Coeliac Awareness Week is an annual event that raises awareness about coeliac disease. This year it will be observed from the 9th – 15th May 2023. Coeliac disease is an autoimmune condition where the body reacts to gluten. Gluten is a protein that is found in wheat, barley and rye, so individuals with coeliac disease have to be careful about the food that they consume.
During Coeliac Awareness Week, groups and organisations work to increases awareness about the diseases and how it impacts people’s lives. It includes providing information regarding the symptoms of coeliac disease, the challenges that people with is face in their daily lives, and how important it is to get tested and diagnosed if you suspect you may have it.
But there are lots of positive events and activities that go on as well including campaigns to raise awareness, educational seminars, fund raising events, and even gluten-free food tastings. A lot of people may turn their noses up at the idea of gluten-free food, as they may have tried it in the past or heard negative things about gluten-free food.
We’re pleased to say that because of the awareness campaigns and more people turning to a gluten-free diet, it has got a lot more companies thinking about how to improve or introduce gluten-free products for customers. Let’s take pasta as an example, years ago, you would be lucky to find even one kind of gluten-free pasta in a standard supermarket, now you can find several different brands of gluten-free pasta, and whole isles dedicated to gluten-free food in general. Many people who have adopted a gluten-free diet could only dream about this availability of products a few years ago, and now not only has the options increased, but so has the quality.
There are still some gluten-free items that people struggle to get right, and one of those things is cakes. If you have ever bought a gluten-free cake from a supermarket, you will probably have experienced a crumbly and dry texture, which you can hardly call a cake really. You want a cake to be fluffy and light, which many people have struggled to achieve.
Sponge has always been conscious of the demand for gluten-free cake, as we have said availability has been limited when it comes to options, mostly because people struggle to get them right. We didn’t want to disappoint our customers who were requesting gluten-free versions of our products, so we set to work to create a range of gluten-free cakes we could be proud of. And we have achieved that. We never wanted to compromise with a sub-par product that you could just buy in a supermarket. We were determined to make sure that our gluten-free cakes are just as good as our standard cakes.
Our gluten-free cake recipes have taken time to perfect, and we have nailed it (even if we do say so ourselves). Many customers comment about how delicious our gluten-free cakes are, and even those who haven’t adopted a gluten-free diet have said they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between our standard or gluten free range. We can also boast that our gluten-free cakes are made in a separate bakery from our standard cakes, so we are doing everything we can to avoid any cross contamination.
So, whether you are gluten-free or are considering adopting a gluten-free diet, why not try one of our gluten-free cakes during Coeliac Awareness Week? We have a great range of flavour options, and cake types including baby sponges, and cake cards (both are excellent choices if you just want to try a little bit to sample).