Wow that is crazy! I’m not even a vegetarian and reading about those sneaky foods is stressing me out. Who knew?

I am a pescetarian (have dabbled in being just vegetarian), which is an entirely different subject, but I definitely do have that “gray area” and I’m fine with it! I don’t love marshmallows, but if I liked them, I’d probably eat them. I have eaten French onion soup, because I was in France and I wanted to eat it while I was there! Overall, I’m pretty lax about it. I don’t slip up and eat beef or chicken, but if I eat cheese that isn’t actually vegetarian, I’m okay with that.

I think as long as people are doing the best for themselves, it’s completely up to them to figure out their gray area. Being a vegetarian/vegan is difficult and I give anyone props for trying! No one should ever judge another’s views for going veg, since everyone does it for their own reason. Your body will tell you if it’s right for you (I firmly believe it’s not right for everyone, but that some can totally pull it off!).

I have read the No Meat Athlete’s article and I was surprised! I knew about the Caesar dressing and gelatin, but some of the other ones I didn’t know about!

I think it’s just great when anyone can be more conscious of the food they put in their mouths and how it effects the environment and their bodies. I don’t think it’s wrong to eat meat or use / consume animal products, but I don’t agree with a lot of the methods that have been used to get there and how much is consumed overall. A gray area makes the day-to-day stuff a lot easier and I think it’s prefectly okay to have one. Thank YOU for explaining your thought process!! I’ve slowly been becoming a vegetarian and it’s nice to know that others have this same gray area (so much less pressure!).

Love this post – and completely agree. I have been a vegetarian for 12 years – but I still eat products with gelatin. We all do the best we can!

Another vegetarian chiming in! The gelatin/isinglass things have definitely caught me out, too–I’ve been vegetarian since I was eleven, but I didn’t know Guinness wasn’t vegetarian until I was about 27. (Um, not that I was drinking Guinness that whole time.) That said, not all dark beers automatically use isinglass, and lots of other wines and beers do–Magners cider, for example, isn’t technically vegetarian, but Strongbow is.

I think my personal rule is to just be a vegetarian in good intent. So while I don’t drink Guinness now, I don’t beat myself up about having drunk it in the past, and while I do buy wines marked vegetarian/vegan when I’m shopping (I’m in the UK, and food labels here are awesome in that regard), I don’t grill my waiter if I order a glass of wine in a restaurant–odds are they wouldn’t know about isinglass anyway! Any step makes a difference, and so I just try to do the best I can.

Very interesting post! Thank you for bringing up this topic.

This again shows how complex our world is, espcially the food world. If somebody chooses to live a certain diet but for some reason can’t stick to it 100 %, that’s is totally fine! I mean, there’s is just so much you can do.
And driving yourself crazy because of your dietary choices all the time, isn’t healthy either.

I’m not a vegetarian or a vegan but eating healthy and unprocessed food is super important for me! In an ideal world I would have no problems with that but in the real world I do struggle very often. I just try to make the right choices whenever I can.
But before I collapse on the street due to low blood sugar and no healthy food options available, I’d go for that white bread sandwich 😉

I always admire how open-minded you are towards other people’s choices 🙂

I’m a vegetarian and I get these questions also sometimes (although I do not eat marsmellows. I don’t like the taste of it) mostly about my not always vegetarian cheese and whine. I don’t think there is much grey area in the way that you don’t know if it’s vegetarian or not (I think honey may be some grey area for vegans) but that doesn’t mean that I as a vegetarian have to be perfect all the time. Nobody ever asks a meat eater why he wouldn’t eat dogs or cats (although, not very serious. some vegetarians use this as an argument for vegetarianism) and that their behaviour isn’t very consequent. I’d rather be inconsequently “good” (being a vegetarian and sometimes drinking wine without knowing if it is vegetarian or not, or eating cheese that isn’t vegetarian) than consequently “bad”. Most meat eaters around me like this attitude and some of them reduced their meat intake as well. Perhaps it is even good to let people realise you can make a difference without beating yourself up over every little rule.

