I sent an email to the producer of the beloved candies, and below is their response.

February 2, 2012
All of our Sweethearts & Conversation Hearts products are produced and packed on dedicated lines.  For all our products, our allergy information statement is:  Processed in a Facility that also processes peanuts, tree nuts, milk, wheat, eggs and soy.  Our dedicated lines are monitored closely.  Hope this is helpful.
Thank you.
Fran
Consumer Relations 

Here is the rest of their gluten free candy list from NECCO:

Here’s a fun history of the Sweethearts Conversation Hearts from the NECCO website:

Today’s best-selling Valentine candy — Sweethearts Conversation Hearts–the pastel sugar hearts with the quirky sayings, were as much a part of your childhood as they are for today’s kids. New England Confectionery Company manufactures over 8 billion hearts each year to keep up with demand for this American icon.

Still it’s hard to believe that the concept behind today’s Conversation Hearts got its start when Abraham Lincoln was still President. Mottoes seemed to have come into prominence with cockles, a small crisp candy made of sugar and flour formed in the shape of a cockle or scallop shell. The early cockles contained mottoes, which were printed on thin colored paper and rolled up inside.

In the 1860′s, when Daniel Chase, the brother of New England Confectionery Company’s founder, Oliver Chase, began printing sayings on the candy. He experimented first with hand tools, and then devised a machine in which the cloth was replaced with a felt roller pad, moistened with vegetable coloring, usually red, which pressed against the die. The die printed the words on the lozenge paste and the double purpose machine cut the lozenges.

Grown-ups were entertained and passed the hearts around at parties. For weddings, there were wedding-day lozenges with humorously foreboding prophecies such as: “Married in satin, Love will not be lasting” “Married in Pink, He will take to drink” and “Married in white, You have chosen right.”

The present day Sweethearts® Conversation Heart dates back to 1902. Back then, besides hearts, they also produced various shapes such as postcards, baseballs, horseshoes and watches.

In the early 1990′s, New England Confectionery Company’s Vice President Walter Marshall decided to update the sayings each year and retire some. His first –Fax Me–created a lot of attention from Sweetheart fans. As a result, each year we receive hundreds of suggestions from romantics, candy lovers and school kids for new sayings. From old tech, “Call Me” to new tech, “E-mail Me,” Sweethearts® keep the pulse on the heartbeat of the nation.

Conversation Hearts have been used in various ingenious ways over the years– to propose marriage, to teach children statistics and reading, to decorate cakes, and as borders for frames.

Now, for the first time in its 145 year history, the New England Confectionery Company is unveiling a new generation of Sweethearts® that includes all new expressions selected entirely by the American public, along with a re-formulation of the iconic candies made in the USA.

New Sayings & Colors
For the first time in 145 years, Sweethearts® discarded all its previous phrases and asked the American public to tell us how they express their love. The 2010 Sweethearts® are featured in bright and bolder new colors.

New Flavors & Texture
All new flavors for 2010 Sweethearts® include Strawberry, Green Apple, Lemon, Grape, Orange and Blue Raspberry. The new Sweethearts® have been re-formulated to be softer and more fun to eat.

New Line Extensions & Innovation
Sweethearts® new line extensions include Sugar-Free, Dazzled Tarts, En Español and Chocolate. This is the first time the company has put a DAZZLED© finish on TARTS.

To meet the demand for its Conversation Hearts, New England Confectionery Company produces them from late February through mid-January of the following year. The entire production–about 100,000 pounds a day– sells out in just six weeks.

Want to kick off the New Year right with a healthy diet that fits all of your needs? Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar San Francisco is offering new options for mini bar munchies that scream out to the gluten-intolerant and appeal to the health-seeking travelers. With new gluten-free snacks and beverage options, Palomar San Francisco is giving San Francisco hotel guests with gluten allergies delicious alternative for snacking on the road.

“We recognize that our guests all have different needs, from eating to exercising to even the pillows they prefer. The increased awareness of gluten allergies has certainly shed more light on the varying dietary requirements of our guests,” Christopher Smith, general manager for Hotel Palomar San Francisco. “At the end of the day, we want our guests to feel comfortable and at home when they stay with us. So, it made perfect sense to explore the options of gluten-free snacks in our mini bars.”

