whenever i go to the usa, there is all this gluten free and lactose free stuff for people with coeliac disease, but here there is none of it. theres the "free from" line at coop, but thats it. some top notch restaurants know what they're doing, but for shopping, bakeries or patisseries, theres nothing. the swiss need to get with the times and make more stuff for people with this condition. the diet that agrees with me most is seafood and salads, so i don't know how much longer i will be living here myself.

You can find the gluten free food sources here:

http://www.zoeliakie.ch/glutenfreiee...ung/einkaufen/ (Links under "Wo findet man glutenfreie Spezialprodukte")
I bet you could also call the IG Zöliakie (phone# on the bottom right of page) and they could help you out.

There are also the Reformhäuser... http://www.reformhaus.ch/verkaufsstellen/index.php

Also ahaswiss.ch http://www.aha.ch/603/info-on-allerg...d=1469&lang=en
they have an Infoline you can call, as you will see on their site.

Another link:
http://www.service-allergie-suisse.c...d=1443&lang=en



I hope this helps and you find and enjoy gluten free foods!

Best of luck and enjoy your meal

I don't know where you live, but I haven't had any trouble finding gluten-free foods here. Of course, you can't compare it to the variety found in the US, but that applies to other types of foods as well...

If you do a quick search on the forum, you will get a wealth of information regarding shops and restaurants that cater to celiacs, such as this one, and that one. Aside from Coop, Migros and Manor also have gluten-free ranges, and organic food stores also provide quite a few options. Another (random) place to look is in pharmacies, esp. the Sunstore chain.

I buy delicious fresh gluten-free bread at the Fribourg market once a week, and the lady there also sells patisseries, cakes, and savoury mini-pies. In the Geneva Cornavin train station, the main bakery also sells g-f bread and cakes (you just need to ask them about it - they are with their frozen cakes).

So there are options, just not the amazing Whole Foods selection you can find elsewhere. Bon appetit!

im gf and lactose free, so both need to be combined for me. i live in montreux-vevey

Using the info I provided above, you should be able to find things that suit your needs.

thanks but unfortunately i don't speak german. what exactly do they sell? do they ship to vevey? we've actually got gf flour but the gf bread is bad.

i was looking for more of the fresh boulangerie stuff in lactose and gluten free varieties.

mag, do you know anything in vevey/montreux?

Gluten-free foods are available here, so just do some research.

Before you have a pop at Switzerland for not obediently following the US, you might ask why there is suddenly such a boom in the availability of gluten-free in America. Coeliac disease is certainly a real condition but for many people, going gluten-free is a bit of a fad and a lifestyle choice linked (controversially) to weight loss. Take a look at Amazon and you'll see literally hundreds of books with gluten in the title, nearly all of them written in the last 2 or 3 years. Note the celeb endorsement -- the glamorous residents of Beverly Hills are dropping like bloated flies.

I don't normally rise to the bait but your attitude annoyed me a bit, especially "the swiss need to get with the times and make more stuff for people with this condition". What is that condition? Coeliac disease? Or faddishness? Anyone who has this disease or intolerance has my sympathy. Stomach cramps and bloating isn't pleasant. But it isn't a terminal disease that Switzerland need feel any great guilt about not pandering to.

I didn't understand your reference to seafood and salads. I don't eat much seafood so I can't comment but a large proportion of my diet is fish, salads and veg in general, and these foods are abundant here -- and largely organic.

Aldi do a latose free milk I believe. As Mag said pharmacies can be a good source and also try to find out if there are any health food stores in your area, they might also stock gluten free and latose free items. Lastly, your doctor might know if you ask on your next visit.

I don't know that area well, so can't really help aside from the various places I mentioned before.

Maybe get in touch with Sonja patisserie in Cully - they might be able to provide you with suggestions closer to where you are.

Otherwise, there is also this: http://www.coeliakie.ch/bonnes-adresses.html- this is the Francophone version of the link provided by glowjupiter

Calling and asking if they speak English shouldn't go down badly .

Of course not everyone speaks English here but if you don't ask, you're sadly just self-limiting your range of foods (which is large here!).

Another idea is to cook and bake things yourself, you will just have to buy the ingredients in the stores or order online.

again thanks for the support guys. heres the problem i have with gf baking. all of the recipes require some xanthan gum stuff, which has got to be vile. flour less chocolate is good though

Which function does this "xanthan gum stuff" serve? If you let us know, maybe someone here knows a substitute so that you can rethink baking.
And by saying "has got to be vile" does this mean that you never tasted it?

Xanthan gum helps to "bind" baked goods (to substitute for the action of gluten) - but it is not an absolute requirement for baking. I hardly ever use it (although it is not "vile" either - I simply find I don't really need it).

There are lots of cookbooks, blogs and gluten-free/lactose-free baking websites which provide great recipes that do not call for it.

I think it's a question of attitude - being proactive, accepting trial-and-error (some recipes just don't work out the way we'd like them to at first) and being open to trying new things.

Coop has hundreds of products that are gluten free, from 'prix garantie' to 'fine foods', 'naturaplan' etc. etc.

There is a list of all the groceries online which are gluten free: http://www2.coop.ch/gesundessen/ausg...fm?language=fr

Try http://www.i-can-eat.ch/?language=fr

Xanatham gum or guar gum acts as a binding agent (replacing the gluten). It gives your cake better texture but it doesn't taste like anything. It means your baking is less likely to crumble appart as soon as you pull it out of the oven. You can find it at heath food stores and pharmacies.

Find Schar flours. They do three strengths, one for cakes, bread mix and a flour good for general work (pastas etc). They're available in pharmacies.

I've a whole heap of GF recipes on my blog.
http://www.nexttonicx.com/blog/?portfolio=recipes

The cafe in Cully is amazing... want gluten free brioche, pizza, cake, biscuits?! This is the place to find it. http://dessert-sante.ch/ And they'll post them to you.

It's possible to eat gluten free here. It takes a bit more work and there is less mass produced crap around. But what you can get is generally pretty good.

Thanks for your site Nic80. Much appreciated.

Migros sells a gluten-free bread mix which gives OK results.

Cheers,
Nick

Are there no health food shops in Lausanne? Really? There's one in Evian, I think it does lactose- and gluten-free stuff, I'll check and get back to you, it's not that far and a nice day out.

Hi,
You can always try gfshop.ch.
They have a wide range of gf food and will send it to you by post.
Maybe you know someone who speaks german who can help you register and explain the costs the first time. After that it should be quite straight forward.
Good luck!