteville-based brand offers has increased from four to 20 during the last few years.

The increase in gluten-free inventory is directly related to the public’s demand for it, Harris said.

“Whenever we come out with a new flavor, it’s not long before someone asks, ‘When are you going to make that gluten-free?’”

Harris expressed the importance to those suffering from celiac to have access to gluten-free products.

Mechelle Bailey, a nutrition instructor at the University of Arkansas and a registered dietician, said that, while the number of celiac cases and other gluten sensitivities has risen in the last few decades, there is no scientific evidence to support claims that a gluten-free diet is healthier for those not suffering from gluten intolerance.

However, that fact has not slowed down the gluten-free craze.

“Consumers are increasingly seeing gluten as something to avoid in their diet as a means to eating better,” said Risa Schwartz, director of consumer insights and strategy at Tyson Foods. “Noting that an item is gluten-free provides the added reassurance to consumers that they’re eating good food that’s good for them.”

Schwartz said gluten-free has become shorthand.

“For many consumers, gluten is associated with food being processed,” she said. And sales trends show customers are moving away from processed foods. 

Schwartz said the gluten-free movement is a testament to a larger sea-change from carbohydrate-based to protein-based meals.

 

Gluten-Free Future

Schwartz said consumer Internet search activity for the term “gluten-free” has more than doubled in the past few years, and the attraction of gluten-free food is the greatest among Millennials, demonstrating that it’s an important consideration for the future.

Packaged Facts estimates the industry will reach $2 billion by 2019 in the U.S.

“Gluten-free as a strong consumer desire is not going away any time soon,” Schwartz said.

However, she believes the focus will deviate from alternative grains and flours.

“Given that consumers are increasingly looking for cleaner ingredient lines — a shorter list of recognizable ingredients — future gluten-free innovation will likely focus more on those naturally gluten free foods such as meats and veggies,” she said.

Through the duration of the trend, the people with celiac and gluten sensitivity have and will benefit from the gluten-free wave because of the improved availability, flavor and shelf-life of gluten-free products.

And while gluten-free as a diet buzzword and marketing strategy seems to be everywhere now, the UA’s Bailey believes it will not last forever.

“The fad is going to stay around for a while,” she said, “until they’re onto the next thing.”