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GFE News Break #1:  Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles Recall

Shirley Braden

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For affiliate links and as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

In my early days of blogging, in addition to my gluten-free recipes and gluten-free discussions I shared a lot of gluten-free news, news like the current Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles recall. These waffles were recalled because wheat-based gluten-full waffles were placed in gluten-free packaging. Yeah, that news is worthy of a double take for sure but I’ll share much more on that recall in a minute.

Van's Gluten-Free Waffles FDA Recall UCM606032

Over time I got away from sharing such news here on gfe because I felt the need was being met elsewhere. Plus, after I created my gfe Facebook page I was more likely to share such information there. It seemed like the news could be dispensed more quickly there.

While there are still some excellent sources of gluten-free news, there are not enough of them to ensure the news gets out to everyone in the gluten-free community. The news doesn’t even get out to all of my readers when I limit my sharing to social media. That’s particularly true as what you all get to see on Facebook is very limited these days. Therefore, I’m going to return to sharing gluten-free news here on gfe as needed via posts labeled “GFE News Breaks.”

Kicking off this occasional series also seems like an appropriate way to kick off May which is National Celiac Awareness Month. While you’re here, grab the banner below from my friend Debbie Simpson of DSimpson Books and Gluten-Free Respect and use it as your Facebook header or Twitter header (if you have either of those social media accounts).

Every Month Is Celiac Awareness Month from GlutenFreeRespect.net

You can grab more of Debbie’s terrific images here. Take a look. You might see one you like better than the one I’ve chosen to share here.

I also recommend that you take a look at Debbie’s new presentation, Free of Gluten Not Free of Feelings: The Emotional Side of Dietary Differences. This is an outstanding presentation. It will be helpful to you as a gluten-free individual via your own reading but also will prove helpful if you share it with your loved ones and other gluten-free individuals.

Free of Gluten Not Free of Feelings Cover

Back to the Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles Recall …

Today’s news break will focus on just one item; i.e., Van’s Foods finally issued a recall of its waffles after news surfaced that consumers found square, wheat-based waffles in their packages labeled “gluten free.” As Tricia Thompson of Gluten-Free Watchdog points out, this type of recall is a Class I recall.

Why? As Tricia explains, “Because if you mistakenly place a wheat-based waffle or a wheat-based pretzel in packaging labeled gluten-free this poses a serious health threat to folks who have celiac disease and folks who are allergic to wheat.” (Read more in this second post in Tricia’s Gluten Free Watchdog Bite series in honor of Celiac Disease Awareness month here.)

Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles Recalled for Undeclared Gluten (Wheat) and Undeclared Milk

A week ago, the Celiac Community Foundation of Northern California and Gluten-Free Watchdog shared on social media that some gluten-free consumers had found square waffles in their gluten-free packages of Van’s waffles. Note that Van’s Foods actually makes both gluten-free and gluten-full waffles. Normally, Van’s gluten-free waffles are round, not square. In fact, all of Van’s waffles—both the gluten-free waffles and gluten-full waffles–are round EXCEPT for its wheat-based, “gluten-full” Belgian waffles. Therefore, the concern from the beginning was that the square waffles were, in fact, the “regular” wheat-flour based waffles. It turns out that’s exactly what they were!

Gluten-Free Watchdog Twitter Post Van's Gluten-Free Waffles

Although these reports of suspect waffles just recently surfaced, one gluten-free consumer had reported this issue to both Van’s and the FDA in January. Yes, I said January. And it’s now May. Friday, April 27, the notice of a voluntary recall by Van’s was posted on the FDA site. You can read the official recall notice here.

I urge you to read the recall notice because I want you to take note of the specific wording—and lack thereof—but, first, here’s the specific information on the packages that is what you really need to avoid these gluten-full waffles and stay safe:

“Van’s Foods is voluntarily recalling approximately 1,584 cases of Van’s Gluten Free Waffles with a lot code date of #A640234710–WL2, BEST BY AUG 22, 2018 and UPC CODE 8994730206. The products were distributed solely to food retailers in Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin.”