Today, 21 million people eat gluten-free. Beginning this month, Palomar San Francisco will offer gluten-free mini bars upon request, stocked with non-alcoholic beverages, alcoholic beverages and light snacks.

Selections from the gluten- free mini bar include:

Non-Alcoholic Drinks

• Izze Sparkling Blackberry
• Metro Mint Lemon Water

Alcoholic Drinks

• Bard’s Malt Beer
• RedBridge Sorghum Beer

Snacks

• Brown Rice Snaps
• Kind Fruit & Nut Bar
• Glutino Pretzel Twists
• Lundberg Rice Chips
• Glutino Crackers

For more information about Hotel Palomar’s programs and other services or to make reservations, please visit their website or Facebook page. SanFrancisco, or call 866-373-4941.

ABOUT HOTEL PALOMAR SAN FRANCISCO

Hotel Palomar San Francisco is an artful retreat in the heart of the city. We invite you to experience the unparalleled hospitality, award-winning services and vibrant downtown location of our boutique hotel. We are just steps from Moscone Center, SFMOMA, Yerba Buena Gardens and the best shopping in the city.

See my latest review of Gluten Free Bistro Crust below.

Super Bowl Gluten Free Crust Special!

• Buy 1 get 1 free
• Buy 3 get 3 free
• Buy 6 get 6 free!

Available through Super Bowl Sunday

More Good News!
Gluten Free Bistro’s products are now certified gluten free!

The Gluten Free Bistro’s product line is GF certified by the leading gluten-free certification program of The Gluten Intolerance Group, also known as GFCO or the Gluten-Free Certification Organization.

Order online to get the special price

Buy in a retail location in Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico or Utah

Find a restaurant that serves it – over 100 to choose from!

See my latest review of Gluten Free Bistro Pizza Below

Speaking of Pizza: The Gluten Free Bistro Pizza Crust!!
Originally published July 1, 2011

Every few days it seems that The Gluten Free Bistro posts new restaurants on the Gluten Freeville Directory that are carrying their awesome Neapolitan style medium-thick, chewy crust that I made this beautiful pizza on and many are carrying their pasta, too. I reviewed this crust about a year ago, but other crust in the news recently led me to remind you or introduce you to this great option.

You can order this whole grain vegan crust online that is hand-made, par baked, frozen and packaged on site. This crust cooks up perfectly with a balance of textures similar to a traditional Neapolitan-style pizza.

OR enjoy it at one of the many restaurant locations that now offer gluten free pizza using The Gluten Free Bistro crust. Restaurants carrying the same great products you can order at home are located in Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, & Wisconsin, with more being added all the time. All Colorado and Midwest Nick-N-Willy’s now carry this crust, with Texas and West Coast coming next year.

It’s not your average rice and soybean oil gluten free crust, as many are selling. It actually tastes great and they’ve gone to some effort to really make it healthy and allergen friendly.

Contains: brown rice flour, buckwheat flour (yes- buckwheat is GF even though it has wheat in the name-it is not wheat), tapioca flour, sorghum flour, coconut flour, xanthan gum, apple sauce, yeast, sugar (for inoculating the yeast), olive oil, garlic salt, water.

•  100% Whole grain flours
•  100% GMO-Free ingredients
•  Vegan
• Free of most of the top 8 allergens (contains coconut flour)

“Our manufacturers clean all machinery before our production runs. We test each production run for the presence of gluten and tests results are available for consumers. We are now certified Gluten Free.”