THIS is one of the (many) reasons I will never label myself as vegetarian or vegan or anything else, I guess. Life is too short and I want to be able to enjoy beer, for crying out loud, if I want to. Dried fish bladders be damned.

#whitegirlproblems 😉

I’m not vegetarian, but my mom is, so none of this was a surprise to me. I actually like pointing this kind of stuff out to self righteous vegetarians as they are eating a Caesar salad 🙂 Not saying that all vegetarians are self-righteous, but some are (just like some meat eaters are too)

I am a vegetarian – kind of – because I eat fish sometimes. So I guess I’m pesco-vegetarian? I eat fish maybe once a month.

BUT I will also occasionally eat things with gelatin (like candy – which my fiance just pointed out to me last night lol) and have gravy from time-to-time.

I HATE labels. So stupid. Eat what you want, when you want. I don’t eat meat for ethical reasons and because it doesn’t appeal to me, and I do prefer to eat mostly plants, but I also like candy from time-to-time 😀

I find eating with too many rules really difficult. I’m not vegetarian or vegan- but when I went vegan for a day, I found I was constantly googling to figure out if my gum was vegan or of the glass of wine I wanted to drink was vegan…it really is hard to be a “staunch” vegetarian or vegan in our world.

The only reason I’m NOT surprised about all the animal products in everything is because I did do so much digging for my vegan challenge.

I have often considered going vegetarian-ish. I say “ish” because I really think that I would eat vegetarian most of the time, but that I would have a meat dish every so often just because I love food so much and like to try so many things.

This is a great post- definitely good to hear so many opinions!

I think we’d all be better off if we just stopped labeling the way we eat, whether it’s vegetarian, vegan, lacto-ovo, pescatarian, etc. We should feel free to eat what we want, and not eat what we don’t want, without explanation. I think removing our own labels would help with that. I usually tell people “I eat what makes me feel best” instead of explaining my plant-based food choices, or focusing on what I *don’t* eat.

Great post! I’m vegan, but I also have gray areas. For instance, if I go out to restaurants I’m not asking them what’s in the bread. I just hope for the best. Also, when I buy groceries I obviously try for 100% vegan, but if the ingredient list has some dairy or egg listed under the “contains less than 2% of the following” heading, then I will still buy it. I don’t eat marshmallows or wear leather, and I don’t drink alcohol so the beer isn’t an issue for me — good information to know though, as I had no idea! Thanks for telling me!

I’ve been vegan for a little over a year now and I have decided not to consume gelatin, alcohol, or honey for ethical and environmental reasons. I don’t feel like I need these things and don’t feel deprived without them. However, I know this is not true for everyone and respect that. My main goal has always been to live as compassionately and consciously as possible because that is was makes me feel happiest. Others may have a similar goal but approach it in a different way. I have not bought any clothing or shoes made from wool, leather etc. since I’ve become vegan, but I still have non-vegan items from before I made this change in my lifestyle and still wear them because it is not economically feasible or reasonable for me to replace them. I know that I will choose differently in the future and appreciate my new awareness. Everyone has the choice to do what they want with the knowledge they gain and this is personally what I have chosen for myself, not anyone else. I can share the knowledge I gain, but it’s not for me to judge what others do with their knowledge.
I think that everyone has to just try their best to do what they believe is right for them, because that’s all anyone can ask for. As Colleen Patrick Goudreau says, “Don’t do nothing because you can’t do everything. Do something, anything!” Don’t not try to reduce your consumption of animal products just because you can’t eliminate all of them. Every little thing each individual can do to make a difference adds up to a big change for animals, the earth, and people everywhere.

Great post today, Caitlin! My gray area is definitely beer and wine… once I find out something is not technically vegetarian, I stay away from it. For example, I don’t eat marshmallows or drink Guinness anymore.

