jennifer harris
Jennifer Harris was diagnosed with celiac disease more than 15 years ago after having symptoms for almost 20 years. Today she is striving, not suffering, living a gluten-free lifestyle and has turned her diagnosis into a thriving and rewarding career that gives her the opportunity to help the newly diagnosed.
Jennifer got her start in the industry as a Gluten Free Product Specialist at a local health food store in Atlanta, GA. There she was the gluten-free buyer and worked to ensure the store had the largest selection of gluten-free products in metro Atlanta. Through this job, she developed vendor contacts and discovered industry trends that helped her make proactive buying decisions. Jennifer conducted store tours, compiled gluten-free product lists, researched and recommended new product lines, and tagged all of their gluten-free items to make shopping easier. Jennifer credits this job with developing her passion for gluten-free products.
Jennifer has given generously of her time over the year by volunteering as the program chair for the Gluten Intolerance Group of Atlanta, where she wrote their bi-monthly newsletter, maintained their gluten-free restaurant and bakery listings, set the meeting schedule for the year, and coordinated their gluten-free expos. She also served on the planning committee for Camp WeeKanEatIt as the food chair for three years. Jennifer worked with camp staff to create an intriguing menu filled with camp-themed goodies and solicited donations from manufacturers to round out the menu and to create goodie bags for the campers.
While working as a gluten-free product specialist, Jennifer began writing as the Atlanta Gluten-Free Food Examiner for Examiner.com in 2009. More than three years have passed, and Jennifer has written in excess of 1,000 articles on the gluten-free lifestyle. Information on local restaurants and bakeries, product reviews and recommendations, local and international travel, and local and national news, can be found on her page.
Jennifer transitioned to the role of marketing coordinator at Pure Knead, a dedicated gluten-free and allergen-friendly bakery in Decatur, GA in 2011. Michelle Kelly, owner, was the first person to hire Jennifer to consult and then offered her a job. Jennifer enjoys working with local health food stores, restaurants, and consumers to ensure Pure Knead’s products are available for sale in metro-Atlanta. Jennifer coordinates Pure Knead’s participation in local events and she is responsible for their social media presence.
Jennifer has been interviewed and quoted in numerous articles and media outlets, such as: Cook Bliss, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, CNN, Atlanta Parent Magazine, The Associated Press, Georgia Public Broadcasting, and she appeared on Focus Atlanta’s segment on celiac disease entitled “Gluten Free?”
Jennifer currently owns her own consulting company where she provides restaurant and product consulting for local businesses. Some of her clients include: YEAH! Burger, Farm Burger, Sprig Restaurant, Fox Den Pizza, and Frannie’s Gluten Free.
http://www.examiner.com/glutenfree-food-in-atlanta/jennifer-harris
https://twitter.com/jenniferGFinGA
https://www.facebook.com/jennifer.harris.50951
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