Van's Gluten-Free Waffles Recall Info

First, the recall notice states that “a limited number of the wrong packaging were used during the production of Van’s Belgian Waffles.” Let’s consider the adjective used to describe the scope of this recall, “limited.” The number of cases being recalled is 1,584.

As my friend Johnna and I discussed, this is not a limited or insignificant number. Per Amazon, there are 12 boxes in each case of waffles. That means 19,008 boxes have been recalled. Within each box, there are six waffles. That means that a total of 114,048 waffles have been recalled. Personally, I wouldn’t call that a “limited number.” In fact, I feel that the “limited number” term is deliberately misleading and I’ve seen Van’s personnel continue to use that term in response to gluten-free individuals asking about this recall.

The recall notice on the FDA site is also not accurate in its wording as it should state that Van’s gluten-free waffles may contain both “undeclared wheat” and “undeclared milk.” Instead, the recall notice references “gluten” and “undeclared milk.”

It’s important to remember that “gluten-free” labeling is voluntary and is a ruling—versus a law—per FDA’s definition. However, both wheat and milk are among the Top 8 allergens and per the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA)—which actually is a law—those ingredients must be identified on any product packaging. Therefore, the recall should cite both “undeclared wheat” and “undeclared milk.”

It is also important to remember when reading packaging when purchasing products that per the FALCPA, the Top 8 allergens can be identified on a product’s label either in a “Contains” statement or in the ingredients listing itself. Some products identify the Top 8 allergens in both the “Contains” statement and the ingredients listing, but only one of those is required. Therefore, you can’t simply look at the “Contains” statement and bypass the ingredients listing or vice versa. You must read both to know all the allergens are in any given product.

That information aside, again, the wording in the Van’s recall on the FDA site and on its own site here does not adhere to current FDA law.

Van’s Also Had a Gluten-Free Pancakes Recall in 2009

In researching this current recall, I learned that Van’s had a similar recall in August 2009. You can read all the details here but the bottom line is that they had placed wheat-based, gluten-full pancakes in gluten-free packaging. In that case, it was implied that the issue had been discovered by Van’s own operations:

“The voluntary recall was initiated immediately after a packaging operator error, limited to one shift, was discovered. The company has immediately reinforced its Quality Assurance and Packaging procedures and believes that the problem was a one-time incident.”

The recall notification included the following: “Our customers have trusted Van’s with their special dietary needs for more than 20 years, and their health and safety are our first priority,” said CEO of Van’s International Foods, Eric Kufel.  “Van’s has immediately implemented advanced quality procedures above and beyond what we already have in place to ensure the continued safety of our products.”

Clearly, Van’s Foods “advanced quality procedures” have failed and, to date, I’ve not read any similar statements of concern and commitment to avoid a repeat in regard to the current recall of Van’s Foods gluten-free waffles.

The current recall and all the articles I’ve seen online sharing the recall state: “To date, Van’s Foods has received no reports of illnesses or adverse reactions associated with the effected products.” (The word “effected” obviously should be “affected.”)

So far, I’ve seen one comment on Twitter from a gluten-free consumer who was made very ill by these waffles. I have no doubt that others were sickened as this “packaging error” (Van’s term) has gone on at least since January of this year.

While I have not eaten Van’s gluten-free waffles in a very long time, I hate to think what my reaction would have been if I’d eaten “full gluten” waffles, considering that I react so strongly to even a small amount of gluten via cross contamination. I know many of you experience the same reactions when you’ve been “glutened,” even when you’ve been exposed to a very small amount of gluten.

How To Report Issues with Gluten-Free Products

It’s really important that gluten-free consumers report reactions to gluten-free products or questionable changes in packaging. It’s fine to contact the manufacturer but please never stop there. Always also contact the FDA as well. Contact them via the FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Reporting System at 1-800-332-1088 (choose option 4) or online here. Please also contact your local FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinator.