But do I do research every time I want to try a new beer at a bar, or find a bottle of wine that looks good? No. If I were to do that, I think I’d stop enjoying being vegetarian.

Like you, I’m not really into the “label” aspect of either being vegetarian or not. I think people who don’t eat meat but eat every other food that isn’t vegetarian are still awesome. I think people who eat fish are awesome. Every bit helps.

Thanks for this post!

I had no idea that Guinness had animal products in it. (Fun fact, my first family dog was named Guinness 🙂 ) I had heard about marshmellows and to tell you the truth that freaked me out more than anything and I’m not even vegetarian! I think this was a really smart, well thought out post. Everyone has their own opinions, so there will never be a right or wrong.

I recently bought Walgreens brand Airborne and read the ingredients and it has fish in it. I was totally surprised. I am a vegetarian and once I know something has an animal product I will eliminate from my diet. Rennet is also used in a lot of fresh mozzerellas as well, in addition to parm. My grey area is getting narrower and narrower, I feel wierd about consuming my favorite dairy products and am considering making the transition to being vegan. Although I do wear leather, which I know is not consistent.

I really love how you introduced this topic with grace – it is okay to have a gray area!! I’m pretty strict, but I have a somewhat “if it didn’t ask and you can’t tell” rule -l ike when someone brought label-less bread to my house that MAY have had egg involved as a brushing on the crust – I had a bit, but I didn’t keep the whole loaf. I also draw some lines – i avoid honey, but I don’t really care that much, so if someone makes something special, it’s okay if it has honey in it. I’m not taking them to vegan school over it.

Also, condoms are cool with me. You know they aren’t vegan? But I reasoned that I was doing better things for the Earth by not having babies than not using a product that contains milk.

I love how non-judgy you are about other people’s eating habits! I was a vegetarian and I hated the way non-vegetarians made assumptions about who I was because I chose not to each meat (okay, in all honesty, I was a pescatarian because I love fish, but still). I started eating meat again because my body and soy do not get along. Very small amounts are okay, but for the most part I avoid it… My doctor was also concerned that I wasn’t absorbing enough iron and he felt that maybe my body NEEDED meat. You know, when I started eating it again and stopped eating soy, some of the health issues I’d been dealing with went away.

In the past couple of years I’ve been on three different naturopath monitored diets to determine food sensitivities and hopefully solve other health problems…I think the issue is just food. I’m amazed that no matter what I was or wasn’t eating, people had strong views about why what I was eating was WRONG…

I figure we’re all different and because of that what we need to fuel our bodies is very different too. And life’s too short to judge people…besides, you might discover that the weird thing someone else eats is actually something you might enjoy yourself because while it may fall into the “vegan” category and you’re a staunch meat-eater, it might still taste good!

To answer your question – I’m just surprised and what is hidden in our food in general. The first elimination diet I was on had zero tolerance to corn and soy for the first two months and then I got to reintroduce them slowly to see if there was a reaction. Do you know how many things have one or both of those in them? So, no, animal products in seemingly vegetarian foods don’t really surprise me…

Dear Caitlin, I know ur blogfrom the beginning but I guess I have commented only a few times. I titally loved this post!!I will begin that I eat meat, but because of my religion ( Christian orthodox) I eat animal free foods (vegan) every Wednesday and Friday of the year, and also for all the Lents, that adds up to half a year vegan… and I am saying this because I totally agree that everybody has their grey area! My fiance does not follow the religion as strict as I do, so I have to cook vegan food for me sometimes, and meat for him!! and maybe sometimes some oil will just slip in another pan, I wont trash my food!! I try to look what I eat, but not to go CRAZY and not to OBSEDATE!! sometimes I have the impresion that the food stamp took over some people too much, they dont eat meat to protect the animals, but will judge, be rude, send offensive emails and comments to a person that does not live by the same rules, I find this totally disgusting!! I like your respect for different opinions and lifestyles, it is very nice and HEALTHY to make space for a “grey area” in ur life!! 🙂

I’m a lifelong vegetarian, raised in a vegetarian family, and I really appreciate that you are getting this conversation going, Caitlin. Most of my life, I’ve had to deal with these kinds of surprises and have had to ask myself whether they fit within my personal grey areas, or whether they violate my personal ethics. I’ve never eaten meat voluntarily, which is a personal crowning achievement, but I have eaten by-products voluntarily, which leaves me feeling disappointed in myself, and our food industry.

