General Questions

How did you decide to get into this business?

NuLife Foods is a brand new company but the individuals involved in the business have been in the food industry for over 30 years. The family that owns the company has been in the food business since 1979. Over the last 10 years, our focus has increasingly been on providing all natural, healthy foods and leading the industry in our various nutrition and education efforts. The company’s mission is enhancing life one meal at a time.

The focus on meals for families with autism originated with a simple personal conversation about family and friends struggling with adhering to the GFCF diet and lack of resources. It arose out of a realization that we could help our family, friends and neighbors dealing with the challenges of raising a child with autism by doing what we do best. NuLife Foods fits so perfectly within our mission and is an opportunity to give back to help the 1 in 110 kids affected by the growing epidemic of autism.

So, over the past year and a half, we have worked with doctors and nutritionists and families with kids on the spectrum to develop foods that are not only GFCFSF but that also have beneficial ingredients such as Omega-3s, lean proteins and healthier oils. Our goal is to help the families we serve to be free; free to live life to its fullest potential. Our products can be trusted to be all natural and fully tested for gluten, casein and soy, but they taste great also! We don’t want anyone to feel punished for being on this diet – you can stay the course and still enjoy the foods you eat.

Our goal is to make our great tasting food that just happens to be gluten, casein and soy free!

Our Advisors

Who are your advisors?

Dr. Bryan Jepson and Ms. Kelly Barnhill have been our advisors since the inception of the idea for NuLife Foods. They provide us advice and counsel and also help us manage the charitable donation portion of our program.

They have helped us better understand the medical science behind the GFCFSF diet and have reviewed and tested our products and every ingredient we source.

Bryan Jepson, M.D. is the Director of the Medical Center at Thoughtful House Center for Children and co-author of Changing the Course of Autism, a book covering the scientific rationale behind autism treatment. He is a frequent invited lecturer at medical conferences, and serves as a medical consultant for the Autism Research Institute. Dr. Jepson graduated from the University of Utah, School of Medicine in 1995 and completed residency training in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1998. He is board-certified in emergency medicine.

Kelly Barnhill, MBA, CN, CCN is the Director of the Nutrition Clinic at Thoughtful House Center for Children. She is a Certified Clinical Nutritionist with over a decade of experience working with nutrition in children with autism and related disorders. In addition to her clinical practice, Kelly also serves as the Thoughtful House Clinical Care Coordinator. In 2008, Kelly accepted the position of Nutrition Coordinator for the Autism Research Institute. Kelly is a sought-after presenter and speaks at several national and international conferences each year.

Shipping/Product Questions

Questions Regarding Shipping or Product Issues

Please call our customer service department to discuss any shipping or product issues or questions you may have. We are available M-F, 8-6 EST and are eager to help ensure that you have a positive shopping experience with NuLife Foods!

Standard Shipping

All orders with Standard Shipping are shipped out Monday through Wednesday for delivery in 1-2 days, to ensure delivery before the weekend. If you place your order on Monday, available products will ship on Tuesday, Tuesday orders ship on Wednesday, Wednesday through Friday orders ship on the following Monday, and Saturday and Sunday orders ship on the following Tuesday. Your products will be shipped in an insulated cooler with dry ice to ensure they remain frozen throughout shipping. Orders may be shipped to anywhere within the contiguous U.S.  For orders outside the U.S. or to Hawaii, Alaska or P.R., please contact NuLife Customer Service via email or our toll-free number for shipping options and costs. The following is a standard shipping chart to help illustrate:

Express Shipping

Orders with Express Shipping are shipped out Monday through Thursday for overnight delivery. Orders placed Monday through Wednesday are shipped the next day. Orders placed on Thursday through Sunday are shipped on Monday.

Shipping Guarantee

A tracking number will be emailed to you on the day your order ships and you are responsible for receiving the package on the first delivery attempt. You do not need to be present at the time of delivery, but you are responsible for ensuring that your order is placed in your freezer on the same day of delivery. We cannot be responsible for product damage resulting from failure to properly freeze product upon receipt. 

NuLife Foods guarantees that our frozen products will arrive to you at the proper temperature within the specified timeframe stated on your shipping confirmation. If this does not occur, we will provide replacement of any resulting damaged product and file a claim with the shipping company on your behalf. We don’t want our customers to have to worry about shipping problems-that’s OUR job!

