Gluten-free pastries are displayed in a specialized patisserie on March 8, 2012 in Paris. The intolerance to glutena protein found in cereals such as wheatcan cause chronic diarrhea and vomiting. AFP PHOTO/Marina Helli

No-allergen pasta, vegan croissants, meatless hamburgers"free-from" food is one of the leading trends at this week's SIAL international food fair outside Paris, where companies say Europeans are starting to care as much about what is left out of their food as what goes in.

"Consumers have changed," said Elisabeth Leitner, export manager for Probios, an Italian company specialising in organic products and creator of vegan croissants, pointing to growing concerns about allergies and the environmental and health impacts of meat.

"There are more people leading alternative lifestyles. And people are talking about food and health on sites like Facebook and Twitter."

In France, four percent of people say they follow a diet free from gluten -- a protein found in wheat, rye and barleyalong with eight percent in Italy, seven percent in Germany and six percent in Spain, according to Mintel, a London based market research company.

Anti-gluten fever

Gluten-free foods are essential for people who suffer from celiac disease, an auto-immune condition characterised by diarrhoea, vomiting and bloating after the ingestion of gluten.

However many consumers buy them simply because they perceive the products as healthier.

This anti-gluten fever has swept the United States in recent years and has earned increasing criticism for being a money-spinning fad.

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Vegan croissants, gluten-free pasta: Europe wakes up to fussy eating