We are going abroad this year from the first time since my 9 year old was diagnosed, looking for advice.

We are going to France in August and I wondered if anyone could give me specific advice about supermarkets and what sorts of GF things they stock. I will take some flour and pasta with me but have no idea what to expect from the supermarkets. Thanks!

[Penel]

France is not the easiest country to be gluten free in. In many places you will only find gf food in Health Food shops not supermarkets (apart from rice cakes). I have yet to find any gf flour anywhere but the French do use chick pea flour (sarasan) to make pancakes (gallettes). We like to buy fresh food from the local market whenever we can.

This site is a few years old but the advice has proved helpful celiac.com/articles/21485/1...

Free-in-France/Page1.html

If you do not speak French you will need a card with the explanation of coeliac needs celiactravel.com/cards/french/

I have always found it fairly easy to eat gf in restaurants, unless you are in a very touristy place. We do not use chain restaurants. It will depend on what your child is happy to eat.

Good luck with your holiday. It's a lovely country and the French do like children!

[Mia1057]

There is now a reasonable range of "sans glutine" in the Carrefour range of supermarkets. If in Normandy it is possible to eat "gallettes de sarassin" which are buckwheat pancakes. Check that the have no farine de froment(wheat flour) or amidon de froment(wheat starch) in the ingredients.

[Penel]

Whoops! Wrote "chickpea" when I meant "buckwheat".

Wheat flour may also be labelled farine de ble.

[KarenBC]

Hi. My daughter (10years old) and I are both coeliac. We live in France and I work in the catering industry. I have collected quite a lot of info concerning GF food and things and would be happy to answer your questions. There are lots and lots of things if you know where to look. It would probably be easier if we spoke on the phone. If you are interested let me know and I can phone you back (I have free international calls).

[Hidden]

Thank you for those replies, I really appreciate it. My French is good but the restaurant card puts it much more succinctly than I could manage so could come in very useful. In common with a lot of CD sufferers he has a very poor relationship with food and would do without it I think if he could so we have to make sure he eats little and often. Snacking foods, apart from fruit, are a bit of a problem here, never mind in France!

[Hidden]

Hi, as well as taking some basics, you can , with a doctors letter, take a huge range of food that your child likes to eat. If you are flying they will allow it in addition to your normal baggage allowance. It does need to be parcelled up separately (I usually fill a couple of bread boxes with goodies) I hate going abroad without all the stuff I like just incase it's difficult to find foods so for your son it would be a godsend (You can take sauces/ tins/anything) I also don't want to spend the best part of my holiday shopping for food. Hope you have fun x

[beatasthma]

Hi,

there might be something of use here

glutenfreetraveller.com

haven't used it but reading through it looks quite good.