In recent years, demand for foods that don't rely on animal products has spiked. More than $16 billion in vegan food products moved off of shelves in the US in 2022, and that number is expected to rise to nearly $30 billion by 2030. The thing is, a lot of people moving into the animal-friendly food space need to be made aware that some of the foods they assume don't include animal products do. In this post, the team at Rocky Mountain Soda Co. looks at ten foods and beverages that aspiring vegans might want to avoid.
Refried Beans
We start here because beans are commonly considered the vegan's best friend. They're tasty, loaded with protein, and contain no GMOs, so you don't have to go to a specialty store to find them. So, who could blame you for walking into the local Mexican restaurant and ordering some of their delicious refried beans? No one. Right? Wrong!
The problem is that refried beans get their wonderfully gooey consistency not from being repeatedly cooked and broken down but from adding lard, i.e., animal fat. And that's true whether you buy your refried beans in a restaurant or off the shelf in cans. A few companies make vegetarian refried beans, but for those, you probably will have to venture out to a specialty store.
Beer and Wine
It's a lot of work avoiding animal products in food and drink, and every once in a while, the dedicated animal lover may want to kick back, exhale, and relax with a glass of wine or an icy-cold brew. Unfortunately, that fruit of the vine or epic craft beer may not be as animal-friendly as you think it is. That's because while the foundational ingredients used to create most wine and beer are thoroughly plant-based, the same can't be said for some of the ingredients used in processing it before it's put into bottles or cans.
"Wine is made from grapes, but that does not necessarily make it vegetarian or vegan. Some winemaking methods make surprising use of animal-derived products, which is why an increasing number of producers state whether the wine is vegan or vegetarian on the label."
—Anne Krebiehl, Master of Wine
For instance, white wine uses something called "isinglass" to remove cloudiness from the finished product. But isinglass is an animal product made from fish. When it comes to beer, fish oil, gelatin, egg whites, and milk protein are commonly used during processing to give a particular beer its characteristic color, flavor, and foamy head.
isinglass • a type of gelatin derived from the dried bladders of fish (especially sturgeon), often used as a clarifying agent in alcoholic beverages, jellies and glue.
Candy
Candy may seem a non-controversial choice for those trying to tow the animal-friendly line. After all, it's usually just some sugar and flavoring. Or is it? The chewy goodness of gummy bears is achieved by adding gelatin. And gelatin, like lard, is a type of animal fat. It's made by boiling the pig and cow parts.
Some candies contain shellac. And if that word sounds familiar to you, it might be because shellac was used in the wood varnish you used when you refinished your end tables last year. Yet here, it is employed by candy makers to give their products a glossy sheen. But that's not all. If your candy is red, there's a good chance that color was derived from dead insects.
Juice
Hey, what's not to like about juice? It's about as plant-based and animal-friendly as you can get. And while that may be true for some high-end brands, the mass-produced fruit juices you find in the convenience store or supermarket can be problematic.
Many juice makers use gelatin to clarify their products. And at the risk of sounding like a broken record, we'll repeat that gelatin is a type of animal fat. Many juices also use grease, fish oil, and even sheep's wool, which they glean vitamin D3 to add to their products. So, while your favorite juice may proudly proclaim that it contains no GMOs, it may contain animal products.
Worcestershire Sauce
Worcestershire Sauce has been a staple of the well-stocked kitchen for more than 150 years and adds a salty, vinegary kick to various dishes. It's particularly popular as a meat marinate but can also be found in salad dressings and other tangy, savory sauces. Most people don't think twice about adding it to their dishes, but if they want to ensure they're eating an animal-friendly diet, they should.
Worcestershire Sauce includes an ingredient called "umami", which sounds innocent enough but is actually made from anchovies, those tiny, salty fish often added to Caesar salad, pizza, and other dishes. And anchovies, being living things, well... you get the picture.
umami • one of the five basic tastes, alongside sweet, sour, bitter, and salty. It is often described as a savory or meaty flavor and is commonly found in foods rich in glutamates, such as meats, cheese, tomatoes, and fermented products like soy sauce.
Marshmallows
There couldn't be animal products in those cute, sweet, puffy little campfire confections, could there? Unfortunately, the answer is "yes". While marshmallows look like little more than fluffy pillows of vanilla sugar, that adorable puffiness results from gelatin. And as we've mentioned a couple of times already, gelatin is a type of animal fat.
Gelatin is typically made by boiling pig and cattle skin, ligaments, and other body parts obtained at the slaughterhouse. Without the gelatin, marshmallows wouldn't have the same agreeably gooey texture we all knew and loved as kids. One bright spot in the mallow-verse is that a few companies are attempting to produce animal-friendly marshmallows using seaweed to achieve puffiness. So far, the results have garnered mixed reviews.
Bread
It's well-known that most bread contains gluten. For people looking to eat healthier, that's a big no-no. But even breads that advertise themselves as gluten-free may be hiding a dark, cannibalistic secret. "How's that?" You say. We'll tell you.
Most mass-produced bread doughs use "dough conditioner," which sounds inoffensive enough. Dough conditioner is the amino acid L-cysteine, which helps speed up baking. But here's the rub: it turns out that the most common sources of L-cysteine are duck feathers and human hair follicles. That's right. Human hair. However, dough conditioner is not only used in bread. It can also be found in tortillas, bagels, pizza crust and other foods.
Honey
Honey is a controversial topic as opinions are evenly split over whether it contains animal products. Most of the "honey is not animal-friendly" argument centers on the following three considerations:
- Exploitation of Bees — Vegans avoid honey because it involves the exploitation of bees. Bees work hard to produce honey, and taking it from them can be seen as using them for human benefit, which goes against vegan principles of avoiding the use of animals and their products.
- Harm to Bees — The process of commercial honey production can harm bees. Practices such as clipping the wings of queen bees, replacing their natural food (honey) with sugar substitutes, and the destruction of hives during harvesting are common and can be detrimental to bee health and survival.
- Impact on Bee Populations — Honey production can negatively impact bee populations. Intensive farming practices can lead to the spread of diseases and parasites among bees, contributing to colony collapse disorder and declining bee populations.
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