The Food and Drug Administration said on Monday that certain packages of Van’s Gluten Free Original Waffles were voluntarily recalled because the product may contain undeclared wheat.
The FDA referred to the recall as “urgent,” since products recalled may endanger people with sensitivities or wheat allergies. A serious or potentially life-threatening allergy could be provoked by eating recalled waffles
No illnesses and allergic reactions from consuming the recalled waffles have been reported.
Van’s did not provide how many boxes Gluten Free Original Waffles of its type were recalled but said products were sold in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina and Washington.
This recall is the limited range of products with specific lot code number and the expiry date along with the Universal Product Code or UPC on the side of the package.
The boxes of waffles that may contain undeclared wheat bear the following:
- Lot code #UW40193L
- “Best by” date of January 19, 2024
- UPC 0 89947 30206 4
Consumers who believe they may have bought one of the recalled packages of Van’s Gluten Free Original Waffles should check their freezers for the product. If a package that matches the three identifiers is found, it should be discarded or returned to where it was purchased for a refund. Consumers may also want to contact the retailer where they purchased the waffles to confirm the lot code.
Van’s stated it was alerted by a consumer that its product contained wheat even though the packaging claimed the waffle was wheat-free. Further investigation led the company to discover that the problem appeared to be the result of some Gluten Free Original packaging being intermingled with a pallet of cartons that were later filled with waffles containing wheat.
Labeling Wheat for Allergens
Even though recalled packages of Van’s Gluten Free Original Waffles may not be dangerous to every consumer, people with wheat or gluten allergies could get dangerously sick from eating the product.
According to the FDA, along with foods such as peanuts, eggs, and soybeans, wheat is one of the nine major food allergens. This means that products with wheat must be “specifically labeled with the name of the allergen source” so that people who have the allergy can more easily identify and avoid any products that might make them sick.
The allergy is most common in children and is mostly mild. However, some people may have more serious sensitivities and reactions.
Like other allergic reactions, if a person with a wheat allergy ingests it, they may have hives, rashes, nausea, vomiting, sneezing, or in rare cases, anaphylaxis.
Wheat allergies are different from gluten intolerance or celiac disease, which actually is a condition that the body is reacting to one specific protein in wheat and other grains.
But similarly, someone with celiac disease who ingests gluten found in wheat may suffer from life-threatening illnesses.Food and Drug Administration. ‘Gluten free’ means what it says.
This further emphasizes how important it is for people to know whether the products they’re eating contain wheat or gluten.
