Gluten Free Colin Release Date: M&S Jan 28 2026 Launch

Colin the Caterpillar has been off-limits for coeliac shoppers for years—but no more. M&S confirmed its most-requested product ever will launch as a gluten-free version on January 28, 2026, finally closing a gap that coeliac shoppers and their families have been pressing the retailer to fill for over a decade.

Release Date: January 28, 2026 · Price: £9.50 · Retailer: M&S Foodhall · Availability: UK and Ireland stores · Original Colin Launch: 2012

Can you get a gluten free Colin the Caterpillar?

Yes—and the wait is almost over. M&S announced the gluten-free Colin the Caterpillar in January 2026, with the cake landing on shelves on January 28, 2026 (Good Housekeeping UK). The retailer calls it the most requested product innovation in its gluten-free range, a title backed by years of sustained pressure from coeliac shoppers and their families on social media.

Release date confirmation

The January 28, 2026 launch applies to all M&S stores across the UK and Ireland, plus online delivery through Ocado (Good Housekeeping UK). That date was first flagged in M&S Foodhall’s own social channels announcing “GLUTEN. FREE. COLIN” to eager followers (Metro.co.uk).

Store availability

The gluten-free Colin will sit alongside the original in every M&S Foodhall location, not locked to a limited pilot rollout. M&S confirmed the cake is available in all M&S stores (Good Housekeeping UK), with Ocado as the online partner for home delivery.

The implication: Colin the Caterpillar joins a short list of UK supermarket celebration cakes with a dedicated gluten-free variant—M&S appears to be the first major retailer to make this move in the caterpillar-cake segment.

Is gluten free Colin the Caterpillar in Ireland?

Irish M&S shoppers are included in the January 28, 2026 rollout. The cake lands in Irish M&S shops on the same day as the UK launch (Good Housekeeping UK), and coverage from Irish outlets confirms the country is part of the initial distribution (Marca.ie). Ireland has one of the highest coeliac prevalence rates in Europe, making the market particularly significant for this launch.

Irish M&S launch details

The Republic of Ireland’s M&S Foodhall estate will stock the gluten-free Colin from day one, with all locations receiving the cake on January 28, 2026. Coeliac Ireland endorsed the launch as a win for the Irish coeliac community (Marca.ie), given the country’s elevated coeliac population relative to other European markets.

Coeliac Society context

The Irish coeliac community has been vocal about the lack of celebration cakes meeting gluten-free standards at mainstream retailers. The gluten-free Colin launch was described as a long-awaited release by the industry (British Baker trade publication), and Irish advocacy groups have celebrated the news as filling a genuine gap in the market for coeliac and gluten-free shoppers (Good Housekeeping UK).

What this means: Ireland’s coeliac prevalence rate—among the highest in Europe—makes it a proving ground. If the launch resonates with Irish shoppers, it could strengthen M&S’s case for permanent national stocking.

How much is M&S gluten free Colin the Caterpillar?

The gluten-free Colin costs £9.50 (Good Housekeeping UK), matching the regular Colin pound-for-pound. At 640g, it’s actually 15g larger than the original (Good Housekeeping UK), making it marginally better value for money on a per-gram basis despite the identical price point.

Price comparison

Pricing parity between the original and gluten-free versions is notable because gluten-free ingredients typically drive up production costs. M&S absorbed that premium rather than passing it to the consumer, positioning the £9.50 price tag as a deliberate accessibility move. The product is made without wheat and is gluten-free (Marks & Spencer product listing) while carrying the same retail price as the standard cake.

Value for coeliacs

For coeliac shoppers, the value calculation extends beyond price per gram. Celebration cakes that are reliably gluten-free and available year-round at a high-street retailer reduce the need for specialist online orders or costly custom bakes. The £9.50 price point puts Colin in the same bracket as mainstream celebration cakes at other retailers, rather than the premium gluten-free niche.

Colin’s proximity to standard celebration cake pricing sets it apart—most gluten-free alternatives carry a noticeable premium. M&S keeping price parity suggests the retailer views coeliac loyalty as worth more than a short-term margin bump.

Do M&S do a gluten free Colin the Caterpillar?

Yes—M&S confirmed the gluten-free Colin as the most requested innovation in its range, a designation backed by sustained campaigning from the coeliac community (British Baker). The product is described as a sibling to the original Colin (Good Housekeeping UK), and M&S states it maintains the iconic Colin deliciousness while removing gluten entirely.

Announcement sources

The official announcement came through M&S Foodhall’s social channels (“GLUTEN. FREE. COLIN”) before broader media pickup. Trade publication British Baker covered the launch as a significant development for the UK bakery sector (British Baker), while consumer-facing outlets like Metro.co.uk reported on the January 28, 2026 date.

Ingredients overview

The gluten-free Colin is vegetarian and made without wheat, with product code 29472727 (Marks & Spencer official product page). Allergens present include eggs, milk, and soya. The product is not suitable for those with nut or peanut allergies (Marks & Spencer official product page). M&S describes it as manufactured in the United Kingdom (Ocado listing) and notes it should not be frozen at home.

The pattern: M&S went direct to its own social channels first, leveraging existing coeliac community anticipation before mainstream food media picked it up. That sequencing signals the launch was as much about rewarding loyal followers as announcing to the mass market.

When did Colin the Caterpillar come out?

The original Colin the Caterpillar launched in 2012, making the gluten-free variant a 14-year evolution of the classic product. The gluten-free Colin has been in development for approximately five years (Good Housekeeping UK), involving what M&S describes as extensive testing, tweaking and taste-checking to get the recipe right without compromising on flavour, fun or chocolatey goodness.

Original launch

Colin debuted in 2012 as M&S Foodhall’s take on the segment of caterpillar cakes popularised across European markets. Over the following decade, Colin became a birthday-party staple and a regular feature in M&S bakery lines, with the chocolate-covered sponge character recognisable to a generation of British shoppers.

Gluten-free version timeline

M&S began serious development of the gluten-free variant around 2021, with an internal commitment to cracking a recipe that met coeliac safety standards without alienating fans of the original. The retailer described the project as delivering “all the iconic Colin deliciousness, minus the gluten” (Marks & Spencer official product page).

The gap between original launch (2012) and gluten-free launch (2026) reflects how technically demanding it is to remove gluten while preserving the sensory experience shoppers expect from a celebration cake. M&S’s five-year development window and the price parity decision both suggest this was treated as a prestige project rather than a routine line extension.

“Our Made Without Wheat Gluten Free Colin the Caterpillar has all the iconic Colin deliciousness, minus the gluten.”

— Marks & Spencer Foodhall (retailer)

“Years in the making, this gluten-free Colin doesn’t compromise on flavour, fun or chocolatey goodness.”

— Marks & Spencer (retailer)

“In what feels like an absolute eternity for coeliacs and gluten-free shoppers everywhere, M&S has finally delivered the news you’ve been waiting for.”

— Good Housekeeping UK (consumer publication)

The gluten-free Colin is a rare case of a brand acting on sustained consumer demand rather than launching a product into a gap it discovered itself. M&S absorbed the recipe complexity and kept pricing flat—choices that signal the retailer sees loyal coeliac shoppers as worth retaining rather than exploiting through premium pricing. Whether that goodwill converts into repeat purchases will depend on taste tests once the cake lands on shelves.

Related reading: Ocado M&S Partnership · M&S Trousers Size Guide

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