Letters: Gluten-free diets are a challenge living in France

To the Editor,

I was interested in your article on gluten-free eating in France. I have a gluten intolerance rather than being coeliac. 

Carrefour has quite a good range of products, including couscous grain made with maize that is just as good as the grain made with wheat. I found it in the aisle with the normal couscous grain.

I prefer Biocoop though, which has a couple of gluten-free breads on the bakery counter and sells pasta made with lentils, chickpeas and other grains that do not contain gluten, or rice noodles. Biocoop also has gluten-free pastry that's ready to use.

In restaurants I prefer to eat vegetarian, but in France that can be difficult if you cannot have gluten because there is often pasta or pastry involved, as in the UK. 

I would say there is more choice than some of your readers think but have to be prepared to look harder and read the ingredient lists on the back of packets, so it's more time-consuming

Jennifer Hague, by email

To the Editor,

In France there is little awareness and limited understanding of gluten-free diets. Yes, the choices in the supermarket are increasing but the selection still remains limited.

Dining out can be especially difficult. Menus do not often specify allergens, although I thought there was a requirement to do so. Asking the waiter is often met with a blank expression and a quick check with the chef is not always reassuring. 

I live in Brittany so fortunately galettes (made with sarrasin/buckwheat) are my go-to option but even they are sometimes contaminated because the chef adds flour to improve the texture and/or reduce the costs. 

Rarely is it possible to find a gluten-free option to accompany the morning coffee. I just wish I could walk into a boulangerie and indulge. 

But I would not swap France for anywhere else and the cheese selection adequately compensates.

Mark Hardy, by email

Do you agree that gluten-free diets are not well known in france? Do you have any tips about finding gluten-free food in France? Let us know at letters@connexionfrance.com