The food industry is finally wising up to gluten-free, writes Helen Peacocke

At least one in 100 people suffer with coeliac disease, a very painful condition which causes damage to the small intestine when gluten is ingested. Symptoms include severe joint and bone pains, weight loss, abdominal bloating and pain.

The pain can only be treated by cutting gluten out of your diet. Sourcing gluten-free foods on a daily basis can be overwhelmingly difficult at times. Searching for basics often call for visits to several shops.

Yet more and more people are turning away from gluten. In fact only 1.2 per cent of gluten-free consumers have a true allergy. The rest go gluten-free for fitness. Producers are responding accordingly.

Coeliacs must avoid wheat, rye, barley, oats, spelt and Khorasan wheat commercially known as Kamut — though some such cereals can be processed to remove the gluten. To identify foods a coeliac can eat, look for the blue crossed grain symbol on the packet.

Last year the Coeliac UK created a core basket of gluten-free foods they have asked supermarkets to stock. These are fresh white bread, fresh brown bread, bread rolls, breakfast cereals, pasta flour, crackers and cereal bars. Asda was the first UK supermarket retailer to meet this ‘Gluten-free Guarantee’ with three other leading supermarkets, Waitrose, Tesco and Marks & Spencer making significant progress. Others now follow, with a rising number of producers coming up with really tasty gluten-free products.

Producers such as Doves Farm foods of Hungerford use dedicated equipment, special procedures and intensive staff training to ensure their gluten-free foods are kept separate. All Doves’ gluten-free products are sent for laboratory analysis to ensure their purity before they are put on sale.

Doves specialises in a wide range of gluten-free finished products including a breakfast bran, a pasta range and cookies. The bakery has been converted to full gluten-free status and recently the company launched a range of gluten-free gourmet flours and grains.

Eating out can prove difficult too, especially if the chef is not alert to coeliac risks. Even the smallest dusting of flour scattered on a chopping board or a spoonful of flour used to thicken gravy can cause unbearable suffering if mixed into the meal.

Coeliacs wishing to dine out in the Oxford area now have more options. At Loch Fyne, Walton Street, Jericho, all kitchen staff have training to avoid cross-contamination, and Loch Fyne even offers a menu for both vegetarians and coeliacs.

Carluccio’s, Little Clarendon Street, Oxford offers a gluten-free menu too, with 10 pasta dishes and a trio of different pastas as a sharing menu. Gluten-free bread can be served with any dish and gelato gluten-free ice cream offers a delightful way of completing your meal without worry.

Sacla, the original pesto pioneer which produces a wide range of ready-made authentic Italian sauces, is now also taking coeliac needs seriously. Bottles of gluten-free pesto are perfect store cupboard ingredient. More than third of Sacla consumers now buy these products as a healthy option.

Oxfordshire butchers are now catering to demand for gluten-free sausages and burgers. Golsby, my local butchers in Eynsham, make twice as many gluten-free sausages as they did last year.

But Coeliac UK believes there’s still a low awareness of the symptoms which is why they have declared May 11-17 National Coeliac week.

For more information go to www.coeliac.org.uk