May 2013

Hi everyone,

Welcome to our latest GFI News Letter.

What’s New?

Our Website’s had a facelift and we hope you all approve!

See it at www.glutenfreeireland.com and we would appreciate any comments you care to make. Don’t hold back – we have thick skins!

The original Site was becoming a bit dated so our son Mike took on the challenge of a rebuild and we are all delighted with the result.

(Mike’s the guy top left on this page! )

Mike’s wife Rachel presented him with a new baby daughter on Boxing Day so he has been kept very busy over the last few months looking after his own Social Media business, rebuilding our website and changing nappies etc. He deserves a really huge “Thank You” from us for all his hard work. (Find him on www.bigbluesquid.com)

New Venues

A number of new Venues have joined us since Christmas and we would be really delighted if you would give them your support when in their area –

Karaun B&B – Stradbally, Clarinbridge, Co Galway  www.karaun.com

The Farm Restaurants in Dublin      www.thefarmrestaurant.ie

Marble Arch Caves Restaurant , Co Fermanagh  – www.marblearchcavesgeopark.com

Shimerin Cakes – Fresh Gluten Free –  Co Down Bakery – www.fresh-glutenfree.co.uk

 

Flavour Magazine

The latest edition of Flavour Magazine has arrived with us and, as usual, it’s packed with all kinds of foodie goodies and, in the current edition, it has a number of articles on Free From foods including Gluten Free.

(As well as in supermarkets etc I saw it the other day on sale in Easons so if you live in Northern Ireland or the border Counties across from Louth to Mayo you should have no difficulty finding a copy.)

It’s also available online at www.yourflavour.co.uk

 

Emergency Food Supplies

The heavy March snowfall in some counties in Ireland left a number of families isolated for several days or being accommodated in village halls etc.

As a Coeliac, or with Coeliac dependants, how would you have coped for suitable food?  In the last Newsletter I asked the same question following some terrible floods in parts of Great Britain.

Folks in America and other parts of the world have to contend with natural disasters on a very regular basis.

Would you be able to sustain some kind of normal eating if you were out of your home for 72 hours and had to depend on charities to feed you?

In the USA there are companies who specialise in providing emergency food packs (including Gluten Free food with a long shelf life).

Have you planned for an emergency of any kind or are you living in hope!

Food Banks

With the economy in the UK and Ireland in such a mess we are hearing of more and more folk having to resort to help from Foodbanks.

How would a Coeliac manage if they had to depend for even one week on a donation from a Foodbank? Have you any experience or knowledge of Foodbanks in your area. If so, we are keen to hear from you as we are trying to get a feel for how Gluten Free folk are coping if they have to resort to a Foodbank.

Drop us an email at [email protected]

In the meantime, take a look at our website – www.glutenfreeireland.com/blog for more information on the current Foodbank situation.

Coeliac Awareness Week

The Coeliac UK Awareness Week ran from 13^th -19^th May 2013.

Do you know of any venues who did something special for their Gluten Free customers?

 

Gluten Free Sweets

Here’s a website that just might tickle your taste buds – www.aquarterof.co.uk

Go, buy some sweets and help support the GlutenFreeIreland website!

Support Groups

Do you organise or are you in a Support Group anywhere in Ireland? Have you told your colleagues about us and our web site? Have you newly diagnosed Members? There is some useful information available to them by simply signing up for our Newsletter. Check here –  www.glutenfreeireland.com

Facebook

Our Facebook page is now very popular and, to date, we have 1075 “Likes” which is pretty good but still leaves room for improvement! While we are getting a reasonable level of interaction on our page we would love to see more folk use it to tell everyone about their favourite GF watering holes, support groups, or whatever Coeliac related experience you have had!

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Get Involved

Finally, here is a re-run of our “How to get involved” article as we are keen for Coeliacs across Ireland to be involved in the web site. Help us to help you and others suffering from CD!

Coeliac Friends –

Do you have any Coeliac or Gluten Intolerant friends who don’t know about the Web Site?

Do them a favour and send them a link. Share the news! That also applies to Coeliac (Celiac) friends and colleagues overseas.

Twitter –

If you use Twitter why not check out our Twitter pages and send us a “tweet” about your Coeliac activities.

Suggest a Venue –   

Where do you normally eat out and would you recommend the place to other Coeliacs living in or visiting your area?

What about local Bed & Breakfast establishments? Do you know of any that are Coeliac Friendly? We are really keen to hear about them to help encourage Coeliac tourists to visit our island!

 

Kind Regards,

Derek, Tina & Mike

May 2013