Rise In Food Allergies & Special Dietary Needs, Brings Food Allergy Gal To Rescue

ATLANTA - Sept. 23, 2013 - PRLog -- ATLANTA, GA Food Allergy Gal, aka LaraHolland, swept the nation this summer as she and her crew performed allergy audits across the southeastern United States from planes, trains, automobiles, truck stops, small town restaurants, hotels, grocery stores, small markets, upscale dining and chain restaurants and cafes.

Holland’s mission was not only to serve her customers but to find a more central location to relocate Food Allergy Gal’s headquarters. However, the results of the allergy audits were astounding. More consumers than ever are reporting food allergies and serious special dietary needs. They are begging for help and they call on Food Allergy Gal to provide solutions.

As of September 15, 2013, Food Allergy Gal is now in a new permanent headquarters in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward district. She and her staff picked this location and are now helping commercial kitchens including universities, restaurants, food manufacturers, bakeries and K-12 schools in helping meet this growing demand for food allergy and gluten friendly food items.

“There’s way more than just Gluten Free that is holding consumers back from eating outside of their own kitchens, it’s those who are just beginning to understand they have other special dietary needs, everything from low sodium diets to low protein diets,” said Holland, creator of the Food Allergy Gal Brand.“ Consumers are generally stumped when they have a need to change the way they have been eating to save their lives. I’ve been in the food industry since I was 3 years old. I’ve been dealing with my own special dietary needs and late onset food allergies for the last 11 years. I started building real solutions to help consumers and the food industry that serves them. It’s not ’healthy eating’ it’s eating so they can live. People often think food has to taste like cardboard in order to be ’healthy.’ I despise that comment. I am here to help provide more than just food alternatives but also education, electronic solutions, alternative outlooks and high standard taste.”

Offering products like her AllerSmartMenu gives Food Allergy Gal an edge in the market.

“It’s an interactive menu guide for anyone dealing with any special dietary need. For example, if you are vegan and you want to make sure there are no animal products being used in the dish you are about to order, you can click the menu item and read every sub-ingredient component but better yet, when you register with the app on the phone and select Vegan, it will tell you which items on that menu are suitable for you. It only works if the restaurant industry subscribes to the service though.”

AllerSmartMenu is out of beta testing and currently being used by Red Robin to help identify the Big 8 Food Allergens in the U.S. within their menu items. There are over 160 foods known to cause allergic reactions. Each country has its own set of major allergens. It’s so important to understand that we are in the hospitality industry if we are the food business, no matter what aspect. “We put things into people’s bodies, it’s going to affect them in some way, for better or for worse, therefore we need to be social responsible,” Holland says with great conviction.  She should know, she lost a kidney and nearly died a few times in her life due to unknown food allergies. Until she was diagnosed with all 9 food allergies, she suffered from regular kidney failure and with only one kidney remaining, which was a dangerous issue for her. While doctor’s won’t confirm her suspicion that the two medical issues are related, all Holland knows is that she feels much better and is able to keep up her regular activities consistently.

LaraHolland, Food Allergy Gal, is now recognized as a Food Industry Expert. She is known for stomping out many misnomers about food allergies, healthy food, and special dietary concerns. She is appalled when people have been in the food industry for over 30 or 40 years and often misquote what she has thought was common information. Then again, this information is rarely discussed in formal education classes and the majority of the food industry is not formally educated on food itself or the cause and effect relationship it has on our overall health. The food industry has not been given the attention it needs and LaraHolland is here to help solve that issue. She travels globally to help clients and will now be pleased to welcome them to her Georgia headquarters for private lessons.

Due to an overwhelming demand, LaraHolland, Food Allergy Gal is now taking on 10 one-on-one clients from coaching to cooking with special dietary needs.  She estimates that she will be able to work with each client for a 12 week period and provide an annual follow up.  Every year she hopes to help at least 40 individuals while serving over 200 commercial kitchens per year. She and her crew are open and ready for business.