I would like to place a bulk order. Is that possible?

Of course! Feel free to contact a customer service agent to help you organize your bulk order. We will be more than happy to provide you with a shipping quote, a pallet order form and help you work out all the logistics!

After leaving my computer idle, I returned and my shopping cart was empty and my information was missing! What happened?

Our system is designed with your safety in mind. For security reasons, our system will log you out and remove any personal information you may have entered, including your shopping cart, after an hour of your computer being idle. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you!

Do I need to be home for my shipment delivery?

No, you do not need to be home. A tracking number will be emailed to you on the day your order ships and you are responsible for receiving the package on the first delivery attempt. You do not need to be present at the time of the delivery, but you are responsible for ensuring that your order is placed in your freezer on the same day of delivery. We cannot be responsible for product damage resulting from failure to properly freeze product upon receipt.

What is your returns and refund policy?

For the safety of our customers, NuLife Foods cannot accept returned food items, regardless of their condition; therefore, an order that has shipped cannot be cancelled or returned and refunded. However, if you wish to cancel an order before it has been processed and shipped, you may call our customer service center to cancel your order and request a full refund.

Upon receipt of your NuLife Foods order, please review the contents as promptly as possible. If there are any issues or questions, please call or email our customer service department immediately. We will review your concerns and work with you to resolve your issue to the best of our ability. If there is an issue with any product, we may request that the product be returned for investigation and we will gladly issue a replacement product as appropriate. Please note that any issue with product or delivery must be reported within 3 days after delivery.

I see that products are shipped with dry ice. What is dry ice and how do I safely dispose of it?

We ship with dry ice to maintain freshness during transit. Dry ice is frozen carbon dioxide (CO²) which evaporates through a chemical process known as sublimation. The dry ice slowly dissipates during shipping and little to none may remain by the time you receive the product.

Dry ice is extremely cold (-109F) and may cause severe cold burns if not handled with gloves. However, it evaporates harmlessly into the air in a well ventilated area. Simply leave any remaining dry ice inside the cooler, in a well ventilated area, so it may continue to evaporate safely until none remains.

I live in Hawaii/ Alaska! What is the cost of shipping to me?

We would be happy to calculate that for you.  Shipment prices are calculated based on size, weight, and volume of the package so please contact our customer service department for more information.

Billing Inquiries

Billing Questions

Please contact customer service during normal business hours for all billing inquiries. We will do our best to resolve your issue as quickly as possible.

Ingredient Questions

How do you source your ingredients?

We carefully select every ingredient we use from a hand-picked list of trusted suppliers to ensure that our ingredients are gluten free, casein free and soy free. Every supplier we use must meet very strict requirements demonstrating that they practice Good Manufacturing Procedures and allergen testing to ensure the purity of their products. We also require full ingredient disclosure with allergen declarations and complete nutritional information for every product we source.

Are your products organic?

Although many of the ingredients we use are organic, currently our products are not certified organic. We are open to the possibility of offering organic products in the future if that is what our customers are interested in. 

Based on our research, we felt that we would be able to reach the most people on the GF/CF/SF diet if we concentrated on providing all natural products that are guaranteed to be free of gluten, casein and soy.  So, even though we are not certified organic, we have worked very closely with some of the most respected clinicians in the field of autism focused on the biomedical treatment approach to ensure that every ingredient we use meets their standards.  As a result of this collaboration, our products do not contain preservatives, artificial colors or flavors and are high in protein and omega-3 fatty acids and made with healthier oils and gluten free grains.

We also welcome any input you can provide if you would like to share your suggestions on ways we can better meet you and your family’s needs.

Is it really safe to cook foods in plastic?

NuLife product packaging is free of Bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates, which can leach into foods during cooking. They are rated as oven- and microwave safe containers. However, you can also choose to remove the food from the original container and place it in your own ceramic, metal or pyrex dish for cooking.

What are Bisphenol-A (BPA) and Phthalates?

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, "Phthalates are plasticizers that are added to polyvinyl chloride (PVC) products to impart flexibility and durability." They are found in many products, including food packaging, medical products, and toys. The issue is that the phthalates in plastics can leach out of these products and can end up contaminating food, soil, and air. Whether phthalates are harmful is controversial but, to be safe, the AAP reports that, "In the United States and Canada, all phthalates have been removed from infant bottle nipples, teethers, and toys intended for mouthing." The AAP also calls for more research on this issue.

