The craft beer industry wants the FDA to leave gluten labeling rules exactly as they are. The Brewers Association — the trade group representing more than 6,000 small and independent U.S. craft breweries — formally urged the FDA this spring to maintain the current gluten labeling framework. For celiac families, that position is not a neutral regulatory footnote. It is a direct push against the stricter protections that patient advocates have spent years asking for.
What This Means for You
The FDA is in the middle of an active review of how it regulates gluten claims on food and beverage labels. We previously covered the FDA’s movement toward tougher gluten labeling rules and the agency’s Request for Information seeking public input on how those rules should evolve. The Brewers Association’s filing is the craft beer industry’s formal answer to that process — and the answer is: don’t change anything.
The problem is that the current rules have real, documented gaps, particularly around beer. Two issues stand out for celiac families.
The “gluten-removed” labeling gap. Some craft breweries sell beer made from barley — a gluten-containing grain — and then treated with enzymes to break gluten down. Under current rules, this beer cannot legally be called “gluten-free.” But it can carry phrases like “crafted to remove gluten,” and that language causes genuine confusion among consumers. Celiac disease is triggered by gluten protein fragments, not only intact gluten molecules. Standard lab tests may not detect all the remaining fragments in fermented beer. The Celiac Disease Foundation and other patient organizations have consistently warned that “gluten-removed” beers are not safe for celiac patients — and the current labeling framework does not make that risk clear at a glance.
The 20 ppm threshold. The “gluten-free” label currently requires less than 20 parts per million (ppm) of gluten — a threshold the FDA set in 2013 and that most celiac researchers supported at the time. Some scientists and advocacy groups have since argued for stricter limits, particularly for products consumed in larger quantities like beer. The Brewers Association’s preference for the status quo signals resistance to any tighter numeric standard.
I want my son to be able to read a label and trust it. That means the label needs to be honest, conservative, and grounded in what celiac science actually says — not in what is easiest for industry to test and certify. When a major trade group pushes to preserve ambiguity that celiac families have already flagged as dangerous, the celiac community deserves to know about it.
Key Takeaways
- The Brewers Association asked the FDA to keep current gluten labeling rules unchanged in a filing this spring.
- Under current rules, “gluten-removed” beer (barley-based, enzyme-treated) cannot be labeled “gluten-free” — but it can still carry language that confuses shoppers.
- Standard gluten tests may undercount fragmented gluten proteins left in fermented beverages.
- Beers made entirely from inherently gluten-free grains — sorghum, millet, rice, buckwheat — are the safest option for celiac patients.
- This filing is one voice in an ongoing FDA review; patient advocacy organizations are also submitting comments, and their perspectives carry weight.
The Science
Want to understand how this actually works? We’ll walk you through the technical details below and define every term. No medical degree required.
Why Testing Gluten in Beer Is Unusually Hard
Testing gluten in most foods is straightforward. The standard method — called the Sandwich R5 ELISA (an immunological test that uses antibodies to detect intact gluten proteins) — works reliably on bread, pasta, crackers, and similar products. Beer is different. The brewing process ferments grain, and fermentation breaks gluten proteins into smaller fragments called peptides. Enzyme-treated “gluten-removed” beers take that fragmentation further by adding prolyl endopeptidases — enzymes that specifically cleave the chemical bonds that hold gluten’s structure together.
Here is the problem: the Sandwich R5 ELISA is designed to bind to whole, structurally intact gluten molecules. When those molecules have been broken into fragments by fermentation or enzyme treatment, the antibody cannot always grip them properly. The test may undercount how much gluten-derived protein remains in the glass.
The Competing Test Method
A different test — the Competitive R5 ELISA (sometimes called the Mendez method) — handles fragmented proteins better. Rather than requiring intact molecules, it detects individual peptide fragments. The European brewing and celiac communities have largely adopted the Competitive R5 method as the appropriate standard for fermented beverages. U.S. regulations have not specified which method must apply to beer, and that ambiguity means different labs can test the same bottle and get different results.
A barley beer treated with the enzyme AN-PEP (Aspergillus niger prolyl endoprotease, one of the most common gluten-degrading enzymes in brewing) might read below 20 ppm on the Sandwich test but register measurably higher on the Competitive test. Manufacturers have an incentive to use whichever method returns a lower number.
What “Gluten-Removed” Actually Means — and What It Does Not
Enzyme treatment reduces gluten immunoreactivity — the capacity of remaining protein fragments to trigger an immune response. It does not necessarily eliminate it. Several in vitro and animal studies have suggested that residual immunoreactive peptides survive the enzyme process. The critical clinical question — whether celiac patients specifically can tolerate enzyme-treated barley beer — has not been answered by a properly powered human trial. Until that evidence exists, celiac specialists overwhelmingly recommend avoiding “gluten-removed” products.
Contrast that with beers brewed from inherently gluten-free grains: sorghum, millet, buckwheat, rice. These grains contain no gluten to begin with, so there is nothing to remove and no fragment testing ambiguity. A beer certified gluten-free and brewed from one of these grains can carry the “gluten-free” label legitimately. That distinction is exactly what better labeling rules could make clearer on the shelf — if the FDA moves in that direction.
What the FDA’s Review Could Change
The regulatory questions the FDA is working through include whether to:
- Mandate a specific testing method (Competitive R5 vs. Sandwich R5) for fermented and hydrolyzed beverages
- Restrict or clarify “gluten-removed” language so it cannot be confused with “gluten-free”
- Lower the numeric threshold for “gluten-free” claims below 20 ppm
- Require additional disclosures on enzyme-treated products
Any of these changes could meaningfully improve safety for celiac patients. The Brewers Association’s preference to maintain current standards would preserve the existing ambiguity — the same ambiguity that leads celiac families to discover, sometimes the hard way, that “crafted to remove gluten” and “gluten-free” are not the same promise.
A Note on Who Actually Regulates Beer
Beer labeling in the U.S. falls under a split structure. The TTB (Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau) oversees alcohol labeling for most malt beverages. The FDA has authority over some beer categories and broader food labeling standards. An FDA rule change does not automatically apply to every product on a tap list or store shelf. This regulatory split is part of why beer has historically fallen through cracks that would not exist for, say, a gluten-free pasta.
Related Coverage
- Advocating for Clearer Labeling of Gluten in the U.S.
- FDA Issues Request for Information to Shape Future Gluten Labeling Regulations
- FDA Moves Toward Tougher Gluten Labeling Rules
References
- Brewers Association. Filing urging FDA to maintain current gluten labeling framework. April 30, 2026. Source
- FDA. Gluten-Free Labeling of Foods. 21 CFR §101.91. Final rule published August 5, 2013.
- Celiac Disease Foundation. Position statement on gluten-removed beers.
- Catassi C, et al. “A prospective, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to establish a safe gluten threshold for patients with celiac disease.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2007;85(1):160–166.
- Haraszi R, et al. “Detection of gluten in fermented food products: competitive ELISA vs. sandwich ELISA.” Journal of AOAC International. 2011.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Consult your gastroenterologist or dietitian before making decisions about your diet or your child’s diet.