Gluten-Free Products Market Size & Outlook, 2026-2034

Gluten-Free Products Market Overview

The global gluten-free products market size was estimated at USD 8.20 billion in 2025 and is anticipated to grow from USD 8.60 billion in 2026 till USD 13.70 billion by 2034, growing at a CAGR of 5.9% from 2026-2034. The market growth is attributed to the widening clinical diagnosis of celiac disease and non-celiac gluten sensitivity, and the adoption of health-conscious, clean-label, plant-based and “better-for-you” food options.

Key Market Indicators

• North America held a dominant share of the global market with a market share of 41.38% in 2025, owing to large retail spending per capita, high diagnostic rates, and broad supermarket and e-commerce availability.
• The Asia Pacific region is growing at the fastest pace, with a CAGR of 9.2%, due to expanding middle-class income, growing diagnosable population awareness, and rapid retail modernisation.
• Based on product type, the bakery and bread segment dominates the market in 2025.
• Based on the Distribution Channel, Supermarkets and Hypermarkets dominate in 2025.
• The U.S. dominates the global gluten-free products market.

Market Size & Forecast

• 2025 Market Size: USD 8.20 billion
• 2034 Projected Market Size: USD 13.70 billion
• CAGR (2026-2034): 5.6%
• Dominating Region: North America
• Fastest-Growing Region: Asia Pacific

Emerging Market Trends

Mainstreaming and “better-for-You” Repositioning

Gluten-free products have entered the mainstream as consumer preferences regarding their food choices have changed. Consumers' preferences are shifting toward digestive comfort, clean-label, and alignment with plant-forward diets. Companies are monetising on this trend.

• For example, in January 2025, General Mills expanded its Chex line with a Strawberry Vanilla Chex, catering to the gluten-free audience.

Manufacturers are now treating gluten-free as a strategic product pillar. Grocery chains now place gluten-free snacks alongside mainstream bakery products rather than confining them to “free-from” shelves, lowering search friction for the consumer.

Innovation in Taste and Texture

Gluten-free products carried a stigma of being bland, crumbly, or overly dense. Today, advances in food science and ingredient sourcing are breaking those barriers. Companies are innovating with flour blends made from sorghum, quinoa, buckwheat, or rice, which mimic the elasticity and softness of wheat-based products. Enzymes and hydrocolloids are also being used to improve binding and moisture retention, resulting in bread, cookies, and pasta that taste much closer to their conventional counterparts.

• For example, in July 2025, Banza launched its Brown Rice Pasta, offering a more neutral flavour and improved texture that closely mimics traditional wheat pasta.

By tackling taste and texture, manufacturers are expanding the consumer base and reinforcing gluten-free as a viable lifestyle choice rather than a compromise.

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Gluten-Free Products Market Drivers

Clinical and Diagnostic Momentum

Clinical momentum is a major driver of the gluten-free products market. Roughly 1 in 100 people worldwide has celiac disease according to NCBI, and many more live with gluten sensitivity. Better awareness and more screening mean more people are being diagnosed and told they must avoid gluten completely. For these buyers, gluten-free bread, pasta, and cereal are daily staples. This reliable demand gives food companies the confidence to invest in dedicated facilities and long-term product lines. Advocacy groups like Coeliac UK also keep awareness high, pushing governments and retailers to make gluten-free options widely available.

Expansion of Retail and Distribution Channels

The growth of retail and distribution channels has made gluten-free products far easier for consumers to find. Online platforms have further expanded reach, allowing brands to connect directly with health-conscious shoppers who may live outside major urban centres. Retailers are increasingly curating dedicated gluten-free assortments, sometimes supported by digital shelf tags to simplify navigation.

• For example, in May 2025, Walker’s launched gluten-free shortbread in Classic, Chocolate Chip, and Ginger & Lemon flavours using a rice-maize-potato starch blend that replicates the signature melt-in-the-mouth texture of their heritage recipe.

As more retailers and foodservice providers incorporate gluten-free offerings, consumer adoption is likely to accelerate, strengthening the market’s long-term sustainability.