Dough Ball for Making Pizza and Other Goodies at Home
Their new whole grain vegan dough ball contains the exact same ingredients as their crust but is for you to roll out at home. It is made with their non-GMO Bistro Blend Flour providing 76% whole grain flours and only 22% starch . The dough ball is versatile and you can create NY-style and Chicago-style pizza for family and friends, calzone, or whatever other doughy creations you can think up.  This dough is cooked perfectly when the crust is crispy on the bottom and a slice will support the ingredients without becoming limp. You can also use the dough to make stromboli, pigs in a blanket, and more.  Available retail only, not for restaurants. You can buy the dough ball or frozen crust in several Colorado stores: Alfalfa’s Market or Whole Foods (Pearl Street, Alpine St: Ideal Market, Baseline Road, Tamarac, Superior)

The Gluten Free Bistro’s Manufacturing Information
“Our pizza crust is hand-made, par-baked and frozen on site. The crusts are made in a gluten-free designated area of a facility that also manufacturers wheat. By par-baking the crusts, they go right from the freezer to the oven, decreasing the opportunity for the product to be cross-contaminated. We are meticulous about keeping the areas separated. Our pasta is manufactured in a facility that also processes wheat and is made on designated gluten-free equipment.”

Chik-fil-A Waffle Fries are gluten free and fried separately.

Following is more information on Chick-fil-A’s new Kid’s Meal offerings:

• Introduction of Grilled Nuggets: These gluten-free Grilled Nuggets are made from a boneless, skinless breast of chicken tumbled in a salt and pepper spice blend and then grilled to perfection. The four count is only 80 calories and 1 gram of fat, while the six count contains 110 calories and 1.5 grams of fat.

• Addition of Buddy Fruits® Pure Blended Fruit To Go: Apple Cinnamon: Each squeezable fruit pouch is gluten free, all natural and contains 100 percent pure fruit. It is 60 calories, 0 grams of fat and equals one serving of fruit.

• Improved beverage options: The chain is changing its children’s beverage line only to feature one percent milk, 100 percent apple juice, its signature freshly squeezed lemonade and water as drink choices.

According to Chick-fil-A’s full-time dietitian Jodie Worrell, these new menu additions come as part of Chick-fil-A’s broader initiative to offer healthier menu options to customers. Initiative highlights include the addition of the Fruit Cup in 2004 and moving to a complete menu (including all condiments) with zero trans fats in 2008. Chick-fil-A also is actively working to reduce sodium across its menu, including a 40 percent sodium reduction in its Chargrilled Chicken filet, 25 percent less sodium in breads and removing 10 percent of sodium in dressings and sauces. Additionally, the chain has removed high fructose corn syrup from its chocolate milk, and some salad dressings and sauces.

Click for more details on the new kid’s meal and grilled nuggets.

Speak to the manager at your location to confirm preparation procedures are satisfactory for you. I have always had great experiences with each location and hope you do, too.

Click for Comple Chik-fIl-A Gluten Information
Items with no gluten in addition to the new grilled nuggets:

Entree

• Chick-fil-A® Chargrilled Chicken Filet (no bun)
• Chick-fil-A® Chargrilled Chicken Garden Salad
• Chick-fil-A® Chargrilled Chicken & Fruit Salad
• Tortilla Strips

Sides

• Fruit Cup
• Side Salad
• Cole Slaw
• Carrot & Raisin Salad
• Chick-fil-A Waffle Potato Fries®
• Yogurt Parfait

Breakfast

• Bacon slice
• Egg
• Sausage patty
• American cheese slice
• Hash Browns

Desserts

• Icedream®
• Chocolate Syrup
• Blueberry Topping

Beverages

• All Beverages

Dipping Sauces and Dressings

• Barbecue Sauce
• Honey Mustard Sauce
• Honey Roasted BBQ Sauce
• Polynesian Sauce
• Buttermilk Ranch Sauce
• Chick-fil-A® Buffalo Sauce
• Spicy Dressing
• Blue Cheese Dressing
• Buttermilk Ranch Dressing
• Thousand Island Dressing
• Light Italian Dressing
• Fat Free Dijon Honey Mustard Dressing
• Caesar Dressing
• Reduced Fat Raspberry Vinaigrette Dressing
• Reduced Fat Berry Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
• Chick-fil-A® Sauce

Condiments

• Ketchup
• Mustard
• Mayonnaise
• Apple Jelly
• Grape Jelly
• Mixed Fruit Jelly

Click Restaurant Locator to find a location near you.

After a bit of research and an email exchange with the company, their fries do not contain gluten ingredients.

Before ordering, you must confirm that the location you are visiting fries them in separate oil from the other fried items. Mixing the cooking of the fries that don’t contain gluten with breaded chicken or onion rings makes them NOT gluten free.

