Are vegetarian foods really vegetarian?

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Ice Cream Has Meat in It? "Vegetarian" Foods That Actually Contain Meat Products

 

--http://www.alternet.org/story/145144/

 

Ice Cream Has Meat in It? 7 "Vegetarian" Foods That Actually Contain Meat ProductsBy Sara Ost, EcoSalonPosted on January 15, 2010, Printed on January 16, 2010

 

Sadly, being a vegetarian isn't just about skipping pepperoni on that pizza. You want believe which foods contain ingredients deriving from meat.

 

When you became a vegetarian, you quickly learned it wasn't just about skipping pepperoni on that pizza. You had to start scanning labels for ingredientslike capric acid, tallow, rennet, glycerin, whey, suet, stereate and emulsifiers - because eating animal fat by any other name would be just as carnivorous.What you may not know is that plenty of common foods widely considered to be veg-friendly (or perhaps we should say veg-adjacent) actually contain animalfat, not just dairy fat. That means flesh. Read on to learn more.

 

Ice Cream

 

Ice cream is the one comfort food that temporarily heals all wounds. Unfortunately, you may be noshing on Bessie under all that chocolate sauce. Many brandsof ice cream contain capric acid, a fatty acid that's obtained from animal fats. Check the label!

 

Chocolate

 

I hate to break it to you - I really do - but that chocolate sauce you pour over your sundaes may not be any better than the ice cream underneath it. Emulsifiersare present in chocolate, which may or may not be derived from animal fat. The problem is that most labels don't specify the difference, so you're betteroff sticking to ones that do.

 

Cheese

 

Animal rennet is used in the production of many different kinds of cheese. What is animal rennet, you ask? It's a coagulating enzyme that's extracted froma freshly-slaughtered calf's stomach. But, that doesn't mean you have to struggle through a life without cheese. Just buy vegetarian cheese instead, whichsubstitutes microbial or fungal enzymes for animal rennet.

 

Pastries

 

Have you ever seen a pork tart behind the glass at your local café? You might want to take a closer look. Many pastries are prepared using lard, whichis rendered fat from a pig's abdomen or kidneys. Similar baked goods may also contain capric acid.

 

Chewing Gum

 

There's no better way to appease an oral fixation than with a big lump of chewing gum, but gnawing on toothpicks might be a better option for vegetarians.If you see lanolin, stearic acid or glycerin on the label, you may as well snack on a stick of beef jerky. All of these ingredients are made from animalfat.

 

Potato Chips

 

Ever wonder why you can't just eat a handful of potato chips? I used to think it was the salt, until I discovered that many brands are soaked in tallow(fat from membranous tissue in cattle) before hitting the shelves at the grocery store. And, here you thought you were just chomping on some greasy, deep-friedpotatoes. I find this to be incredibly unfair.

 

Hard Candy

 

Believe it or not, hard candies like these aren't entirely free of animal products, and many of them contain calcium stereate. This ingredient is actuallyderived from tallow, better known as animal fat.

 

 

Regards,K.s.Vishwanathan.Tel No: 022-28738192.e-mail:kalpathyvs.