Sugar. Toothpaste. Wine. Marshmallows. Although these four products seem random, they do have one thing in common: The potential to contain animal products. Nearly every food that we eat contains some kind of animal ingredient and we don’t even realize it.

It is debatable whether the inclusion of animal products in many food products is a bad thing. The nutrients that we get from consuming meat, eggs and dairy are phenomenal.

But now that Environmental Science & Technology has published a study stating that 83 per cent of food-associated greenhouse gas emissions come from the production process, it might be worth considering if so much of the food we eat should reasonably contain animal ingredients.

Veganism is a lifestyle that avoids using any animal products whatsoever. As far as diets go it is difficult to consume the appropriate nutrients from strictly plant-based foods. As it has become more mainstream, food manufacturers have begun creating processed food products which are vegan.

This unfortunately leads many to assume that if they are avoiding all animal products then they will both be healthy and be doing something good for the environment. However vegans can be just as unhealthy as an omnivore if they regularly eat processed food products or if they do not have enough variety in their diet to ensure that they are consuming adequate amounts of nutrients.

For the interest of spreading awareness about animal products in food as well as to determine whether veganism can in fact be a nutritious way to eat, I am adopting a vegan diet for the entire month of September. With a little research it is possible to avoid animal ingredients.
Once you start looking you will find that even the most unsuspecting foods can contain animal ingredients. Vegan Action and The Vegan Society are two excellent websites which offer plenty of information about this.

Many kinds of sugar, for example, are processed using bone char. Most vegan brands of sugar will clearly state that there are no animal ingredients on the package so be sure to check for it. The clarification process of wine also often uses animal ingredients. Contact the manufacturers for information about specific brands.

Cooking from scratch is one of the best ways to ensure that there are no animal ingredients in your food products. Set aside a couple hours on a rainy day to make your own yeast bread without eggs or other animal ingredients. Consult books such as Veganomicon and Get It Ripe for more ideas and information about veganism.

University of Winnipeg student Sagan Morrow writes a health and wellness blog. Check out her adventures with veganism daily at http://livinghealthyintherealworld.wordpress.com.

Published in Volume 64, Number 1 of The Uniter (September 3, 2009)