Non-vegetarian Vegetarian products

[jignyAsu]

Namaste all!

Here in the west, we should be 100% absolutely sure of what one eats...no random snacks are possible. Even when I quit eating outside, they followed me home.

I wanted to compile a list of vegetarian foods that has non vegetarian contents. I do see some senior members having contributed here and there but couldn't pull up a thread for this (or is there one?). Help me become 100% vegetarian ! Non vegetarians are also requested to post here..this is not a discussion on morality or karma but knowing what you eat.

Please note that this a list of items which are not obvious non vegetarian.

CHEESE

Every Hindu/Vegetarian/Vegan should know by now that most cheese out there has rennett, that is extracted from the intestine of a calf. Surprising most still do not!

Today I bought my first "vegetarian" cheese in whole foods. I could only manage to get shredded veg cheese. Organic cheese are not necessarily vegetarian...though this means cows were not injected with hormones. Any other stores I should try in US?

Is sour cream veggie?

Gelatin,Lard

These are obvious. Any product having them are a No-No. Including mexican restaurant refried/pinto beans, some tortillas etc.

OMEGA-3

The most popular source of this one is fish. So whatever you buy, be it a juice or oil, with a "omega-3 label" has this. Alternatives of OMEGA-3 is a capsule extraced from algae, flax seeds, walnuts.

White Sugar!!!

I need some serious help in this. Apparently sugar is so white because it is refined with bone char. The possible alternate is unrefined sugar or beet sugar.

Other than this there are products that use animal hair, bird feathers...atleast I have classified them in the lower priority list to be rid of.

"Ignorance is bliss" is definitely not supported in the Vedas!

[jignyAsu]

Don't forget chocolates now! They can have rennet too...

http://metro.co.uk/2008/01/14/want-m...x-fits-501214/

Goodbye Twix, Milky way, M&M( ???) and snickers. Some say they have switched back while others say not.

[McKitty]

Vanakkam,

I assume you live in the US, is it possible for you to get raw milk/french cheese ?

I know here there is no problem considering many many cheese are still made with raw milk only, but I don't know how it is abroad

Good luck !

Aum Namah Shivaya

[jignyAsu]

Vanakkam,

I assume you live in the US, is it possible for you to get raw milk/french cheese ?

I know here there is no problem considering many many cheese are still made with raw milk only, but I don't know how it is abroad

Good luck !

Aum Namah Shivaya

Hello Mckitty!

Thanks for your efforts to help! Yes, I do live in US.

I am still learning and this is what wholefoods (grocery store) have in their website

Q: True or False: It's illegal to sell raw milk cheeses in the US.
A: Man, we hope not! Thankfully, the answer is false. By law, all raw milk cheeses—essentially cheeses made with unpasteurized milk—must be aged for 60 days in order to be sold in the US. Our mouth-watering selection always meets this standard.


I am curious why you mention it though... don't raw milk cheese have animal rennet in them?

[Webimpulse]

Namaste jignyAsu,

There are different "Whole Foods" type grocery stores depending on where you live in America that could sell the type of products you're looking for. For example, in upstate NY, where I live, the big grocery chain that's dominated this area, Wegmans, has a section in most stores dedicated to "Whole Foods" style merchandise.

If you don't mind me asking, whereabouts do you live, jignyAsu? No need for specifics, just a general region would suffice.

(As an aside, there's one Wegmans around where I live that's referred to as the "Church of Wegmans" - because the building it occupies now was once a church! )

[jignyAsu]

Namaste jignyAsu,

If you don't mind me asking, whereabouts do you live, jignyAsu? No need for specifics, just a general region would suffice.

I live in Pennsylvania, US. Do you get your vegetarian cheese from Wegmans?

[McKitty]

I am curious why you mention it though... don't raw milk cheese have animal rennet in them?

Vanakkam,

I'm sure about that, at last for traditionnal cheese. There are different types of cheeses here:

-Industrial cheese, like everywhere else
-"Traditionnal" cheese

There are hundreds of different types of "traditionnal cheese" (I can say each part of France have its own xD) and they are almost always made with raw milk in farms.

