Another company that has been conducting research into the gluten free market is Honeybuns bakery in Dorset, which has recently unveiled a new gluten-free savoury traybake under the BumbleO brand. Based on the Italian street food farinata, it comprises a base made from buckwheat flour and chickpeas, topped with Dorset onion marmalade, Denhay West Country cheddar, Stilton and roast tomatoes.

During the product's development, managing director Emma Goss-Custard went through a rigorous consultation process with consumers, wholesalers and retailers. "We sent out over 200 questionaires to get people's views on gluten-free products and used this information to develop three prototypes, which we also sent out, " she says. It was immediately clear that there was a big gap for savoury gluten-free products, so Honeybuns devleoped a single-serve product made with a savoury shortbread base and a topping-a bit like a pizza slice. However, people found the base was too crumbly to eat on the go. "Part of the problem with baking without gluten is that there is no elasticity in the dough," says Goss-Custard.

In the end, the answer was to make a product with a softer base using olive oil, which is available in two or six-slice versions as well as a larger food service pack. "We've received a lot of positive feedback from caterers who don't have facilities in their busy kitchens to create gluten-free food safe from contamination, " says Goss-Custard. Packaged in a funky leopard skin print pack, you might not immediately realise that BumbleO is a gluten-free product. "I didn't plaster "gluten- free" all over the pack because no-one but coeliacs would eat it, she says."I wanted to create a lovely,luscious thing for everyone to buy. People who have gluten intolerance don't want to feel like they are different from everybody else."