Found on their web site: “French Fries are cooked in a fryer designated for French Fries only. Frier oil contains: corn, canola, soy and or/cottonseed oils.”

French Fry Ingredient List: Potatoes, Soybean Oil, Modified Potato Starch, Rice Flour, Salt, Leavening (Disodium Dihydrogen Pyrophosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate), Dextrose, Xanthan Gum, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate to Preserve Natural Color

http://www.bk.com/en/us/menu-nutrition/index.html

If you don’t want to eat these fries, please refrain commenting on this post. This is just provided as a source of information for those who are interested. Thanks.

Celiac Disease in Women Linked to Depression Risk:

WEDNESDAY, Jan. 4 (HealthDay News)(US News & World Report) — New research shows that women with celiac disease face a higher risk for also suffering from depression and so-called “disordered eating,” regardless of whether they stick to a gluten-free diet.

“We found that most [study] participants frequently adhered to a gluten-free diet, and this greater compliance with diet was related to increased vitality, lower stress, decreased depressive symptoms and greater overall emotional health,” study co-author Josh Smyth, a professor of bio-behavioral health and medicine at Penn State University, said in a university news release.

“However, even those people who were managing their illness very well reported higher rates of stress, depression and a range of issues clustered around body image, weight and shape when compared to the general population,” he added.

The study results appear online and in an upcoming issue of Chronic Illness.

Celiac patients are often plagued by abdominal pain, lack of appetite, constipation, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, stemming from an inability to process foods containing gluten such as wheat, barley and rye.

At least one in every 1,750 Americans is forced to make dietary adjustments to the disease by avoiding such foods, according to the release.

To gauge how adherence to such eating routines might affect other health issues, the research team conducted a poll of 177 women who were diagnosed with celiac disease.

Patients responded to questions regarding how well they stuck to their gluten-free diets, physical symptoms, physical functioning, stress levels and management, signs of clinical depression and their thoughts and actions reflecting upon their sense of body image and eating habits. The study authors compared their answers with prior research that looked into the same issues among non-celiac patients.

While concluding that celiac patients are more liable to develop depression and eating issues regardless of diet, the team noted that it still remains unclear which comes first: Do people with celiac disease start with depression that leads to eating issues or does the onset of disordered eating lead to depression?

“In the future, we plan to investigate the temporal sequence of these symptoms,” Smyth said.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

People with one of these allergies run a risk of serious or potential life threatening allergic reactions if they consume these products:

• Cheddar Cheese, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy)
• White Cheddar, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy)
• Chicago Style, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy)
• Gourmet Caramel, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy)
• Rainbow, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains soy)
• Caramel Nut, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy, peanuts, tree nuts (almonds, cashews))
• Chocolate Drizzle Caramel, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy)
• Macadamia Butter Crunch, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy, macadamia nuts)
• Cookies & Cream, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy, wheat)
• Spicy Cheese, 1-Gallon Value Bag (contains milk, soy, wheat)

No illnesses have been reported in connection with these products.

These products are completely safe for anyone without allergies to consume.

Affected products would have been purchased after October 1st, 2011 through one of our fundraising programs.

This notice was initiated after it was discovered that shipments did not include the ingredient and allergen information.  This issue has been corrected with updated packaging that includes nutrition facts, ingredients, and allergens applied directly to every item.

Consumers who have questions or would like additional information can call 1-800-873-2676.

See the complete FDA Alert here.

ChinaDaily.com: BEIJING

The new standard will be compulsory nationwide, and is the first time that the country has included allergens in food safety regulations, according to Fan Yongxiang, an official with the National Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety under the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Eight major foods or food groups – wheat bran cereals, shellfish, fish, eggs, peanuts, soybeans, milk and tree nuts – account for most food allergies, and they are all included in the mandatory regulation.”

“Different food products may be produced on the same production line, so it’s possible that a very small amount of ingredients of one product may be brought to another even after the production line is cleaned,” said Dong Jinshi, executive vice-president of the International Food Packaging Association.

According to China Daily, Chinese consumers and even market watchdogs at present are not familiar with labels about food allergies.

