12 Foods to Avoid When Eating Vegan

In 2024, the world is constantly changing, and people are becoming more mindful of what they eat. With many different diets out there, the most widespread one is Veganism.

Veganism is the practice of refraining from using animal products, particularly in diet. A related faith rejects animals’ commodity status. Vegans abstain from all animal products in their diet and lifestyle. Most vegans say they went vegan because they were concerned about animal welfare.

Knowing what to eat when going vegan is simple; knowing what not to eat is an entirely distinct tale. There are many foods that vegans cannot consume for various reasons.

We have compiled a list of foods to avoid for new vegans still deciding what to eat. We hope this eases their confusion and helps them become a true vegan. Let’s get started!

Different Types of Vegan Diets

Vegans can be extremely healthy if they adhere to their diet strictly. There are various types of vegan diets. It is critical to have a basic understanding of these diets to make the best decision. Here are some examples of well-known types:

Ø Vegan Whole-Food Diet

A whole-food vegan diet is one of the most widespread approaches to vegan eating. This nutrient-wise complete and well-rounded diet includes whole plant-based foods like fruits, whole grains, nuts, vegetables, legumes, and kernels.

Ø Junk-food vegans’ diet.

People on this diet eat many processed vegan foods like vegan meats, fries, frozen meals, and desserts like Oreo cookies and non-dairy ice cream.

Ø Vegan Raw Diet

The raw vegan diet is a diet that emphasizes eating raw and uncooked foods wherever possible to retain essential minerals and nutrients. The most significant sources of nutrition in this vegan diet plan are raw fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, and sprouts.

Ø Low-fat raw-food vegans.

This subset, also known as fruitarians, avoids high-fat foods like nuts, avocados, and coconuts in favor of fruit. They may consume tiny quantities of other plants on occasion.

12 Foods to Avoid When Eating Vegan

Vegans can not eat a wide range of foods, and there are reasons for each of them. Here, we have compiled a list of 12 foods each Vegan should avoid eating.

1.   Meat and animal byproducts

Vegans do not eat animal meat, whether it is farmed or hunted. Beef, chicken, pork, lamb, goat, duck, fish, and other meats are among them. The vegan diet also prohibits the consumption of animal byproducts such as fat, bone marrow, and lard.

Most vegans were raised eating animal flesh and have grown accustomed to how it tastes. However, once they realized that eating meat harms animals, the environment, and our health, the taste was no longer worth it.

2.    Fish

Vegans must also refrain from eating seafood. This includes all types of fish, anchovies, prawns, squid, scallops, calamari, mussels, crab, lobster, and fish sauce.

Vegans can make plant-based alternatives to real fish and seafood, such as carrot salmon, which tastes better than the real thing. Many brands also produce incredible vegan seafood that is also high in nutrition.

3.    Eggs

Chickens lay eggs, so they are considered animal-derived food or products of animal origin. So, whether they come from a small farm or a large factory, vegans cannot consume them.

Even so, some vegans are willing to include eggs in their diet. A vegan diet may consist of eggs, but a vegan diet that includes eggs is not truly vegan. Instead, it’s known as ovo-vegetarian. Lastly, there are also vegan substitutes for eggs that include ready-to-eat vegan egg omelets and other plant-based egg foods that are refrigerated or frozen. These are cholesterol-free but high in nutrition, such as vitamin B12 and protein.

4.    Honey

Vegans try to avoid or reduce all forms of cruelty to animals, including bee exploitation. Most vegans avoid honey because they believe it exploits bees. It is a food source for bees that helps the colony survive the winter. Vegans believe using bee labor and harvesting their energy source is unethical. Massive beekeeping activities can harm or kill bees.

Vegans substitute various plant-based sweeteners for honey, ranging from maple syrup to molasses from blackstrap molasses.

