Gluten Free Food Demand

A genetic disorder causes a persdon's immune system to attack his own body if he eats gluten, which is found in wheat and many other grains. Even the trace amounts in many packaged and processed foods can cause a variety of symptoms and trigger a reaction that destroys sufferers' small intestine.

Diagnoses of celiac disease have risen; about 120,000 cases had been diagnosed by this fall, compared with about 40,000 in 2003. This year alone, more than 800 new gluten-free foods have entered the market — more than six times as many as entered five years ago.
Consumers also say the products have improved in flavor and texture as manufacturers have developed new ingredients and cooking techniques.
Experts trace the increase in diagnoses — which led to a boom in demand for gluten-free products — to the 2003 release of a landmark study by the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research. It estimated nearly one in every 133 Americans, or about 2.3 million people, has the genetic disorder, although most are undiagnosed. The study helped spread awareness of the disease, according to Alessio Fasano, medical director at the center.
U.S. sales of gluten-free food, roughly $700 million in 2006, are rising 15 percent to 25 percent a year, according to research firms Mintel International and Information Resources Inc. Manufacturers expect sales to remain strong because celiac sufferers don't outgrow the disease.
Along with people who are allergic to wheat, people with celiac remain manufacturers' target audience, although some consumers believe gluten-free food may help other problems.

Gluten-free baking is difficult, requiring a blend of rice, tapioca and other flours and the addition of substitutes such as xanthan gum.

Using Expandex, a modified tapioca starch introduced in the U.S. about two years ago, imparts a texture more like wheat's, makes baked goods rise higher and improves their shelf life.