“In August, Knorr Stock Pot, a bouillon product by consumer product giant Unilever, was removed from shelves in Guiyang and Changsha because of a message on its package reading: ‘This product may contain wheat, soybeans, eggs, dairy products and fish’ was accused of being unclear and confusing.”

“So it’s important that the public know something about food packaging labels,” Dong said. “And it will be more understandable to consumers if food companies rewrite the alert as ‘people allergic to fish should be cautious about eating this’.”

MoniQA reports that, “Many foods exported from China are blocked just because of a lack of food allergen labeling.”

There is no mention of gluten in the food labeling regulation news.

Click here for the entire article from China Daily.

Customize your burger with fresh, quality, ingredients at this cool, fun burger place. And now, in addition to the awesome burger-in-a-bowl (pictured), all Northern California locations now serve Udi’s gluten free buns for their outstanding burgers.

When you walk into one of the many Counter restaurants, you get the industrial warehouse feel with a very simple concept. After you are seated, you are handed a clipboard with all the ingredients and you spend a few minutes checking boxes on the order form, so that your burger is built is exactly the way you want it.

You begin by picking your meat and size of burger: beef, turkey, veggie (not GF), or chicken (not GF). Next you choose the gluten free bun, if you are in one of the locations that offers that, or you have the option called “Burger in a Bowl.” That’s the one you choose if you’re looking for gluten free. It comes on a huge bed of lettuce, and then you work your way down the list to choose the toppings you would like. All together, there are 312,120 different combination possibilities, so they say.

They have many cheese choices, besides the expected, you can get something like horseradish cheddar or herb goat cheese spread – or skip the cheese if you’d like. All the cheese is GF, except the blue cheese, according their allergen chart.*

The next step is toppings like boiled eggs, grilled pineapple, cranberries, coleslaw, sprouts, tomatoes, just to name a few. Sundried tomatoes, avocado, fried egg and bacon make up some of the premium choices. All  toppings are gluten free, except for the onion strings.

By the time you get to the sauce choices, you feel like you are taking a pop quiz in school, “Wait, I didn’t study this part!” Twenty-one sauces like roasted garlic aioli, basil pesto, honey mustard, and more unusual plus all the expected choices. More than half of the sauces are gluten free.

If you’re not a burger eater, order the side salad or the Hobo Pack, which is a yummy assortment of grilled veggies with fresh herbs.

If all that isn’t enough to make you want to try The
Counter, here’s a message from corporate headquarters about that huge order French fries or sweet potato fries that you will certainly want to order, “We dedicate one fryer to the sweet fries and French fries. There is another fryer used for food items that have flour. The teams are trained on how to use each fryer.” (We’ve eaten there many times with no evidence of cross-contamination with gluten items.) The Sweet Potato Fries are reason enough to eat there!

If you’re missing your old burger and fries, this place should definitely be on the list of restaurants to visit! It’s not your old burger and fry joint – it’s much better!

*Keep in mind that if you look at their allergen chart, the items checked in the Gluten Free Column DO NOT contain gluten, as opposed to the other columns that have a check if the ingredient IS contained in the item.

(Updated review from March 2010)

CURRENT LOCATIONS (as of 12/11):

Illinois
Chicago – Lincoln Park

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – November 16, 2011 – The J.M. Smucker Company today announced a limited voluntary recall on two specific Best-If-Used-By dates of 16 oz. Smucker’s® Natural Peanut Butter Chunky because it may be contaminated with Salmonella, an organism that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy persons infected with Salmonella often experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, infection with Salmonella can result in the organism getting into the bloodstream and producing more severe illnesses such as arterial infections (i.e., infected aneurysms), endocarditis and arthritis. For more information, please visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s website at www.cdc.gov.

This product was distributed in: Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.

The affected product, which is packaged in 16 oz. jars, is as follows:

• UPC: 5150001701 (located on the side of the jar’s label below the bar code)
• Production Codes: 1307004 and 1308004
• Best-If-Used-By dates: August 3, 2012 and August 4, 2012
• Chunky product only (not creamy)
• Impacted product would have been purchased between November 8 – 17, 2011

No other products of The J.M. Smucker Company are affected by this recall.

See complete press release here