Pho announces Gluten-Free accreditation

The Vietnamese street food restaurant group gained Gluten Free accreditation from Coeliac UK for its 17 restaurants across the UK.

All of the group’s main menus (eat-in and Pho To Go) are now almost completely gluten free. Pho said that the brand has worked closely with Coeliac UK, the oldest and largest charity for coeliac disease in the world, for more than six months during the accreditation process, which included a series of audits, menu development, ingredient sourcing and staff training. Both front of house and back of house teams in all of Pho’s restaurants have received training in the preparation and serving of gluten-free food.

“Having been loved for our gluten-free options since we opened ten years ago,” said Juliette Wall, co-founder, Pho.

“We saw an opportunity to make almost our entire menu gluten-free, by replacing only a few ingredients with certified gluten-free options, without compromising flavour. After months and months of working with Coeliac UK, we can now safely serve a huge amount of people in the UK who probably find it quite tricky to dine out.”

According to Coeliac UK, one in 100 people in the UK have coeliac disease, although only 24% of these are currently diagnosed, and once diagnosed the only treatment for the condition is following a gluten-free diet for life.

Sarah Sleet, chief executive of Coeliac UK, said “We know eating out safely is a top concern for people with coeliac disease, who must follow a strict glutenfree diet for life. We are working with the hospitality industry to help them deliver good quality menu choices for people with coeliac disease and we are delighted Pho is recognising the importance of catering for this market by gaining accreditation from Coeliac UK.”