According to the January 2015 “Gluten-Free Foods in the U.S., 5th Edition” report from Packaged Facts, Rockville, MD, from 2009–2014, sales of gluten-free products in grain-based categories posted a 34 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR). When taking in the big picture, that number grows considerably. In November 2014, Mintel, Chicago, estimated gluten-free foods would reach $8.8 billion in 2014, up 63 percent from 2012–14.
The gluten-free boom is far from over, but some safety and quality assurance/quality control ghosts in the gluten-free machine could prevent some companies from fully realizing their profit potential in this market, as well as in the emerging “free-from” trend likely to ride on the coattails of gluten-free’s success.