True Food Allergy Friends: Whole Soy & Company

I became a life long fan of Whole Soy Company many years ago when my son was first diagnosed with a huge, scary list of allergens.  We had moved back to the Bay Area to receive more aggressive food allergy and asthma health care and I was simply struggling to figure out how to feed and keep my son safe.  I called up Whole Soy Company to ask if their flavorings included lemon or raspberry specifically, also including nuts, dairy and the list went on and on.  This was long before the Whole Soy & Co.  To my surprise, I received a life saving lesson from the founder of Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act!

Whole Soy & Co, Whole Soy & Co Founder and CEO, called me back himself and asked if I had a few minutes.  He then proceeded to explain the manufacturing process to me and how lemon could be used as a preservative to manufacture a product and therefore, is not considered an ingredient in the food!  My heart just about stopped!  Therefore, allergens that were used to manufacture food but were not part of the recipe could not be listed on ingredient labels.  You see, lemon is fabulous to stop the oxidation or browning on fruits and veggies.  When we were kids we peeled potatoes and popped them into a bowl of water with some lemon squeezed in-I had forgotten this little tidbit.

He then went on to explain how the manufacturing process works and that companies can purchasing flavorings from another company and never actually know what the exact ingredients are!  It is considered proprietary information and does not need to be shared.  Ted educated me on what questions to ask when I called a manufacturer.  That knowledge was the gift of gold.

I learned during that call that I was taking serious risks of cross contamination.  I truly believed for years and to this day, that Ted kept my son out of the Emergency Room and possibly saved us for the unimaginable.  A fan was born needless to say.  A couple of years ago, I was in a grateful mood and thought about that phone call.  So, I picked up the phone and called Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act and share the story with Ted’s executive assistant.  She was delightful  and shared the story with Ted and sent me a letter stating that if I ever needed anything,  just let them know.

As the Whole Soy & Co (to be held this Saturday, Oct 6th, 2012 at the District) approached, I decided to host a booth and I wanted to hand out Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act coupons along with my favorite Whole Soy & Co smoothie recipe.  Due to fairness to other vendors, Whole Soy needed to host their own booth.  So they did!  Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act will host a booth next to my booth this Saturday and they will give out soy yogurt samples and coupons while I hand out recipes on coasters!  Our booths will be located a few over from the main stage–come see us!
I’m thrilled to be side-by-side with them again!  The first time, as community members trying to keep a child with life threatening food allergies safe and this time supporting a great product from a very socially conscious and aware company.  Biased beliefs aside, Whole Soy & Coembraces practices important to me as they follow sustainable practices, do not use GMO soy beans, are vegan and openly and freely disclose how they make soy yogurt.  Of course, they publish allergen data along with a wealth of other information on their website.

So, do you now understand why I love Whole Soy & Co sooooo much and that I will be honored to hand out recipes this Saturday, October 6th, at the Whole Soy & Co that use Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act products?

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[Circle of Moms Top 25 Food Allergy Moms – 2012 – Vote for me!] Whole Soy & Co