Imported Vegan Food Not Vegan

[Dandelion]

Turns out alotta those mocked animal foods imported from Taiwanese and Chinese markets may not be so vegan afterall.

Operation Pancake: Undercover Investigation of LA Vegan Restaurants

• In the Taiwanese and Chinese market [where most of these products are made and sold] vegetarian customers are only concerned with meat ingredients and not bothered at all if egg or milk ingredients are included [this is due to religious reasons in many cases, typically to accommodate Buddhists, who are often not vegan]

•Sometimes the ingredient listings are not 100% inclusive of what’s in the product [we asked what things are usually added but not labeled]

•Sometimes eggs, fish flakes and milk might be added but not on the label, and we never include ingredients of all the additives – there would be too many

•The veggie meats are re-labeled for the western market, usually by a non-English speaker who is translating the bulk ingredients list manifest, so there are many occasions where the translations were not correct. Also, the labels are small in size, and rarely have enough room for all ingredients.
If the ingredients change due to cost or availability the list manifest isn’t always updated, and we only revise our translated labels when we introduce new products

•Most of the time, the “veggie meat” products contain egg albumen because the isolated soy protein base we purchase comes that way from the manufacturer

•There are few labeling regulations in Taiwan and they are rarely, if ever, enforced. We usually list the ingredients we put into food directly, but if if we’re using something from a third party we don’t always list the ingredients in that. It’s just not important in Taiwan.

[lullured]

This is what I have always feared when buying these products

[La Végétalienne]

Does this apply to foods marketed as vegan, or only to foods that appear to be vegan based on the ingredients list?

[Kat]

I never used to look at nutritional info before, just ingredient lists. And for like.....god only knows how many years, I've been happily munching on Wang's Leek Dumplings, which appear to be perfectly vegan according to the ingredients label.

Last week, I started logging my nutrient intake on fitday.com, so I started taking some of the convenience foods I eat and inputting their nutritional information. Well wouldn't you know it, 7 leek dumplings contain a whole lot of cholesterol!

So either there's unlisted animal ingredients in the dumplings, or the Koreans have a different way of measuring cholesterol. I worry that it's probably the former.

Also I bought some instant rice congee once (and it was a common brand! i think Knorr!) and although the ingredients only listed rice, salt, and msg, the congee had little orange flakes in it. Since nothing on the label could possibly be orange, I never bought the congee again. It could have been dehydrated carrot (i think the label might have mentioned that it was a vegetarian flavour, but i can't remember) but it also could have been shrimp or fish flakes for all I know. Ugh.

[bluemango]

Wow, I just signed on to post about this - but you guys are ALL OVER IT. This article made me a little and a lot

[nauthiz]

I cut waaay back on imported products after finding hunks of pork in my "vegetarian spring rolls".

[Miso Vegan]

Originally Posted by La Végétalienne

Does this apply to foods marketed as vegan, or only to foods that appear to be vegan based on the ingredients list?

Both.

[Kat]

RoomieKat accidentally bought this in Toronto last summer. I'll give you a cookie of questionable origin if you can spot the inconsistency!

[quagga]

That is so sad and funny - 'suitable for vegans'. Hah!

[Miso Vegan]

Yeah, there's something amiss in that translation.

[bluemango]

Ignoring the blatant non-veganness of the whey protein... I think it's funny how they say "vegetarian spices (no onion or garlic)." Oh, those pesky beef-filled garlic bulbs.... but whey protein! Totally cool!

[Emiloid]

Thanks for the info, Dandy. I haven't eaten much of this kind of thing, but I'm often tempted to order it online.

[nauthiz]

Originally Posted by bluemango

Ignoring the blatant non-veganness of the whey protein... I think it's funny how they say "vegetarian spices (no onion or garlic)." Oh, those pesky beef-filled garlic bulbs.... but whey protein! Totally cool!

I'm guessing the "no onion or garlic" is a nod to Buddhist culture. In many southeast Asian countries, people who practice Buddhist vegetarianism also avoid onion and garlic because their strong flavor and odor is thought to encourage vice.

[Dandelion]

I'm officially over imported mocked animal foods. We have enough domestic product now to suits my needs.

[Emiloid]

Me, too. It seemed like a fun novelty at first, but it's really unnecessary and sketchy.