Bisphenol-A or BPA is another chemical found in plastics and which can behave similar to estrogen and other hormones in our bodies. This is unlike phthalates, which are found in soft plastic products, BPA is found in hard plastics, like baby bottles and other plastic containers, such as plastic water bottles.

Do you use ABF Chicken?

All of the chicken we use is all natural and does not contain any hormones or antibiotics; but we are not marketing any of our products as certified antibiotic free. 

Do you use any GMO’s?

All of our products are free of any genetically modified organisms.

Do your foods contain Mono Sodium Glutamate MSG? I have heard that “natural flavors” and “yeast extract” can contain MSG.

No, our foods do not contain MSG. Our culinary team and nutritional advisors are fully aware of the concerns regarding MSG and its miscellaneous hiding places as well as natural flavor concerns.  We have worked hard to create products which taste great but also honor the multiple requirements of individuals with special dietary needs.  The yeast extract we have sourced contains no MSG, nor do our products contain chemical MSG derivatives, though there are minimal naturally occurring glutamates in some foods. The quantities of free glutamic acid brought by yeast extracts equal less than 100 mg per 100 g of food, to be compared to 140 or more mg per 100 g that are contained in fresh tomatoes, peas, corn, fish or mushrooms.

Please also be assured that the “natural chicken flavor” which we have sourced meets our stringent standards for being casein, gluten, and soy free and is tested with every batch we purchase and again with every product we create.   In addition, we have received written assurances from our supplier that the natural flavor does not contain MSG and is, in fact, proprietary natural spice blends.

GF/CF/SF Testing Questions

Have your products been tested for gluten, casein and soy?

Yes. Every product batch is laboratory tested before AND after it is made. Not only do we test every batch of food that is produced in our facility before it is put into inventory, but we also test every ingredient before it is used in production.

How can this be GF/CF/SF if the test only goes to 10 ppm?

I know that can be confusing but let us try and help clarify that for you. First, please be assured that all NuLife Foods products are gluten free, casein free and soy free.

For gluten, the FDA has standardized the term ‘gluten free’ to mean any food containing less than 20 parts per million of gluten. To help you visualize, 1 part per million is the equivalent of 4 drops of ink in a 55 gallon drum of water. However, based on our extensive research, we have set our testing level at 10 ppm, which we believe to be a safer level. Therefore, all our products must test at less than 10 parts per million in order to be labeled a NuLife Foods product.

For casein and soy, the terms ‘casein free’ and ‘soy free’ have not been specifically defined by the FDA. In response, NuLife Foods has conducted research and consulted with experts in the field and we have determined that our products should be tested at less than 10 parts per million to be considered casein free and soy free. Therefore, all our products must test at less than 10 parts per million for both casein and soy before they can be labeled a NuLife Foods product.

Manufacturing Questions

Your label says that your products are made in a factory that also processes gluten, casein and soy. How do you prevent cross-contamination?

That’s an excellent question and the answer is that we have many checks and balances to ensure the safety and purity of our foods.

First, we have what the industry calls Good Manufacturing Practices or “GMPs” in place that guide us in the proper handling of every item from the raw ingredients to the finished products. To prevent foods with allergens from contaminating our gluten free, casein free and soy free foods, our GMPs include:

• Documenting and following the proper procedures for completely sanitizing all pieces of equipment before making GFCFSF foods.
• Isolating GFCFSF ingredients from other ingredients in our warehouse and labeling them clearly.
• Isolating GFCFSF food production to alternate days or the beginning of a production run before non-GFCFSF foods are made.
• Testing the air and swab-testing equipment to make sure the environment is gluten, casein and soy free before beginning production.
• Lab-testing each product lot to ensure the absence of gluten, casein and soy.

Next, our food is produced in a USDA-inspected, FDA-approved manufacturing facility. That means that we are continuously inspected to ensure that we are in compliance with all USDA and FDA policies and procedures.

Finally, we are audited annually by an independent third-party auditor. The auditor sends a team of trained auditors to conduct a thorough inspection and audit. The audit evaluates the adequacy of documentation, compliance to documented procedures, effectiveness of procedures to control the process within defined limits and the ability to implement corrective and preventive action plans.