Sugar
Although it might seem like a simple ingredient, sugar is often not vegan. This is because sugar cane is often processed with animal products like bone char. Bone char is made by heating animal bones to high temperatures, and it removes impurities from the sugar. As a result, many vegans choose to avoid sugar with bone char. In addition, some sugar companies use beeswax to coat their sugar products. This means that vegans who consume sugar may inadvertently be consuming beeswax, an animal product. For these reasons, vegans should check the labels of any sugar products before consuming them. By doing so, they can be sure they are not consuming animal-based ingredients.
Bread
Though veganism is on the rise, with more and more people looking to ditch animal products for ethical or environmental reasons, the ingredients in bread can still trip up those trying to avoid them. That’s because many breads, even ones that don’t contain eggs or dairy, rely on “milk powder” or “whey,” which are both derived from milk. In addition, some types of bread contain honey, an animal by-product. Furthermore, some forms of bread contain l-cysteine, an amino acid often sourced from duck feathers. As a result, vegans must be careful when choosing bread, as common varieties are unsuitable for their diet. However, there are a growing number of vegan-friendly breads on the market, so it’s getting easier to find options that fit a vegan lifestyle.
Miso Soup
Many people believe miso soup is a vegan dish, as it is typically made with vegetable broth and does not contain any meat or dairy products. However, traditional Japanese soup contains dashi, a type of fish broth. This broth is what gives miso soup its distinct flavor. As a result, vegans should avoid miso soup unless it contains vegan-friendly dashi or broth. If you want a Japanese soup suitable for vegans, try vegan udon soup. This soup is made with a vegetable-based broth and contains no animal products.
