Ingredients · B&G Foods

Is Tone's taco seasoning gluten-free?

Evidence

CPublished label or regulation

Last checked

2026-08-13

Varies by country

No

Source mccormick.com+9 more

Why

You are right to ask this question about taco seasoning specifically. It is one of the few things in the spice aisle with a functional reason to contain flour, and several mainstream packets act on it.

Taco seasoning is not just spice. It is spice plus a thickener. Tone's own description calls it "a complete mix that thickens as you cook." Something has to do that thickening, and also keep a hygroscopic powder from caking in a 23 oz jar. Wheat flour is the cheapest ingredient that does both jobs at once, which is why it has been a standard bulking agent in this category for decades.

Here is the proof that this is not paranoia. Lawry's Taco Seasoning Mix (a McCormick brand, on the same shelf as Tone's in most US supermarkets), reads: "Spices (Including Paprika, Cumin, Oregano, Chili Pepper), Onion, Salt, Lactose (Milk), Sugar, Garlic, Enriched Wheat Flour (Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Cocoa Powder Processed with Alkali and Natural Flavor." Allergen line: "Contains: Wheat, Milk." A straightforward no, published by the manufacturer, on one of the best-selling taco packets in the country.

Now Tone's specifically. The current tones.com panel reads: "Dried chili pepper and other spices, corn flour, salt, dextrose, maltodextrin, onion powder, garlic powder, silicon dioxide (to prevent caking), disodium inosinate, extractives of paprika (color), natural flavor, extractives of onion." No wheat. No "Contains" allergen statement on the page either, and no gluten-free claim. The page carries only the standing disclaimer: "Product formulation and packaging may change. Please refer to the product label for the most accurate information."

But the wheat-flour version is thoroughly documented, including by B&G itself. Ingredient databases and UPC records still carry a different panel: "Chili pepper and other spices, wheat flour, salt, dextrose, maltodextrin, onion powder, garlic powder, disodium inosinate, extractive of paprika (as color), spice extractives, onion extractives, less than 2% silicon dioxide", with "Contains wheat." And in September 2021, B&G Foods issued a voluntary allergy alert on 3,867 cases of the 23 oz jar that had been mislabelled on the back with Lemon Pepper Seasoning Blend labels. The give-away sentence in B&G's own release: "Containers labeled as Tone's Taco Seasoning Blend on both the front and back of the container correctly declare the presence of wheat." The product contained wheat; the recall existed because some jars failed to say so.

So the panel appears to have moved from wheat flour to corn flour, and we cannot date the change. B&G has never published a gluten statement on this product, there is no certification, and no cross-contact information exists for the blend. That is the textbook definition of unverified: not gluten-free, because nobody at B&G has said so; not not-gluten-free, because the current published panel contains no gluten grain.

How to tell which jar you are holding: read ingredient number two. "Wheat flour" or a "Contains: Wheat" line means no. "Corn flour" with no wheat declaration means no declared gluten source, but an uncertified, untested spice blend, which is a weaker assurance than the certified packets sitting beside it.

How much risk is this?

Celiac disease: don't buy it, because you don't have to. There are four taco seasonings on the same aisle with published gluten-free claims. Choosing an uncertified blend whose recent history includes a wheat-flour formulation and a wheat mislabelling recall is taking a risk for no benefit. If you already own a corn-flour jar with no wheat declaration, treat it as "no gluten ingredients," not as tested.

Non-celiac gluten sensitivity: the corn-flour jar is fine. The wheat-flour jar is not, and there is enough of it in the blend that you would notice.

Wheat allergy: wheat is a FALCPA major allergen, so a US panel with no wheat listed and no "Contains: Wheat" line is meaningful evidence. The 2021 recall is the honest caveat on that: a declaration is only as good as the label that got applied to the jar.

Large jars and foodservice sizes: the 23 oz jar is the one most often shown with the wheat-flour panel, and big containers turn over slowly in club stores and restaurant kitchens. If you can't inspect the tub, assume nothing, and in a taqueria, ask what is in the seasoning rather than whether the tacos are gluten-free.

What to have instead

Related questions

Does taco seasoning normally contain wheat? Often enough that it is the right thing to check. The mix is sold as a thickener as well as a flavouring, and wheat flour is the cheapest ingredient that thickens and stops caking. Lawry's declares it outright; Tone's declared it until recently. Others use corn starch instead.

Is Lawry's taco seasoning gluten-free? No. The McCormick panel lists enriched wheat flour and the allergen line reads "Contains: Wheat, Milk." This one is unambiguous.

Is McCormick taco seasoning gluten-free? Two different products, two answers. McCormick Gluten Free Taco Seasoning Mix carries the claim and the validated line. McCormick Original Taco Seasoning Mix uses corn starch and contains no gluten ingredient, but carries no gluten-free claim on its page.

Is Old El Paso taco seasoning gluten-free? Yes, General Mills puts a "Gluten Free" claim on the Original Taco Seasoning Mix on its own site, and the panel is corn starch based.

Was Tone's taco seasoning recalled for wheat? Yes, in September 2021: B&G Foods recalled 3,867 cases of the 23 oz jar because some containers carried Lemon Pepper back labels that failed to declare the wheat the product contained. That recall is long closed, its relevance now is what it tells you about the formulation of the time.

Are Tone's other seasoning blends gluten-free? We haven't assessed them, and you shouldn't assume. Gluten claims live per product, not per brand, and Tone's makes blends across a wide range of formulations.

How we checked

Overall source tier: C. Everything load-bearing here is label-grade: Tone's own page gives an ingredient list and nothing more, and B&G has never spoken to the gluten question about this product. The 2021 recall release is B&G's own words, but it addresses the wheat allergen rather than gluten, and it describes a 2021 formulation, not today's.

Last verified: 13 August 2026. Formulations change without notice, and two different Tone's panels are documented in the wild. The label on your jar outranks this page: check ingredient two, and check for a "Contains: Wheat" line.