FDA Medwatch System Photo

 

Are the Sites You Support Sharing This Kind of News with You?

Are the sites that you support and feel are your gluten-free advocates sharing this type of information online via social media channels and/or their blogs/websites to ensure your safety? If they’re not, they’re not your advocates. Seriously. I see who shares this kind of data. Those are the organizations and individuals that deserve your support and readership. I am seeing only a handful of gluten-free resources sharing the Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles Recall information, although it should be being shared by anyone who has a gluten-free audience online. We’ve seen a similar lack of response by members of the gluten-free community regarding other recalls in the past but with this recall, there are even fewer—far fewer; almost nobody really—sharing this important information.

Lack of Action; Lack of Outrage

Recalled Van's Gluten-Free Waffles FDA Recall UCM606032

  • Why isn’t this news being spread far and wide?
  • Why isn’t Van’s Foods sharing any more information?
  • Why isn’t the certification agent for Van’s gluten-free waffles, i.e., the Gluten Intolerance Group’s Gluten-Free Certification Organization (GFCO), addressing this recall?
  • How can such a “failure” happen when manufacturers of certified gluten-free products are supposed to have processes in place, including in-house testing, to ensure that their gluten-free products are truly gluten free?
  • Why isn’t Van’s Foods updating its recall notice on the FDA site to meet the FALCPA requirements? (I, and Tricia Thompson— founder/operator of the Gluten-Free Watchdog—have brought this failure to use the required wording to Van’s Foods’ attention via Twitter.)
  • Why isn’t the FDA speaking out about 114,048 waffles being recalled for undeclared wheat and undeclared milk?
  • Why isn’t there a remedial course of action administered by the FDA for manufacturers that put consumers at the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic or autoimmune reactions?
  • Why aren’t the celiac and gluten intolerance resource organizations sharing this vital recall info with their members and followers?

I urge you to go back and read the previous section and above all, to please spread the news on this Van’s Gluten-Free Waffles recall so that nobody who is gluten and/or dairy free because of celiac, non-celiac gluten sensitivity, and/or food allergies accidentally consumes these waffles.

Originally published on May 2, 2108.

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Filed Under: Discussion and DiagnosisTagged With: FDA recalls, Van's gluten-free waffles recall23 Comments

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Comments

  1. Charlotte Moore says

    May 2, 2018 at 6:36 am

    Oh my goodness! For celiac people this could be horrible.

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 2, 2018 at 11:22 pm

      Absolutely, Charlotte, and the reports of major illness are starting to show up on social media. 🙁 Please spread the word to gluten-free friends and family members.

      Shirley

      Reply
  2. Sharon says

    May 2, 2018 at 7:17 am

    Thank you Shirley for spreading the word! I saw this on Facebook a few days ago. I don’t eat Vans waffles often and dont have any on hand right now but I sometimes buy them since they fit my sons gluten free dairy free egg free nut free diet. He didn’t seem to like them much anyway. But I spread the word to my celiac sister and father right away. Thanks for always being on top of these things! Really scary how sick someone could get eating a full gluten and dairy waffle!!

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 2, 2018 at 11:25 pm

      Hi Sharon–I appreciate you reading, taking the time to comment, and, most of all, I appreciate you sharing this information with your gluten-free family members right away! I have read several reports of major illness from these mislabeled waffles online today. 🙁

