Not everything is as it seems—getting bangs, becoming an adult, Oreos…
As for that last one, despite being a chocolate cookie sandwich filled with cream, turns out there are no animal products used in the production of “milk’s favourite cookie.”
So, if Oreos are free of the milk, cream, animal fat, milk fat, and butter expected in cookies, that would make them vegan, right…RIGHT?!
READ MORE: 10 Things You Didn’t Know Were Totally Vegan
Are Oreos vegan?
Sorry to break it to you, but nope, they’re not. The classic Oreo flavour (including the Double Stuf edition) is technically manufactured without animal-sourced ingredients, but because of other Oreo flavours and snack brands produced in the same facilities which do require milk, there’s a risk of cross contact, according to a rep from Mondelēz International, Inc., Oreo’s parent company.
This (heartbreaking) development means Oreos are better suited for people who have mild dairy sensitivities than vegans, says registered dietician Alyssa Lavy, since trace amounts of milk probably won’t set off any symptoms linked to lactose intolerance. But still, she adds, in the end, it’s up to the eater whether cross-contact and trace amounts of animal ingredients work for their lifestyle, ethics, dietary choices, and dietary restrictions.
PETA, for one, says not to stress over it. In a note about small amounts of animal products in food, the animal rights organization wrote:
“People who have made the compassionate decision to stop eating animal flesh, eggs, and dairy products may wonder if they need to read every ingredient to check for tiny amounts of obscure animal products. Our general advice is not to worry too much about doing this. The goal of being vegan is to help animals and reduce suffering; this is done by choosing a bean burrito or a veggie burger over chicken flesh, or choosing tofu scramble over eggs, not by refusing to eat an otherwise vegan food because it has 0.001 grams of monoglycerides that may possibly be animal-derived.”
If you wouldn’t insist a restaurant prepare your vegan dish in cookware that’s never come in contact with an animal product, you probably don’t need to cut Oreos out of your life, either. But again, totally up to you.
Also, as long as the topic is on the table, you should know Oreos aren’t gluten-free or kosher either.
Sorry.
This article was originally published on www.womenshealthmag.com