5.    Gelatin

Gelatin is a protein liquid boiling tendons, skin, ligaments, and bones produce. It is typically derived from dairy cows or pigs. Because the essential ingredient for gelatin is part of animals and its use is rarely required for survival, gelatin is a non-vegan product. All products containing it are no longer vegan and are no longer vegetarian.

However, a vegan product called “agar-agar” is sometimes sold as “gelatin.” It comes from a red algae plant.

6.    White Sugar

Most vegans avoid white sugar, and there is an explanation for this. It’s because a particular stage in the refining process involves passing sugar cane through a charcoal filter to remove contamination and whiten it. This charcoal is occasionally made from bone char, which is the charred bones of animals, mainly livestock and pigs.

Vegans also avoid brown sugar, powdered sugar, and raw sugar because they are all made from refined white sugar. But all is not lost, as some sugar manufacturers are vegan-certified. You should check the company’s website or PETA to learn more.

7.    Additives

Most products with nutritional information contain some sort of additive in them. The purpose of additives is to enhance food flavor, longevity, or the look or texture of products.

The majority of them are entirely secure, and many of them are even vegan-friendly, but there are a few that aren’t. As a result, vegans steer clear of foods containing these artificial ingredients. Several food additives are included in this list, including E120, E322, E422, E471, E542, E631, E901, and E904.

8.    Shellac

The excretions of an Asian beetle produce shellac. It is left on the bark, where it can be scratched off and harvested. This shellac glaze is responsible for the classic brightly colored waxy appearance of some fruits, such as lemons and oranges. Confectioners also use shellac to give their candy a pleasing shininess.

Shellac is technically an animal product, so it already does not qualify for a vegan diet. However, several vegan-friendly alternatives allow vegans to live their lives without purchasing shellac-containing products.

9.    Omega 3 Fatty Acid

Omega-3 fatty acids are fatty acids that you must obtain through food because your body can’t generate them on its own. They are essential components of the membranes that surround all cells in your body, and the condition of their cells is dependent on them.

The best-known sources of omega-3 fatty acids are fish oil and fatty fish. And since these are animal products, vegans cannot eat them. Fortunately, many vegan fish oil substitutes and vegan DHA supplements are on the market today. These will increase your omega-3 consumption and provide a plethora of additional nutrients needed for optimal health.

10. Beer

Most beers are simply water, malted barley, yeast, and hops. There are no issues there. However, a substance called isinglass is used in some brewing procedures, and it is usually the presence of this component that decides the vegan/non-vegan nature of the beer.

Isinglass is the most commonly used clarifying agent in brewing to make beer clear. It is not vegan because it is made from tropical and subtropical fish swim bladders. Fortunately, there are an increasing number of great vegan beer options, so check them out the next time you’re at the pub.

11.L-cysteine

Cysteine is an amino acid that is the primary protein found in nails, hair, and skin. It also plays a significant part in collagen production, which affects skin structure.

Although it can be derived from microbes or vegetables, most L. Cysteine originates from duck or goose feathers, hooves, and hogs. This sneaky supplementary is a problem for vegans who want to avoid eating any animal products.

12. Chocolate

Chocolate is created from cacao tree beans and is vegan. However, milk or milk products are sometimes added to dark chocolate, making it a no-go for vegans. Many chocolate brands even claim to be vegan but verify the list of ingredients for dairy.

Finally, there is a lot of variety within the category of chocolate, so you might be able to substitute one chocolate product for another.

CONCLUSION

When following a Vegan diet, choosing what not to eat can be a bit puzzling. This is due to the wide variety of foods, ranging from animal meats and byproducts to white sugar and shellac, that vegans cannot eat.

However, transitioning to a vegan diet is much simpler than you might think. Once you’ve figured out which non-vegan foods to avoid, you can start restructuring and create a new diet that includes everything vegans can eat.

Finally, hundreds of tempting goods on the market provide excellent alternatives to every non-vegan food. So, no matter what non-vegan food you want to replace, there are perfect vegan substitutes.