We’ve heard of the luxury tax. The premium that consumers pay for non-essential goods like a Mercedez, a Rolex, sashimi grade tuna etc. But what about your daily bread?

Only a few years ago, those living with coeliac disease and gluten sensitivities were the butt of many jokes, perceived as pedantic picky-eaters who were ditching carbs and ducking off to pilates classes. Nowadays – thankfully – most people are aware of the very real and debilitating effects that some rogue gluten can play on those with allergies. We’ve come a long way. Unfortunately, so has the gluten-free price tag.

Right now, a homebrand gluten-free chocolate chip cookie will set a coeliac back $2.90 for a 160 gram pack. A regular pack of chocolate chip cookies is $2.50 for 500 grams. That’s $1.81 per 100 grams versus 50 cents for the same weight.

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When professor Kelly Lambert of the University of Wollongong first studied the affordability of gluten-free diets back in 2016 she and her colleagues found that feeding a family of four was significantly more expensive for those living with gluten intolerances than those without. Revisiting those numbers in 2024, Lambert found that the cost of gluten-free goods has not only risen with inflation but has far exceeded it.

The study revealed that while some gluten-free staples have become more affordable, most of the shopping cart basics are four to five times the price of the regular products.

A loaf of white bread sits around $4.40, whereas its gluten-free counterpart lands at $7. You don’t need your calculator to know that these little things are going to add up quickly.

And of course, in our current climate, even those living without allergies are balking at the eye-watering cost of, well, everything. But before we chalk these gluten-free fees off as another casualty of inflation, it’s worth taking a look back in time.

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In part, the price gap can be attributed to production costs. If a regular product is mass-produced in very large quantities, it’s reasonable that smaller batches of gluten-free products – which require their own machinery and equipment – would cost more, at least in the beginning. However, when statistics report that one in 70 citizens has received a coeliac diagnosis, the luxury tax has been stamped onto basic necessities for around 360,000 Australians.

That’s a lot of lifelong consumers. A comprehensive 2023 study by Compare the Market also found that in on average in Australia, gluten-free products were 217.15 percent more expensive than gluten foods.

Living with an allergy or food sensitivity is tough. Having to pay a premium in order to eat safely is just salt in the wound.

What is gluten?

Gluten is a structural protein found in certain grains like wheat, rye, and barley. The term gluten usually refers to the elastic network of a wheat grain’s protein that forms with the addition of water and often kneading. When you allow your bread dough to rest, it is to let the gluten protein relax to create a more tender product. Some researchers believe that in people with gluten sensitivities, the lining of the digestive tract may not work as it should, allowing bacteria into the blood and causing inflammation.

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