Fighting for a good cause is worth the investment on such an exercise but trivial issues do not warrant waste of time and resources spending on them. The labeling tussle on beer products between the beer industry and consumer activist groups is an example of such a tug of war on a trivial matter. Every beer consumer knows that the brewed beverage is made from malted barley and other grains like wheat, rye, oats etc are also used along with. Gluten-free beer can be made from Sorghum, Rice etc but only small quantity is produced targeting at special consumer groups with wheat and gluten allergy. Since gluten allergy affects a significant number of people there are compulsory labeling regulations calling for declaration of gluten in the label of products with necessary warning for people with such allergies to avoid buying these products containing wheat as an ingredient. Here is a take on that controversy that is raging in Canada currently.
Allergy and health groups are asking the Conservative government to press ahead with new food-labelling regulations even as the beer industry asks to pull out of them. The proposed regulations, published July 2008, would require manufacturers and importers to clearly note potential allergens on labels — an important indication for those with serious or life-threatening allergies. In an open letter to the prime minister this week, those fighting for the new regulations questioned the position of brewers who are asking for an exemption. "Our organizations remain, as we always have, willing to listen," the letter said. "What we are not prepared to do, prime minister, is let this once-in-a-generation opportunity be put at risk because of the last minute interventions of a powerful, private, industry lobby." The letter was signed by eight organizations, including Anaphylaxis Canada, the Canadian Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Foundation and the Canadian Celiac Association. New labels would have to list any of 10 priority allergens outlined by Health Canada, such as milk, eggs or shellfish, gluten sources, and sulphites, all over 10 parts per million. The declaration statement would read: "Allergy and Intolerance Information – Contains: …" But brewers say people with celiac disease, who are most concerned with gluten content, already know they can't drink beer. "We believe that people with celiac disease are very educated on the issue," said Andre Fortin, spokesman for Brewers Association of Canada.
There may be a point in the arguments of both the parties involved in this sparring. While the activists are pressing the government to go ahead with the new labeling regulation that calls for including allergy warning on the beer packs, the brewing industry is forcefully arguing against such an unnecessary labeling as they feel. On a similar note, one cannot help wondering whether there can be demand for compulsory allergy labeling on milk for the benefit of lactose intolerant people though every person having this affliction knows that milk does contain lactose, the component responsible for the affliction. Probably same logic may apply to beer also which is known to be made from grains like wheat containing prolamins and glutelins, the two components that make up gluten. Practically speaking it should not make any difference whether label warning is printed or not and hence this is much ado about nothing.
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