You are not alone! There are a lot of people out there who are coping with food allergies and you can find a lot of help out there to get you through this. 

How did Tasterie come to be?

I started Tasterie.com, I’ll be honest - mainly out of frustration. I was a pediatrician and a mom of an infant that had over 10 food allergies including dairy allergy, soy allergy & egg allergy.  It was really hard to find food that was safe for him and for me (while I breast-fed him).  All I wanted was to find something to eat that wouldn’t cause an allergic reaction in my little son.

The lack of allergy free, great tasting food products available is ridiculous! Imagine if you had a dairy or gluten intolerance and you wanted to buy an artisan jam, an imported cake mix, or yummy looking cookies or chips. You would have to spend a lot of time looking up food allergen information, and in many cases it would simply not be available easily, even if you called the manufacturer.

Well, I wanted to solve that problem - and Tasterie was born. You subscribe at Tasterie.com for as little as $15 per month and tell us what food allergies you have.  Each month, a box filled with delicious food and snack items, as well as delicious recipes to go with them, from around the globe shows up at your house that you can be sure is allergen-free and totally safe for you.  We find you great deals on food, verify every single product for nutrition and allergen content, and deliver it to your home in a wonderful package.  And you, your friends, or your children discover new tastes each month.

How did Tasterie decide what allergen and allergen combinations to address?

We really value our followers and we have been adding allergen combinations based on their requests.   When we saw that a lot of people wanted a dairy free and gluten free snack box, we added it.  Our Top 8 Allergy TasterieBox (free of gluten/wheat, dairy, eggs, soy, peanut, tree-nut, fish and shellfish) came out after it became clear to us that people really needed help with those allergens.  We plan to keep adding options in the future as well!

How do you decide what products to include in TasterieBoxes, and what are some of your (and customers') favorite products?

We have a dedicated team of physicians and dietitians that design each and every box to make sure every single product is safe, tasty and healthy.  Each box is curated with verified allergy free products so for example, if you get a dairy-free TasterieBox you can be sure that none of the products will contain even traces of dairy.  We include food and snack items that are high in nutrition, including essential vitamins and minerals, and taste wonderful, as well as delicious recipes, nutrition information, health tips, and special gift items from us. We want you to discover great tastes, share with your friends, and become a part of our healthy eating community.

Besides assisting parents with having safe foods readily available for their child or children living with food allergies, have you heard of other uses for TasterieBoxes (gifts from grandparents, use as treat boxes in schools or camps, snacks for travel, etc.)?

Absolutely!  College students, for example, love to get our snack boxes because they don’t have to think about whether their snacks are safe.   Sometimes their parents sign them up or they sign up themselves.  Over the holidays, we had a lot of TasterieBoxes given as gifts and for Valentine’s Day as well.   We have had some members send their boxes to their travel destinations, so that they are waiting for them on arrivals. They really are versatile and can really help you feel more secure when you are traveling to a new place!

As a pediatrician and mom, what advice can you give to moms, dads, grandparents and babysitters of children newly diagnosed with food allergies?

Two things come to mind:

1. You are not alone!  There are a lot of people out there who are coping with food allergies and you can find a lot of help out there to get you through this.


2. It takes time to figure it out.  It took me 2 months to figure out how to really get dairy and soy out of my diet.  There definitely was a learning curve, even with my medical background.  It is why I started Tasterie.com. I really want to make it easier for people to adjust to life without the foods that they are so used to.  It is hard to make that change.  Tasterie.com is here to help.

It is often overwhelming for families coping with food allergies to try to create a sense of normalcy while reading food labels and dealing with restrictions.  What tips can you offer to make things easier?

I find that the first few months on a restricted diet are the hardest.  The allergens seem to come out of the woodwork.  I will never forget being shocked when I discovered that most restaurants cook with soybean oil.  It just didn’t occur to me.  After a few months, you have a general idea of which products are definitely a no-no, which ones are possibly okay and which ones are definitely okay.  With allergies, you have to read the labels all the time and I think that it just becomes second nature at some point.

We actually have designed a GoGlutenFree box specifically for people that have just been diagnosed with Celiac Disease, gluten intolerance or gluten sensitivity.   We created it with this specific problem in mind.  I have had so many patients ask me “What do I eat?” or “What do I feed him or her?” after a diagnosis of an allergy or celiac disease.  That was my question when my little one was diagnosed.  We are hoping that this will help people with that initial period of transition with great gluten free meals and snacks, delicious recipes and useful health tips!

Last, but not the least, we have created an amazing community of people on our Tasterie facebook and twitter pages.  We share names of new products and vendors, news about product recalls or alerts, and reviews of recipes, food allergy related cookbooks, and other things that generally ease a food-allergy friendly lifestyle. We also have a newsletter that we send out with fun and useful information.  We love for people to join us on our social media sites and share their experiences.

As a company, how does Tasterie handle advisory statements such as "made in a facility which processes products containing dairy, egg, gluten, soy or wheat" or "may contain dairy, egg, gluten, soy or wheat"?