Finding out that foods that I’ve consumed contain sneaky ways of including meat is definitely upsetting to me, and once I find this out, I usually go out of my way to avoid these foods. For example, I will never be eating another Dorito again, due to the unnecessary clarified beef stock added: http://www.wired.com/magazine/2010/09/st_whatsinside_doritos/

Honestly, I think these grey area decisions come down to WHY you are a vegetarian/vegan in the first place.

Without writing an essay, for me, there are 5 main reasons for why I am a lacto-vegetarian:

1. Biology and Health – I don’t think meat is ideal for human biology. And let’s face it, we all eat to get energy from the sun, and since we can’t photosynthesize through our skin, eating plants is 1 level away, eating animals is 2 levels away from our energy source.
2. Socio-economical – If everyone were a vegetarian, I have reason to believe world hunger would be “abolished”. Meat is an energy hog. And the meat industrial complex is both largely subsidized in the country, and also a very wasteful industry.
3. Animal Cruelty – especially in this country, animals are literally tortured and treated as “goods”. If you own a dog or cat, I personally see very little difference in eating a pig versus eating a dog or cat.
4. Bad Energy – decaying flesh no long has a life force. It’s static energy within the body, which alters one’s energy field
5. Spiritual – I believe all conscious animals/plants have souls, or some variation of concentrated “life-force”. I’d prefer to eat a lower form of consciousness.

So how does this translate into my grey area? Well, if I find out something has a meat by-product in it, I tend to go far out of my way to avoid it, within a sane spectrum of reason. I’ve found that generally, if I’m debating it, then I error on the side of don’t eat it.

At a certain point, I stopped buying leather, but I won’t be wasteful and throw my leather away. I refuse to buy a car with leather seats, or leather furniture. But I will eat eggs or dairy if they are harnessed from animals treated well. But I will not buy cheese with rennet (if I can help it), and I always try to avoid lard and animal/fish broth. I do eat honey, but I try avoid gelatin unless they are in vitamin supplement capsules that my body needs (and can’t reasonably find in other forms).

Basically, I try to avoid anything that involves the death of an animal, but I don’t mind animal byproducts if they are treated well and not tortured or killed in the process, or products that support the meat industry (even though vegans have a point that we don’t really NEED it to survive).

That said, I have eaten a marshmallow or two in my time, knowing it had gelatin, but as I grow older, I am more resolute in my eating habits. And the more I find out about how we sneak meat into our foods, the more cautious I am at restaurants to ask questions and avoid foods that I cannot ethically support eating.

The most interesting question/dilemma for me has always come down to this: if I was starving and needed to eat meat to survive, I think I would. Despite my reasoning, and disregarding the fact of whether I actually have the enzymes, if I needed meat to stay alive or stay healthy, then I think I would do it, in as healthy and ethical of a way as possible.

What about you other vegetarians? Would you eat meat if you were in a life-threatening situation, or would you die for your cause?

I’m pretty much on the same page as you! I do not eat the broth from animals but dont restrict myself from eating marshmallows (which is pretty much never anyway) or drinking beers. I looove parm cheese but I havent been buying it recently because of the rennent. I also try not to buy leather but sometimes I still do, but never would buy a car or furniture made of leather (and of course NO fur). I dont know why I view some things (beer) ok and not others (broth). Just sort of random I guess

