Updated Jan. 27, 2010

With Valentine school parties coming up, I like to buy gluten-free candy for my kids to give to friends. But, I also try to be aware of what candy my kids are likely to be given by their friends and classmates. So I went to the local grocery stores and discount stores to read the candy labels. Now I’ve got a good idea of what candy my kids might get that they can actually eat. The lists below are based on reading the packages of valentine candy I found in various stores around our home.

Any candy I found with cross-contamination warnings in the allergy statements I have put in the “Unsafe” list below, whether it has gluten ingredients or not. So, if you do not avoid those candies, you might want to review that list for additional candy without gluten ingredients.

One of the candies I was surprised about this year was the small Reese’s peanut butter hearts. The package of individually, foil-wrapped hearts says they contain “wheat flour” in the ingredients. I was surprised because the Reese’s peanut butter hearts that are in the traditional orange packaging do not contain gluten. Just another reminder that we have to keep reading labels.

Gluten-Free (Safe) Candy and Treats

• Andes creme de menthe Valentine Sweet Heart Assortment
• Animal Planet fruit-flavored lollipops
• Baby Ruth
• Betty Crocker Valentine Fruit by the Foot – “Gluten Free”
• Bottle Caps (Wonka)
• Butterfinger hearts
• Charms Blow Pops and Valentine Pops
• Charms Zip-a-dee mini pops
• DeMets Turtles
• Disney Lollipop Rings (Flix Candy)
• Dove milk chocolate, dark chocolate, and caramel candy
• Dum-Dums lollipops “Gluten Free”
• Fun Dips (Wonka)
• Gobstopper Hearts (Wonka) (as found Feb. 2009)
• Galerie Candy Jewelry Making Kit
• Galerie Diamond Ring with candy treats
• Galerie Edible Gummy Eyeballs
• Hershey Bliss chocolates including milk chocolate with raspberry meltaway centers
• Hershey Kisses (includes milk chocolate, filled with caramel, cherry cordial creme, with almonds, Hugs, and Hugs raspberry)
• Hershey’s Pot of Gold truffles
• Hubba Bubba Max bubble gum, and bubble tape
• Jelly Belly conversation beans
• Jolly Rancher candy (including heart-shaped lollipops)
• Juicee Gummee Baby Bears (as found Feb. 2009)
• Laffy Taffy, small and long sticks (Wonka)
• Life Savers candy and lollipops
• Marvel lollipops (as found Feb. 2009)
• M&Ms – fun size and mini’s packages
• Nerds, boxes and ropes (Wonka) Beware of this one: I found one package (Wonka Mix-Ups with Nerds, Bottle Caps and Laffy Taffy) that said the Nerds were “Made in a facility that also processes wheat and egg.” All other packages of Nerds I found did not have this cross-contamination statement.
• Peeps marshmallow shapes, hearts and I?U – “Gluten Free”
• PEZ
• Pixy Stix (Wonka)
• Pop Rocks popping candy
• Reese’s peanut butter cups, miniatures, and peanut butter hearts (but not the individually, foil-wrapped small hearts)
• Reese’s Pieces
• Skittles “Gluten Free”
• Smarties Valentine Love Hearts candy rolls “Contains none of the following: gluten (from wheat, barley, oats and rye), milk, egg, fish, Crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, wheat, peanuts or soybeans.”
• Snickers fun-size and mini’s
• Starburst “Gluten Free”
• Sweetheart Conversation Hearts including chocolate flavored hearts, large hearts, Dazzled Tarts, Twilight Saga New Moon Forbidden Fruits heart packages, and heart bracelet packages (Necco) [Last year, I found some of these that had cross-contamination warnings. They could still be out there in discount stores.]
• 3 Musketeers cherry with dark chocolate mini’s
• Tootsie Rolls and Tootsie Pops (including vanilla and cherry fruit rolls)
• Warheads
• York Peppermint Pattie Hearts

.

Unsafe Candy and Treats (may contain gluten)

• Any chocolate candy with crisps is likely to have wheat flour or barley malt, so check carefully.
  
• Air Heads “Manufactured in a facility that processes wheat flour.”
• Brach’s candy including conversation hearts “Packaged on equipment that also packages products containing traces of milk, egg, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts and/or soy protein.”
• Bubblicious Bites “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts, milk, wheat and eggs.”
• Choxie chocolate candy “May contain tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and egg.”
• Crunch (Nestle) snack-size and hearts contains “barley malt“; “Made on equipment that also processes peanuts, nuts and wheat.”
• Disney lollipops packaged with Valentine cards (including Tinkerbell and Toy Story characters) “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts, milk, wheat and egg products.”
• Disney Princesses Crispy Chocolaty Hearts contains “malt extract“; “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts and wheat.”
• Dora and Diego Crispy Chocolaty Hearts contains “malt extract“; “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts and wheat.”
• Ferrero Rocher contains “wheat flour.”
• Hershey’s Miniatures “May contain wheat.”
• Kit Kat contains “wheat flour“
• Lindt chocolate candy contains “barley malt powder“
• Littlest Pet Shop lollipops “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts, milk, wheat
• Love Duck with conversation heart candy (found at Target) “May contain milk, soy, peanut, tree nuts, wheat and egg.”
• Reese’s peanut butter filled chocolate hearts (this refers to the small, individually foil-wrapped hearts) Contains “wheat flour.”
• Russel Stover chocolates – Every package I found had a cross contamination warning, whether it had gluten or not in the ingredients.
• Spongebob Squarepants Crispy Chocolaty Hearts contains “malt extract“; “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts and wheat.”Spongebob Squarepants lollipops “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts, almonds, cashews, walnuts, hazelnuts, milk, wheat and egg products.”
• SweetTart Hearts (Wonka) “Made in a facility that also processes egg and wheat.”
• SweetTart Hearts Gummies contains “wheat“
• Transformer Crispy Chocolaty Hearts contains “malt extract“; “Manufactured in a facility that processes peanuts and wheat.”
• Twix contains “wheat flour“
• Whoppers contain “barley malt and wheat flour” and egg products.”

Of course, I can’t possibly be prepared to know the gluten content for every candy my kids might get. So, if something new comes home with no ingredient label, I go to the Internet and try to look up the manufacturer online. Many will list the ingredients of their products online. But if you can’t find the list of ingredients, be sure to check out their FAQ’s (frequently asked questions) page. I often find that companies will address the gluten-free question there.

I hope this helps you make informed decisions about which candy celiacs can and can’t eat, but remember it’s always a good idea to read the labels for yourself. The package labeling can vary if the candies were packaged or manufactured in different facilities or on different dates. I am not an expert, simply a mom trying to make good gluten-free choices for my family. If you find any mistakes or revisions that need to be made to the list, please add the information in the comments form below so that other readers can benefit from your knowledge, too. Thanks!