Okay…now I know why I haven’t been on the boards in 3 years…this thread is hilarious.
WE have been not only selling gluten-free, but our son was only 7 1/2 when he invented the ALLERGEN-FREE PIZZA CRUST that we use in our store here in Pittsburgh, PA. Not only did he invent allergen-free pizza, but he just invented the allergen-free hoagie/sub roll. Furthermore, he is now 12 and has his own line of dry mixes for desserts…which are also all allergen-free.
I will assume that food allergies are a FAD also? Let me educate you on what someone may think is a fad…something that some of the esteemed contributors said to me 4 years ago, who are now writing stories about how GF is something we should be selling…but before it was too cost prohibitive…a waste of money…not enough people out there to eat it…A FAD. Come on…this isn’t freaking low carbs.
Here are some RECENT FACTS:
- Celiac disease is an autoimmune digestive disease that damages the villi of the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food.
[]An estimated 1 in 133 Americans, or about 1% of the population, has celiac disease.
- ]It is estimated that 83% of Americans who have celiac disease are undiagnosed or misdiagnosed with other conditions.
So let’s see now…let me explain the basics for why this and food allergies exist. Did you know that there is NO public domain soy bean? I bet you didn’t…right? That means that someone, or some company, owns the rights to all soybeans. That company is Monsanto and if they catch a farmer growing soybeans with his generations old self propagated bean, they WILL put him out of business since they own the soybean.
How do they own the soybean…genetic modification.
Why do they modify a soybean…or anything for that matter, but let’s look at wheat for now. They do it because they need that grain to grow faster AND bigger.
Why? Because the world is growing faster…and bigger…and needs to eat more and more each year. So, the only way for that to happen is for a company like Monsanto to genetically modify a grain to do so.
What and How? Chemicals are the most simplest explanation. Or just science in general.
How does that affect us? For many…it doesn’t affect us at all. For some…like my son…he cannot eat wheat or he can go into shock and possible die from a closed airway. For those who are Celiac, or have gluten-sensitivity, they get migraines, stomach pain, the runs, and many more side affects.
Now let’s take it one step further. If we make chicken for our son and we buy it from the local general grocery store…he gets sick. If we buy chicken from Whole Foods, he’s fine.
Why? The chicken from WF wasn’t fed soy…which…is…from…a…genetically modified bean.
Okay…here’s some more…IF THIS IS A FAD…then I will assume that food allergies or gluten-issues are NOT real? Asia and Eastern Europe OUTLAWED genetically modified foods, or the use of products/ingredients that are GM’d. Guess what? You do not have nearly as many of those problems as we do in the U.S…
Now let’s get on the “waste of money”. 4 years ago I was told the same thing and YES the ingredients to make a GF or AF pizza are expensive, but I buy in bulk by the pallet. Then, I bought flours by the bag and yes it was costly, but we worked our ass off to make this a great product. We aren’t some bread company that whipped together a few ingredients and boom let’s sell pizza crusts since we are going to ride this FAD to the end. Again, ours was invented by our son out of need since he cannot consume, or even touch wheat.
This is NEVER going away…NEVER. Before calling it a fad, one should look up the stats on the growth pattern of those diagnosed with gluten issues, or food allergies over the last 10 years. Also, compare that to the growth of GMO products over the same course of time.
Food allergies were around in the 70’s when I was a kid, but your were just told that you had a sensitive stomach.
Let’s move on to other problematic links to just gluten: (I am NOT a doctor, though I am educated)
- Autism
- ADHD
- Arthritis
- Migraines
- Crohns Disease
- Lyme Disease
I PERSONALLY KNOW PEOPLE WITH KIDS WHO HAVE SEVERE AUTISM AND HAVE PLACED THEIR KIDS ON GLUTEN-FREE DIETS AND THE KIDS ARE NOW MORE ACTIVE AND VERBAL.
YES…there are people out there eating GF because they think it’s trendy.
YES…there are people out there that are eating GF because they think it’s healthier.