Great debate topic! I am a vegan (a new one) and am very strict with not consuming or using anything with animal products in it or used to make it. When I decided to go vegan, I knew it had to be all the way. If I truly believe that animal suffering is bad (and I do), than how can I justify that a little suffering is okay? Of course I chose to be a vegan for other reasons as well (health, environmental, starvation of people in 3rd world countries because of American’s desire to eat meat, etc.). I’ve always thought leather was kind of a grotesque thing, but never thought about animal products in cosmetics. Now I do. I choose to support companies that proudly state “No animal products & not tested on animals”. When I first made the switch to veganism, the one thing I was unsure about was honey. I hadn’t read enough on the topic and was unsure whether it was an environmental concern. (I figured the animal cruelty issue was a weak one for me to claim on this issue since I will squish any bug that comes near me). Ultimately I decided that I wanted to be a true vegan, with no “buts” or exceptions. Honey is easy enough to avoid and not something I need, so I’ve decided to eliminate it. No more grey areas for me 🙂

I loved this post. I do my best to be an informed eater. I do not eat meat (poultry, fish, gelatin, etc). I recently in the past month have stopped eating dairy and eggs. If honey is in something like the wheat bread at a restaurant I’m not going to loose too much sleep over it. Dining out is a gray area. I try to plan ahead and do research. Sometimes nutrition info isnt avaliable and I do my best. I’m sure I’ve consumed ‘hidden dairy’ here and there. I don’t drink guiness, but I’m sure I drink non vegan wine. I do buy organic sugars and unbleached flour. I try to buy animal friendly products. I do my best with what I’ve learned along the way and that’s good enough for me 🙂

Great post! I’m not a vegetarian, but I eat very little meat. Mostly because I don’t like it that much, and I love, love beans and veggies. I’m a pretty educated eater so I’m not surprised by what isn’t vegetarian that some might think is. I try not to be absolute in anything, mainly because I grew up w/ a close relative who was a religious fanatic. That person imposed so many restrictions and rules on our family when I was growing up that I can’t stand it when people don’t have any tolerances for others different opinions and lifestyles. I am not here to judge anyone. Everyone has to live with themselves at the end of the day. I’m an animal lover, so I try to be thoughtful, and I try to make humanitarian and environmentally sound choices in my life. But I’m far from perfect and I’m not going to tell anyone else how to live their life.

I’m with you on the gelatin. I know they aren’t vegetarian but they were the only thing I didn’t give up when going vegetarian 6 years ago. For the last month I’ve been trying to vegan (with the exception being our own chicken eggs) and did finally stop gelatin in lollies and marshmellows. I do miss them though :-(.
I have heel spurs so have trouble buying shoes. Luckily Crocs, which I’ve found to be the best, don’t have leather but still buy some leather shoes. I won’t buy any make-up/skin care tested on animals though – there is no need for that to happen these days. Great post. I love how you are never afraid to deal with the sensitive subjects most of us try to avoid.

I feel like I am constantly being judged for no longer being a vegetarian. I chose to revert to eating meat since I started college, because I knew it would be challenging to live as healthily as possible as a vegetarian on campus. But I do still have vegetarian sympathies! I only eat meat about once a week, but I can’t call my self a vegetarian because I do so. what gives? so i usually call myself vegetarian-sympathetic lol.

I really enjoyed reading this post and comments. I gave up most forms of meat years ago, but still eat poultry. I try to buy beauty products that aren’t tested on animals and dairy products that are RBST free…but the more I read, the trickier I feel all these issues are…so there’s a lot of “gray area” (sometimes these turn out to be areas that I thought were black or white). I do think it’s better to look at it as “doing something” as opposed to “not doing everything”….

I love that you posted about this topic. It’s sort of a ‘controversial’ thing, you know!? I’m pretty strict about buying anything that’s tested on animals but I eat cheese, so some people might think I’m a hypocrite or whatever but in my mind, I’m just doing what I can, the best I can. I have no problem using alternatives to products that are tested on animals but some of my favorite foods involve cheese! With that said, I do try to limit my intake of it and try to eat only organic dairy products.

xx

I knew a lot of this stuff for years because I grew up with friends that are vegetarian AND keep kosher (p.s. the mom is a WONDERFUL cook).

