# Are wine gums gluten free?

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## Summary

Wine gums contain no wheat flour, but one brand's product record lists gluten as a possible trace, so they cannot be called gluten free. What that means.

## Description

Wine gums are not made with flour, so at first glance they look like a safe choice for anyone avoiding gluten. But the answer depends on the small print, and at least one well known brand cannot promise they are free of gluten.
What is in wine gums
Every brand has its own recipe. A published ingredients list for a 400 g bag of Maynards Bassetts Wine Gums, recorded on Open Food Facts, gives glucose syrup, which contains sulphites, sugar, starch, gelatine, malic and acetic acids, colours from plant sources, flavourings, vegetable oils and carnauba wax as a glazing agent.
There is no wheat, barley or rye in that list. But the same record lists gluten as a possible trace. The gelatine also means these wine gums are not vegetarian or vegan: see are wine gums vegan?
What a may contain warning means
A may contain warning, known as precautionary allergen labelling, tells you that traces of an allergen may have got into a product by accident. Food businesses are not legally required to use it: see what does may contain mean on sweets?
For someone with coeliac disease, a may contain warning for gluten or wheat means traces cannot be ruled out, so the product cannot be treated as gluten free.
The gluten free rules
In the UK, only food with 20 parts per million of gluten or less can be labelled gluten free, according to Coeliac UK. Wine gums without that label cannot be assumed to meet it.
One ingredient that worries some people is glucose syrup, which can be made from wheat starch. UK food law specifically exempts glucose syrups made from wheat, including dextrose, and wheat based maltodextrins, from the gluten allergen labelling rules. So glucose syrup itself is not the concern: see what is dextrose in sweets?
What to do
Check the ingredients and allergen information on every pack, because recipes and factories change.Look for a gluten free label if you have coeliac disease.If in doubt, follow the advice of your own doctor or dietitian.
For a wider guide, see are sweets gluten free?

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