The Next Generation of Gluten-Free: Could Ancient Grains Lead the Way?

July 2026

Over the past two decades, the gluten-free category has undergone a remarkable transformation.

What began as a niche market serving people with coeliac disease has become one of the food industry's fastest-growing categories. Today, consumers expect gluten-free products that taste good, have an enjoyable texture and are available across almost every food category.

For manufacturers, that success didn't happen overnight. Years of research and development have helped solve one of the industry's biggest technical challenges: replacing the functionality of gluten.

So, what comes next?

From replacing gluten to improving the recipe

For much of the past two decades, gluten-free product development has focused on overcoming the technical challenges created by the absence of gluten.

Achieving the right texture, structure, volume, and shelf life has driven decades of innovation in flour blends, starches, and functional ingredients designed to replicate the performance of wheat.

That challenge is far from over. However, products such as Doves Farm's Ancient Grain range raise an interesting question. Could the next opportunity in gluten-free innovation lie not only in replacing gluten, but also in rethinking the flour blend itself?

Why rethink the flour blend?

Rice flour has played a vital role in the success of gluten-free products. Its neutral flavour, light colour, price and reliable functionality have made it one of the industry's most widely used gluten-free flours.

But today's food landscape looks very different from what it was when many gluten-free formulations were first developed.

Consumers are paying greater attention to whole-food ingredients, fibre, glycaemic response and ingredient quality. At the same time, manufacturers are looking for new ways to differentiate products in an increasingly competitive market. This raises an interesting question.

If a premium gluten-free flour blend were developed today, would it still rely so heavily on a single flour, or would it draw on the wider diversity of naturally gluten-free grains now available?

The Case for Ancient Grains

This is where ancient grains become particularly interesting.

Unlike many of today's widely used grains, gluten-free ancient grains such as teff, fonio, sorghum, millet, quinoa and buckwheat have remained largely unchanged for centuries and continue to play an important role in the regions where they originated.

What makes them attractive isn't simply their history. It's the diversity they bring.

Each grain offers its own nutritional profile, functional properties and growing characteristics. Some are naturally rich in fibre, others contain higher levels of protein or minerals, while some thrive in poor soils or drought-prone environments where conventional crops struggle.

In other words, they align with some of the food industry's biggest priorities, including ingredient diversity, whole-food nutrition and climate-resilient food systems.

Although ancient grains remain the exception rather than the norm in most gluten-free products, examples such as Doves Farm's Ancient Grain range demonstrate how they can be successfully incorporated into premium flour blends and finished products.

Rather than replacing conventional gluten-free ingredients altogether, ancient grains can broaden the formulator's toolkit.

Could fonio be next?

One ancient grain that remains relatively unknown in the UK is fonio. Cultivated in West Africa for more than 5,000 years, fonio combines several characteristics that make it particularly interesting for modern food innovation.

It is naturally gluten-free, has a low glycaemic index, is a good source of fibre and offers a well-balanced amino acid profile, including relatively high levels of methionine and cysteine, two amino acids that are often limiting in grains and are particularly valuable in plant-based product development. Among the world's smallest cereal grains, fonio is also naturally light and fluffy with a slightly nutty flavour, making it exceptionally versatile across a wide range of food applications.

From a sustainability perspective, fonio is equally compelling. It thrives in poor soils, requires no irrigation, matures in as little as six to eight weeks, and can grow in regions where many other cereals struggle. By far one of the world's most climate-resilient grains.

These characteristics have enabled communities across West Africa to cultivate it for millennia and may become increasingly relevant as climate resilience moves higher up the food industry's agenda.

Whether fonio becomes a mainstream ingredient remains to be seen. However, if manufacturers continue exploring ways to develop more diverse, nutritionally balanced, and differentiated gluten-free flour blends, fonio may prove to be another valuable ingredient to consider.

Looking ahead

The next generation of gluten-free innovation may not be defined by a breakthrough ingredient or a revolutionary new technology.

Instead, it may come from asking a different question. Rather than focusing solely on how to replace gluten, could the industry also rethink the grains used to replace wheat?

Ancient grains may not be the answer to every gluten-free formulation. But they offer manufacturers a wider range of nutritional, functional and sustainability characteristics than ever before.

For an industry built on innovation, that may be an opportunity worth exploring.

At Future Foods Africa, we're passionate about helping UK food businesses discover the potential of Africa's underutilised crops, starting with fonio. Whether ancient grains become the next chapter of gluten-free innovation or not, we believe broadening the industry's ingredient toolkit will be essential to building healthier, more resilient, and more diverse food systems.