Here was the shocker for me, something that WAS Vegetarian…Baco Bits!?! I don’t like them anyway(or bacon very much unless it is on a sandwich or with eggs..otherwise it just overpowers the flavors of food) but a friend was making something and her friend was vegetarian and they were using Baco Bits

I thought the No-Meat Athlete post was a little fear-mongery. Guinness aside, the vast majority of beers are veggie-friendly. Very few jellies and jams are made with gelatin anymore–almost all of them use pectin. Especially if you live in an urban area, most local restaurants are attuned to the beef stock issue and make their vegetable soups with veggie stock. (Chains can be iffy, as can really high-end restaurants. But local cheap and mid-range places are generally good about it.) Very few dressings other than Caesar (outside of high-end restaurants) include surprise meat–why spend money on the bacon when you can make a passable imitation for way cheaper? Even some of the restaurants I’ve worked at have anchovy-free Caesar dressing (mostly because it’s cheaper, not because they have any deep concerns about us vegetarians, haha). A lot of Mexican restaurants have moved away from using lard in their products, although you never know with the more traditional ones.

I’m pretty low-key about vegetarianism–I’ll pull pepperoni off pizza and still eat it if I’m hungry enough and there are no other options, haha. I try to avoid meat stocks and gelatin and all that stuff, but I won’t stress out if I find out I accidentally consumed some. It’s just food! It’s probably not going to kill you. And I would never ever worry about beer (especially considering I’m not a Guinness fan in the first place!).

for me, i can’t say i have a grey area and i believe this is because i’m an ethical vegan. i avoid animal products and always make sure everything i consume is vegan (to my knowledge. when i come across something i’m unsure about i always think, “when it doubt, go without.”) because i don’t take consuming non-human animals or their products lightly. i see all animals as equal with us humans so i try and do my absolute best for all. i’d know each person is their own and has their own ideas, morals, ideals, and perceptions and i say, “live and let live!” instead of judging too harshly.

Hold the phone… Honey isn’t vegetarian? Did I miss something?

p.s. I like your vegetarian views. 😀

Presently my gray area is pretty wide. I have been vegetarian since the mid 90’s and vegan probably about 10 years now. BUT, I do cheat. Living with a carnivore and not having anyone around me who is vegetarian, it gets hard. I do not eat meat or any meat products whatsoever – no gelatin, marshmallows or the like, but I do occasionally eat cheese and regular white sugar. Then I kick myself for doing it. You can’t be 100% perfect 100% of the time. Even automobiles with the interiors and tires have some animal products in them. You have to draw a line somewhere. Life is life and I do strive to do my best, but I will never be perfect.

I try and avoid leather and I avoid gelatin as much as I can (though I have a maaaaajor love for gummy candy). I always check cheese labels for rennet, but I had no idea about the fish bladders used to make beer. I can’t say I’m vehemently on one side or the other but I always like to think about these things.

Love this post! I think that people can be so judgemental about someone else’s diet or what they define it as. Who cares! That’s one of the huge issues I had when I was vegan/vegetarian… people would be like Well did you know if you eat THIS then you AREN’T?!? Really though, define your diet however you want. You need to eat what’s best for you! And that’s more than just nutrition, it’s what’s best for your beliefs and lifestyle.

Hello,
I know this post is a little older but I like the way you talk about this subject. I am a meat eater but only sparingly and I’m very particular of where it comes from and how it was raised. I also will not eat lamb or calf and I am trying to move away from beef altogether. I appreciate the conversation and it helps to also see the variety of meals that you cook.

I was a vegetarian for quite some time, and even though the jellying substances derived from animals were secondary (rather than primary) products, I avoided them anyway.
I still never hopped on the whole vegan train, growing up surrounded by farms (and living on one) gave me what I like to (humbly) consider a devils-advocate opinion on the matter.