Unfortunately, advisory statements such as “made in a facility which processes products containing peanuts” are voluntary.  It is the choice of the manufacturer to include an advisory statement and is not required by law.  Just because a product doesn’t have an advisory statement doesn’t mean that the product should be considered safe.  If a product does have an advisory statement it is not necessarily unsafe.   We screen the manufacturers’ processes to determine whether a product is safe or unsafe.  Our process goes far beyond checking the labels and looking for advisory statements.  I have given a little more detail below.

How do you ensure that the products you are using are allergen free?

We have strict allergen control standards (http://www.tasterie.com/shop/allergens/).  So, for example, in our Gluten Allergy, Wheat Allergy & Dairy Allergy TasterieBoxes, the products must be made without using any gluten, wheat or dairy.  The manufacturer is required to verify that the products as well as the ingredients used to make these products do not have gluten, wheat or dairy.  If the facility processes gluten, wheat or dairy or if shared equipment is used, the manufacturer must verify that strict allergen control processes, including testing (to <20ppm for gluten), are in place to prevent cross contact and cross contamination.  Our protocol was developed with the help of industry experts and allergists.  It is really important to us that our products are safe.

For every TasterieBox that you ship out, you donate to feed the hungry.  It's a wonderful idea.  Why was it important to you and Tasterie to give back to the community?

The fundamental philosophy behind Tasterie.com is to help people.  But there are many others in our society who are simply unable to pay for even some of the basic needs in life.  As a company we want to be able to help everyone, regardless of their income levels, or ability to pay.  So we try to do our part by donating meals from whatever profit we make.  I tell you, it’s an incredible feeling to go to sleep knowing somebody else got a good day’s meals because you cared enough to donate a small bit.  I encourage everyone to do it.

What do you love most about your job?

I love the fact that we are really helping people. Here is a note I just got today from one of our subscribers:

“Thank you so much!!!!  We are really enjoying the boxes!  Thank you for introducing us to new HEALTHY food!  As I am sure you know, navigating this world with a long list of allergies with young kids is a challenge.  So thanks for all of the help!”

The number of children in the US being diagnosed with food allergies is staggering, do you have any thoughts on why the numbers have grown considerably of late?

I wish I could tell you that I knew the answer to that question.  I often wonder what I ate or was exposed to that made my little one develop his food allergies.  It is a question a mom never really wants to ask herself.  What did I do wrong?

As a doctor I can tell you that no one really knows.  There are a lot of theories out there, including pesticide exposure, GMO exposure, delayed introduction of solids and the environment.  For example, several studies have shown that living on a farm decreases the chances of food allergies, but nobody really knows why.  It is probably a combination of a lot of different things that is making this increase occur.  I am hopeful that we will be able to figure it out so that we can stop this increase and that we will find ways to.

As a mom of two young children, a pediatrician and CEO of Tasterie, how do you carve out time for yourself, and what do you do for your own self-care?

It really is hard to find time for myself.  My husband and I went on our first trip alone last month. It was amazing.  We looked at each other and said, “I remember this.”  It was funny, but you forget what life used to be like before kids.  They are so all consuming, but it definitely is worth it.  Between pediatrics, Tasterie and the kids, my schedule is pretty full.  I find that having the three actually gives my life a balance.  I like it.

What are some of your favorite websites dealing with allergies, for example, support groups, resources, allergy free products, food bloggers living with food allergies, etc.?

I have to say that some of my favorite sites belong to our Customer Advisory Council members.  I have learned so much from them!  I highly recommend visiting them to find great ideas on allergy-free living, how to deal with special events like birthdays or weddings, great recipes for regular meals or fancy dinners, and health-related information. I also really appreciate what Kids with Food Allergies Foundation is doing, and I absolutely love Allergy Home with its focus on providing free food allergy education to all.

My experience as a mom of children with severe food allergies is that most people are beyond concerned and understanding regarding the safety of my children.  I know from speaking to other friends parenting children with food allergies though, that sadly this isn't always the case.  What do you think we can collectively do to help dispel food allergy myths, and make those who might think some parents are "overreacting," understand the severity of food allergies?

I agree that people really don’t understand food allergies.  If you have never dealt with them, you really don’t get it.  I remember a waiter telling me, only after I ate a spread that he had brought for me, that it had yogurt in it. I looked at him in shock. I specifically had told him that I could not have milk or dairy.  I had to pump and dump my breast milk for three days so that the baby wouldn’t get sick.  Imagine that situation and you yourself having the allergy.  It could have been deadly.

I think that the new ruling on food allergies being a disability has a lot of potential.  I am not sure that it is the right way to help people understand that this is a real and dangerous problem, but it may force people to become more aware.  I think that people don’t get that someone could die.  I see that with the manufacturers sometimes.  We have definitely had to take some off our list because they just don’t get how important it is that their products don’t have cross contact with the allergens.

You started Tasterie a little over a year ago, what is the most surprising thing you learned in the process?

I have to say that I am surprised and overwhelmed by the outpouring of support we have received from the food allergy community.  It really has been so amazing for us.  I absolutely love to get messages from our followers that let us know when we are doing things right, but even more importantly when we are doing something wrong.  It has been an incredible experience!

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