Market Restraint

Premium Pricing and Raw Material Costs

Despite growing demand, the premium pricing of gluten-free goods restricts market growth. Speciality flours like sorghum, millet, and chickpea are more expensive than wheat, and factories need to invest in strict cleaning and testing to avoid contamination. This pushes up production costs, which then show up as higher prices on the shelf. While bigger companies like General Mills or Barilla can spread these costs across huge production runs, smaller brands often struggle to keep prices competitive. For many households, especially in emerging markets, gluten-free is a harder sell.

Key Market Opportunity

Certified and Scalable Cpg Launches

A major opportunity lies in the growing demand for certified, trusted gluten-free products that can scale into mass-market consumer packaged goods (CPG). Certification by recognised bodies assures consumers that products are genuinely safe, reducing concerns about cross-contamination and fostering brand loyalty. Introducing certified gluten-free options in mainstream snacks, ready meals, or bakery items allows companies to serve both medically dependent and lifestyle-driven consumers.

• For example, in February 2025, Beyond Celiac announced that its new "Global Standard Gluten-Free" trademark replaces the previous certification mark for products destined for the U.S. market.

This combination of trust and reach positions certified, mass-distributed launches as one of the strongest growth levers for the category.

Regional Analysis

North America held a dominant share of the global market with a market share of 41.38% in 2025. This growth is attributed to high awareness of celiac disease and non-celiac gluten sensitivity, combined with strong supermarket penetration and e-commerce adoption. The FDA’s defined gluten-free rules and voluntary labelling guidance (<20 ppm) provide a clear regulatory framework that increases consumer trust and reduces litigation risk for compliant manufacturers, enabling large CPG rollouts and supermarket private labels. Travel retail and foodservice adoption is growing, further driving the market.

The U.S. is the world’s biggest retail market for gluten-free foods. Clear FDA rules, including the <20 ppm standard and new guidance for fermented and hydrolysed foods, give both consumers and brands confidence. The market is anchored by clinical demand from people with celiac disease or diagnosed gluten intolerance, who buy staples like bread and cereals on repeat. Furthermore, lifestyle and health-conscious shoppers are driving growth. Overall, the U.S. market benefits from broad shelf penetration, high repeat buying, and continuous product innovation focused on taste, texture, and nutrition.

Canada holds a significant share of the gluten-free products market. Canadian retailers are expanding both private-label and branded gluten-free assortments, while online grocery platforms and subscription services help consumers keep staples stocked at home. Cross-border supply chains with the U.S. also shape pricing and availability. Overall, Canada is a steady growth market with certification, safety, and consistent supply as key drivers.

Asia Pacific Gluten Free Products Market Trends

Asia-Pacific is the fastest-growing region for gluten-free products, with a CAGR of 9.2%, as rising middle-class incomes, urbanisation, modern retail expansion, and growing health awareness have increased both clinical diagnosis and lifestyle adoption. The Hainan duty-free build-out is expanding travel-retail access to imported speciality foods, helping premium and giftable GF SKUs reach affluent shoppers. Retail modernisation (supermarket chains, e-commerce marketplaces) and co-packing hubs make it cheaper to scale dedicated gluten-free production in the Asia Pacific.

China is an expanding market. Rising incomes, growing middle-class awareness, and modernising retail are fuelling interest in gluten-free foods, especially premium imported products. Local players are adapting products to fit traditional diets, using rice and millet as base ingredients. E-commerce, cross-border platforms, and travel retail are strong short-term growth drivers, while partnerships with local co-packers help international brands test the market. In short, China is a promising but complex space for gluten-free products.

United Kingdom Gluten-Free Products Market Trends

The UK has one of the most advanced gluten-free markets globally, supported by high awareness and strong advocacy. Coeliac UK estimates that around 1 in 100 people are affected by celiac disease, and patient groups actively promote testing and demand. Supermarkets are mainstreaming gluten-free products; instead of isolating products in “free-from” bays, they now place staples like bread and pasta in regular aisles, which boosts sales. Artisan bakers and larger manufacturers alike are professionalising production with dedicated facilities and third-party testing. Together, these regulatory, social, and retail changes make the UK a high-trust, high-value gluten-free market with a strong mix of clinical and lifestyle buyers.