There is no animal rennet in them, and no need to: because mushrooms and various bacteria do the same thing in a complete natural way. That makes the "crust" part of the cheese, mushrooms and bacteria. In industrial cheeses it's not always made like this, for example sometimes it's made with some kind of plastic of industrial thing.

"natural" cheeses are little more expansive than industrial cheese, but not always. You can find small, mediums of big portions of all kind of raw milk cheeses at all prices. I love to buy goat cheese made like this ! I buy a big round for what, 1 or 2.5 euros ?


I know in the US (and in Europe too) this kind of raw milk cheese made with bacteria and mushrooms are frowned upon "for sanitary concerns". There are many trying to ban these cheeses but...Nobody in France wants that. It's been thousand years that thousand of cheeses are made like this, and there wasn't a giant plague or anything because of it. Plus, many bacterias from milk are really, really, really good for stomach health !
I don't understand why they want to ban them from cheeses, and beside they sell them as medecines in pharmacy ! XD

Well I understand a cheese made like this does not look sexy for someone that isn't used to it xD But I guess it's just an habit

Like it was suggested, just give a call at the companies, they will sure answer you

Aum Namah Shivaya

[philosoraptor]

White Sugar!!!

I need some serious help in this. Apparently sugar is so white because it is refined with bone char. The possible alternate is unrefined sugar or beet sugar.

Other than this there are products that use animal hair, bird feathers...atleast I have classified them in the lower priority list to be rid of.

"Ignorance is bliss" is definitely not supported in the Vedas!

Pranams. Great posting! I have also heard this about white sugar, and so my family does not use it. We usually purchase turbinado sugar. Cheese is a real problem - I often call the manufacturer to verify the source of rennet but I do not always trust them. Some cheese fortunately are labeled "no animal rennet" - I don't mind paying extra for these.

[jignyAsu]

Pranams. Great posting! I have also heard this about white sugar, and so my family does not use it. We usually purchase turbinado sugar. Cheese is a real problem - I often call the manufacturer to verify the source of rennet but I do not always trust them. Some cheese fortunately are labeled "no animal rennet" - I don't mind paying extra for these.

Please accept my pranams for upholding Vedic values to utmost even in this land.

This is very helpful for me. I will search for raw sugar/turbinado sugar today itself. Please also post any other items you know to avoid, like some cereals/pills etc...you seem to have lots of experience in this.

This request is also directed to other members to add as much as they know, even random musings, hearsay that I can research.

Trying to become as Sattvic as possible

[smaranam]

Hare KRshNa

Krishna.com has covered this in amazing detail years ago, on this page:
http://www.krishna.com/hidden-animal-ingredients

It may be hard to find this page from the home page, so please use the direct link above.

* You do get cheese with plant rennet. If you are in the Americas, some Indian stores also sell the plant rennet cheese slices.

* Turbinado sugar (best option), brown sugar, organic sugar, jaggery (guD - rock sugar - Indian stores) are some alternatives to bone-processed sugar.
Jaggery works well with coconut, in halvas, and Indian recipes, but you can experiment : in muffins, pumpkin pies, why not?

* Avoid silver foil-covered MiThAi (Indian milk-sweet) if you don't know who made it. In India, well known franchises like Chitale Bandhu Mithaiwale are free of animal-leather-beaten silver foils. Most modern confectioners in India have stopped the practice, except in Andhra Pradesh and a few other places/manufacturers. They used to beat the silver foil very thin by placing it in leather sheets. Not anymore hopefully - machine made silver foils.

Best - don't buy miTHAi, make it yourself!


* Look out for vitamin D3 - comes from animals

* In Europe, check the E numbers of ingredients against the list on the Krishna.com page above.

* gelatin is an old culprit.

* Always read ingredients, labels. You never know what can be tossed into what - unimaginable.
breads, tortillas, ice creams are not spared of animal ingredients. Nor are nuts.

* Try buying nuts with shells and whole fruits.

* Warning labels on pastas "made on surface which was used to make things with eggs" ? Its upto you - but there are companies that make pasta with no trace of egg-noodles - O-organic, local grocey store brands.


Good Luck. May KRshNa give the discriminative alertness, may Radhe make your food creatively pure-vegetarian and delicious for KrshNa.

_/\_

Radhe-Shyam