Almost a third of meals with the vegan label still included animal components, according to research, prompting specialists to caution consumers with severe allergies that there could be “tragic consequences” if they purchase these foods. This was reported by the British media outlet The Guardian.
Trading standards chiefs have called for legal protection to prevent customers from being “exploited by unethical food businesses” after forensic scientists discovered traces of egg or milk in a variety of products that were labeled as vegan or plant-based. 24 (39%) of 61 goods labeled as vegan, including 13 dairy substitutes and 48 meat substitutes, were found to contain egg or dairy by inspectors from Hampshire and Kent Scientific Services. 90% of the samples were deemed unacceptable, indicating they failed due to the presence of dairy residue or inaccurate nutritional information.
The majority of the items the scientists looked at were marked as vegan, while several were also called plant-based. The plant-based trend encourages people to focus on eating largely fruits, vegetables, and nuts rather than eliminating all animal products from their diet.
14 chemicals or items are listed in the food labeling regulations as potentially causing food allergies or intolerances. When any of these components are used to make pre-packaged or food that is prepared on the spot and sold, like a bakery sandwich, their inclusion in the recipe must be highlighted in the ingredient list so that they are easily distinguished from the other ingredients, perhaps by making them bold.
However, among the goods analyzed, this was not always the case. Consumers are advised to keep an eye out for substances on goods labeled as vegan or plant-based, such as casein, a milk protein, lactose, a sugar found in milk, and whey, a byproduct of milk. They should also be cautious of lard or tallow, which is animal fat, and collagen, which comes from the skin and bones of animals.