National food week

There’s an awareness day/week for most things – there’s even a National Hammock Day – but this week sees the celebration of all things foodie, with both National Doughnut Week and British Sandwich Week being acknowledged, alongside Coeliac UK’s Awareness Week.

Coeliac UK’s ‘Is it coeliac disease?’ awareness campaign aims to highlight the range of symptoms people might be suffering with, without realising they could have undiagnosed coeliac disease.

According to the charity, one in 100 people in the UK has coeliac disease, with the prevalence rising to one in 10 for close family members. However, current statistics show only 24 per cent of those with the condition are diagnosed, leaving an estimated half a million people in the UK undiagnosed.

There is no cure and no medication; the only treatment is a strict gluten-free diet for life.

The good news is that with the free-from food phenomenon gaining ground in recent years (Mintel predicts that sales of free-from foods in the UK are forecast to grow 13 per cent to reach £531 million this year, up from an estimated £470 million in 2015), innovation is at an all time high. Mintel research shows that 12 per cent of new food products launched in the UK in 2015 carried a gluten-free claim, up from seven per cent in 2011.

So, grab a gluten-free doughnut and a gluten-free loaf of bread this National Doughnut/British Sandwich/Coeliac Awareness Week and honour all three at once.

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