      Shirley

      Reply
  3. Mari says

    May 2, 2018 at 7:18 am

    Good grief! This is one I hadn’t heard of, and I’m so grateful that you posted this Shirley. We don’t eat a lot of gluten free waffles, but when we do, we buy Van’s. I don’t think I will be buying from them in the future, because now it’s an issue of trust, as it is with General Mills and Cheerios. This is ridiculous that it took them four months to notify consumers. I wonder how many people ate them and got sick. Why is it that companies don’t want to admit mistakes immediately? I think they are afraid they will lose some customers, but they lose a lot more when they cover something up before grudgingly admitting a mistake. It reminds me of the data breach last year. It took the credit reporting agency a year to send out notices that they had been hacked nearly a year before. In both these cases consumers may have been harmed, and that is unacceptable. In the case of the waffles, recovery may have been set back weeks or months. Something else that bugs me is Trader Joe’s. Nearly every week I was getting recall notices on their products. That seems to have slowed down, but why so many problems? There didn’t used to be that many, and now it seems like there is a constant flood of them. Companies need to practice quality control, and they need to make sure that employees can read, and are washing their hands and maintaining standards of cleanliness. Chipotle comes to mind, as do several produce firms. The worst part about the produce problem was that our inspectors were passing them, and the problem was discovered in Canada when the produce was sent there. Since I had diarrhea and vomiting for weeks from that one, I take it very seriously! One of my favorite brands was pulled from the market for months, and is just now back on the shelves. We buy food with the expectation that it is safe, and we are being let down. In the good news department, Wegmans is doing great things for celiacs and gluten intolerant people. Their products are marked to indicate they are safe. Recently they have added Crispy Rice Cereal in three flavors, regular, chocolate and one like Fruity Pebbles. All three are delicious. I trust Wegmans, and I shop there every week. They work hard to ensure consumer safety, and if there is ever a problem, they announce it and it is taken care of. If a retailer is this responsible, why are manufacturers so irresponsible? Again, thank you for sharing this information Shirley.

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 2, 2018 at 11:51 pm

      Hi Mari–Good grief, indeed! I’m glad my post was helpful to you. I hope it will give many a heads up and prevent them from being glutened. Sadly, I read quite a few reports of illness from these waffles on social media today. 🙁 And Van’s is not replying to these folks and not making sure the recall info is front and center on its Facebook page.

      Interesting on Trader Joe’s. I don’t have a TJ’s but that makes me think that the makers of these products are doing the recalls. Are these gluten-free items?

      “We buy food with the expectation that it is safe, and we are being let down.” Agreed. 🙁

      I’m a fan of Wegmans! Thanks for sharing that info with all of us!
      Shirley

      Reply
      • Mari says

        May 3, 2018 at 8:24 am

        Last year with the TJ’s recalls, there were several gluten free mixups, and there were some products with undisclosed peanuts or tree nuts, and I think there were issues with some of the produce. We used to make bets on what was going to be recalled next! At least they were responsive and acted immediately, and issued refunds. It’s a fun place to shop. I always get gluten free cupcakes there.

        Reply
        • Shirley Braden says

          May 8, 2018 at 7:15 am

          Mari–TJ’s always seems to be super concerned about its customers and I appreciate that. There’s not a TJ’s anywhere near me but I love going to them when on travel, for exactly the reasons you cited. 🙂

          Shirley

          Reply
  4. patricia says

    May 2, 2018 at 7:29 am

    Thanks so much for the heads up on Van’s. Could be almost deadly for some I will notify all my support group.

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 2, 2018 at 11:53 pm

      You’re welcome, Patricia. Thank you so much for sharing the recall info with your support group! I definitely don’t want anyone else getting ill. I’ve already seen numerous reports of serious illness from this mislabeling online today. 🙁

      Shirley

      Reply
  5. Lisa says

    May 2, 2018 at 8:57 am

    Thanks for sharing, Shirley! Also, thank you for being a strong voice and advocate for Celiacs everywhere (and those with dairy allergies as well). Not being on facebook, I hadn’t heard of the recall until your email this morning. It’s really frustrating to know that this all started in January but the public wasn’t notified until now. I have forwarded your email to friends.