Germany combines high consumer spending power with a sophisticated food-processing sector, making it a prime market for gluten-free scale production. Consumers expect certified safety and nutritional parity, so both local bakeries and multinational brands compete by offering reliable gluten-free versions of staples like pasta, bread, and flour mixes.

Market Segmentation

Product Type Insights

Bakery and bread dominate the gluten-free market as they represent the most direct replacement for everyday staples. Demand is high because consumers with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity still want access to sandwich bread, rolls, and baked goods that feel “normal.” Advances in flour blends and hydrocolloids are helping manufacturers deliver softer, fresher loaves. Retailers increasingly place gluten-free breads alongside conventional bakery, driving mainstream adoption.

Form Insights

Dry packaged goods such as crackers, cookies, cereals, and flour mixes dominate the market due to their long shelf life, easy distribution, and affordability. They have high adoption through supermarkets and e-commerce because they can be stored easily and shipped without refrigeration, making them ideal for mainstream penetration. Improved taste and texture innovations are reinforcing repeat purchases, and dry goods continue to form the backbone of the gluten-free market portfolio.

Ingredient Base Insights

Rice remains the most widely used ingredient base due to its neutral taste, versatility, and consumer familiarity. It serves as the foundation for pasta, noodles, crackers, and baking mixes, allowing brands to produce gluten-free products without alienating consumers used to mild flavours. Its steady supply and relative affordability compared to niche grains make rice a safe and scalable choice for mass-market products. As companies combine rice with other grains to enhance nutrition, rice continues to anchor the gluten-free category with steady, dependable growth.

Distribution Channel Insights

Supermarkets and Hypermarkets lead distribution as they provide visibility, scale, and convenience. Supermarkets have mainstreamed gluten-free by placing products alongside conventional counterparts rather than isolating them in “free-from” aisles. This reduces search friction and encourages impulse purchases from health-seeking shoppers beyond celiac patients. The large shelf space and ability to stock a diverse assortment of snacks, bakery, and frozen foods make supermarkets and hypermarkets the strongest channel for mass adoption.

Consumer Segment Insights

Clinically Required (Celiac Disease) consumer segment dominates the gluten-free products market, as demand is anchored in medical necessity rather than lifestyle preference. For people with celiac disease, avoiding gluten is non-negotiable, making gluten-free bread, pasta, and cereals daily staples. This reliable base ensures a consistent revenue stream for manufacturers and supports long-term investment in certified facilities and dedicated production lines. Advocacy groups and government policies also reinforce this segment, pushing for wider access and stricter safety standards.

Competitive Landscape

The global gluten-free competitive landscape is highly fragmented, with specialist “free-from” brands (Dr. Schär, Siete Foods), global CPG incumbents (General Mills, Barilla, Kellogg/Kellanova, Nestlé) and retailers’ private labels.

Dr. Schär: A leading market player: Dr. Schär is a market leader in gluten-free bakery across Europe and North America, anchored by dedicated production lines, brand trust among clinical consumers, and a broad retail footprint (supermarkets, speciality stores).

Latest News

• In April 2025, Dr. Schär announced a $28 million expansion of its Swedesboro facility to scale bakery operations, increase manufacturing capacity for bread and baked goods, and relocate/expand US HQ operations.

List of key players in Gluten-Free Products Market

1. General Mills
2. Barilla
3. Schär (Schar)
4. Kellanova (Kellogg)
5. Nestlé
6. Kraft Heinz
7. Siete Foods
8. Bob’s Red Mill
9. King Arthur Baking
10. Bfree
11. Goodles
12. Arnott’s
13. Conagra Brands
14. Mondelez
15. Ecotone/Isola Bio
16. Jovial

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Recent Developments

• In June 2025, BFree launched its "Dutch Crunch Rolls," a gluten-free and vegan travel-friendly bread. The product is fortified with calcium and vitamins B & D.
• In May 2025, the joint venture Kameda LT Foods, between India's LT Foods and Japan's Kameda Seika, launched a new gluten-free snack called "Krispy Hopu" under the Kari Kari brand.