Andrew Ely, managing director of Almondy, said: “We’ve seen a growing number of consumers avoiding gluten in recent years with our survey revealing three quarters of people have bought a gluten-free product in the last 12 months.
“The fact is, 1 in 100 people are affected by coeliac disease and Coeliac UK predicts half a million people in the UK are yet to be diagnosed so the demand can only increase.
“Add to this the growing army of people avoiding gluten for lifestyle reasons, particularly amongst millennials who eat out more than any other demographic, and the need for gluten-free menus with high appeal is clear – especially given that Mintel is predicting the market to grow by a further 50% by 2019!”
The research also found that more than a quarter of people would be more likely to order a cake if it was gluten-free meaning a coeliac friendly dessert offering can boost profits and drive incremental hot drink sales.