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 2, 2018 at 11:56 pm

      Thanks, Lisa. I so appreciate the kind words. I also appreciate you sharing the information with gluten-free free friends! Yes, very frustrating on the delay in Van’s taking action. I saw numerous reports of illness from these waffles today. 🙁

      Shirley

      Reply
  6. Nancy says

    May 2, 2018 at 4:33 pm

    Shirley, Thanks for sharing. I don’t eat Van’s gluten free waffles because they make the inside of my mouth swell (haven’t figured out which ingredient might be triggering that response). This is not my reaction to gluten, which is totally different. Bottomline, not a product I use, but I still appreciate your sharing this important info. Other formats have obviously dropped the ball!

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 2, 2018 at 11:59 pm

      Hi Nancy–Well, thank you for that feedback and thanks for sharing this information online. Hmmm, that’s really interesting about your reaction to Van’s gf waffles. Do you have that same reaction with any other product/ingredient?

      Shirley

      Reply
      • Nancy French says

        May 3, 2018 at 10:09 am

        Sometimes when I eat gluten free pizza at a restaurant I’ll have that same reaction. It’s like one bite and I’m done eating. The reaction is immediate. But luckily it’s not a big problem, at least I get an immediate reaction so I know not to eat anymore. Have never been able to figure out what the cause might be. Just very strange.

        Reply
        • Shirley Braden says

          May 8, 2018 at 7:13 am

          Thanks for replying, Nancy. Although you rarely have this reaction, I wouldn’t necessarily rule it out as a gluten reaction. It could be a form of gluten that you aren’t often exposed to or mean there’s a higher amount of gluten. I occasionally have to vomit immediately after being glutened. I suspect when I do that I’ve been exposed to a form of gluten that I am not often exposed to, or that it means I’ve ingested a higher amount of gluten than I usually get exposed to, say via cross contamination in restaurants.

          Shirley

          Reply
          • Nancy says

            May 8, 2018 at 5:15 pm

            You might be right on that, just a totally different reaction than my normal reaction which usually starts about 30 minutes later and I’m miserable with bloating, cramps, diarrhea, etc. for about 3 days. So I actually I prefer this other negative reaction. At least it subsides with 30-60 minutes. I mean if I got to choose negative reactions!

  7. Lee says

    May 2, 2018 at 11:19 pm

    Thanks for the gluten free waffle alert. If someone did put them in their toaster they now have a contaminated toaster. Easy to do, as one would think they changed the product from round to square while still using the regular gluten free ingredients.

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 3, 2018 at 12:01 am

      Hi Lee–It looks like you’re new here—welcome to gfe! 🙂 Thanks so much for making that excellent point! I’ll share that reminder on social media, too.

      Thanks again! Such an important factor!
      Shirley

      Reply
  8. judee says

    May 6, 2018 at 7:36 am

    OMG Shirley- This is one serious mistake- If I were to eat a regular wheat waffle, I would be mucho sick… It is curious how it got so little attention. As I said before, your site is a wealth of valuable information for celiacs and those who are sensitive to gluten

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      May 8, 2018 at 7:09 am

      Hi Judee–I’m right there with you. This matter is still getting little attention by folks (including organizations) in the gf community who are supposed to be looking out for us. Van’s still has not come forward with any explanation on this matter. They also have not corrected their FDA recall wording either. Thanks for the kind words. I sincerely consider sharing this information part of my responsibility as a gluten-free blogger.

      Shirley

      Reply
  9. Em says

    February 12, 2022 at 7:48 pm

    It’s 2022 and I ate these waffles this morning and have been dizzy and sick all day! I am extremely careful with what I eat, so I know these were the culprit. I will not trust these, ever. Definitely throwing them out!

    Reply
    • Shirley Braden says

      February 12, 2022 at 8:53 pm

      Hi Em–Welcome to gfe. I’m so sorry that you’re visiting under these circumstances. I have not eaten Van’s “gluten-free” waffles since this recall happened. The truth is that I’m always leary of companies that make both gluten-free and gluten-full versions of the same product.

      I hope you recover quickly, Em. You may find the info in this post on How To Recover From Being Glutened helpful.
      Shirley

      Reply

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