Breaking news.
Auburn, WA—The Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG) is rebranding the Gluten-Free Certification Organization (GFCO) mark to support its expanding presence in international markets,according to a press release.
To date, the release says, over 60,000 products from 51 countries have earned GFCO certification, which confirms that a product meets strict standards for gluten-free safety. GFCO holds companies and products accountable through audits, random product testing, and process surveillance. All GFCO certification bodies are accredited to ISO 17065, ensuring that they follow internationally established best practices for auditing and product certification. GFCO companies will have until 2022 to completely adopt the new mark on packaging.
GIG determined that a design change was required for a variety of reasons: The design change will make the mark more easily identifiable to global consumers and will protect the value of its certification internationally; additionally, following years of consultation with international legal experts, GIG determined that a design change was required to meet international trademark regulations.
The design includes several identifiable features, including the words “Certified Gluten Free” and the gfco.com website on the mark. The mark meets both the USDA requirements and international trademark registration requirements. Bilingual French-English and Spanish-English GFCO marks will be available in the coming months.
Channon Quinn, COO of GIG, said in the release: “GFCO’s rebranding highlights GIG’s continued commitment to the gluten-free community across the globe to help alleviate shopper confusion about what products are truly GFCO-certified gluten-free. The new GFCO mark is intentionally designed to stand out from other gluten-free symbols to ensure products secure consumer trust. We look forward to the value-add this new mark will give our product manufacturers that have earned the certification through their strong commitment to producing quality, gluten-free products that are safe.”
Plus, according to Cynthia Kupper, CEO of GIG, “Excess revenue from the certification program helps fund many of GIG’s important community programs, including summer camps and a mentorship program for children, a teen summit, education initiatives for schools, over 90 local support groups and food safety research.”
By WholeFoods Magazine staff, ss seen online in WholeFoods Magazine March 5, 2020.