NO…it’s neither trendy or healthy. While you are eating less GM foods, GF products are bulkier and sometimes loaded with more sugar because manufacturers add sugar to compensate for the poor taste, or shall I say poor product development. If your body doesn’t need gluten-free, it will not easily process gluten-free foods.
You can see that I am very passionate about this subject and it’s ONLY when I see responses such as those I just read…it really chaps my ass to see such blanketed answers 4 years later.
By the way, I REFUSE to sell my gf products to people eating it as a fad. They hate me at first, and then I explain how it’s not healthy for them and they listen and come back again and again.
NO…I do not sell my products to other pizzerias so this is not a sales pitch. I don’t do it since I am too busy selling the fad to my current customers and never put much time into selling it outside of our walls. However, we do sell his crusts through the local whole foods (they won’t even sell anyone elses crusts since our outsell them 5 to 1.
Now let me address the products listed here? No Names!
One of them is horribly nasty in taste…but they will make signs for your store. We had a local restaurant buying all of our crusts from a local retailer and using them without permission at a restaurant 5 miles up the same road. They were caught…they started using one of the above listed crusts…their sale of GF pizza sunk to about nothing.
The other one listed here is used at a large west coast restaurant chain…not a pizza chain…I had a restaurant in Southern California (traveling from Pittsburgh to CA every week became too much). The first place I ate served their products…it was like mazza cracker with sauce and cheese. Gritty and just plain horrible.
Now let’s touch on the whole "You gotta have a whole separate kitchen)…NOT TRUE. You just have to have great training in place…great employees…and a plan. Don’t believe me? I only sell our product at ONE pizzeria since we cannot keep up with the demand. BUT…the kitchen is far undersized AND THERE’S FLOUR IN THE AIR EVERYWHERE.
So, since I am sure the last question is like Shark Tank, you are probably saying bullcrap…bullcrap…you can’t sell many at all. Let me tell you this, we sell in excess of 300 allergen-free pizzas per week…100 allergen-free hot hoagies per week…and we are opening a larger restaurant platform in 30-days because of the success of our sons allergen-free pizza.
The average pizzeria doesn’t sell anything near that amount of gluten-free only product.
We are safe.
We care about our customers with the afflictions.
We have a small kitchen…and only one kitchen.
We sell a buttload of the product that we invented ourselves.
We help put on the largest gluten-free expo in our town.
We are greatly respected by ALL the gluten-free groups in PA.
We have people that come from 3 and 4 States away with their children to see our science center, all the while knowing the we are the only place safe to eat.
NO…I am not tooting my horn, or patting myself on the back. Those customers who I serve this product to know me very well and when they start to cry and thank us for what we do for them…I tell the stories about how people in my own industry, who DO NOT UNDERSTAND the illness and think that it’s a fad IS THE REASON WHY MY SON DID WHAT HE DID…AND STILL DOES.
Ask him why and he will say…Just to make people feel normal, and to smile again.
SO…READ…RESEARCH…AND THEN FORM AN EDUCATED OPINION BEFORE SCARING PEOPLE OFF WHO MAY WANT TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO THOSE WHO HAVE NO OPTIONS FOR PIZZA.
it’s so far from a fad, it’s becoming an epidemic and I am now going to try making that Paleo pizza mentioned on a different post. Yes to some that’s a fad, BUT it contains NO GRAINS SINCE THEY DO NOT EAT GENETICALLY MODIFIED PRODUCTS.
GF/AF is about 35% of my business…we have to turn people away on some Fridays and they keep coming back because they know “we understand” and “we have a fantastic product.”
eatmorepizzanc…do it on your own. Do it for the right reasons. Listen to those who actually live the problem…our son.
Try telling my son IT’S A FAD…when he cannot eat regular bread.
Try telling me IT’S A FAD…when I have to shove an epi pen in his thigh because he’s going into shock. I’m a combat vet and I have seen a lot…but nothing compares to seeing your son losing the ability to breathe OVER A FAD.
Celiac Disease / Gluten-Sensitivity / Food Allergies are ALL AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES.
Good Luck.