While most vegans refuse dairy/eggs (well, most of my vegan friends) is because of the dismal conditions in which many of these animals live in. I.E. poor milking conditions for cattle, and poultry confined to very crowded squalor.

HOWEVER! What I remind them that while this is an excellent reason to not purchase products from companies that exacerbate these issues (in the case that more localized, animal-friendly conditions are not offered at an affordable and obtainable price and place), there are some flaws with the whole “I refuse dairy and eggs because it is cruel to hurt/take from animals”.
For one, cows enjoy being milked. Same as sheep need to be sheared. Without these human-inflicted actions, they would be overheated or in pain. (with the exception of sheep 100s of years ago, who had much thinner coats because they were not bred to produce thick wool).
In addition, I have a slight suspicion that some of my (less informed) “vegan” friends don’t consume eggs/egg products because they are “baby chickens”. This too, is untrue. A chicken produces an egg (in some cases, daily) regardless of whether or not a rooster has fertilized it. What we use for consumption are laid, unfertilized eggs. The same way a human woman has a period – the evacuation of an unfertilized egg. A chicken has no need for these! (not in the ways that say, bees have for honey).

Food for thought.
I’m ready for the firestorm of vegan critique.

I try not to use anything animal based if I can, but like you posted, there are so many things that are it is almost impossible. I do try to seek vegan alternatives where I can though.

I basically consider myself an at-home vegan (or as close to it as possible) and an out-on-the-town vegetarian. When I’m out at the grocery store, I try to avoid dairy (even in chocolate or crackers, etc.), eggs, anything with gelatin, and of course any meat or fish. I do eat honey which I guess is not really vegan. When I eat out, I will have eggs and cheese (even parmesan occasionally), and it’s possible some of the vegetable soups I’ve ordered at a restaurant may have had chicken stock or something like that in it without my knowledge. Definitely have avoided Caesar salads and stuff like that because I knew the dressing had anchovies.

But of course I’m always learning new things (it’s only been almost eight months since I decided to go vegetarian) and there’s definitely huge grey areas. For instance, my mother sometimes sends me some food in the mail including hot chocolate mixes which do contain milk and nuts & bolts (basically a snack mix with cereal, nuts, and pretzels) that, after eating a bunch of it, I found out had Worcestershire sauce on it. She didn’t know that that has anchovies in it (although now she does) but I did finish eating the batch because I felt it would be almost more wasteful to throw it out. I didn’t know about the isinglass issue about beer and wine until recently, but I haven’t really gone out of my way to avoid those beers/ wines. I do like a few dark beers that probably are made that way and I probably won’t stop drinking them.

I also totally buy leather but will probably find another material for my shoes, furniture, belts, etc. once these current products wear out. Fur has always made me cringe, which I realize is a bit hypocritical of me at this point given my leather weakness.

I’d prefer bath products like soap and shampoo and antiperspirant and whatnot that don’t involve animal testing but they’re hard to find and it’s hard to know which companies don’t test on animals (I cynically assume most do). I know the Body Shop is against animal testing so I like to buy stuff there but the downside is it’s terribly expensive and somewhat inconvenient to get to so I don’t always do that.

So yeah. I feel like I’m doing my part and nobody’s perfect and whatever you are doing to prevent animal cruelty and make the world a more efficient/ less terrible place is admirable to me and keep doing that! Whoooo!

Marshmallows are so confusing. I tried to find some for a vegetarian friend. I learned the kosher ones are made with fish gelatin and the halal ones are made with beef gelatin. I never realized gelatin was animal-based in the first place.

With out bees and honey, most produce wouldn’t exist! It’s not easy to be vegetarian. How dare people judge each other. To each their own. It’s only that persons business what they choose to put in and on their body

i think its wrong that people can judge, its like being back in the stone age, i don’t label myself, at this moment i don’t eat meat and i’ve cut out dairy, but the reasons for me being vegetarian is my own personal reason, so no one can judge me if one day i do eat meat, no1 is perfect even animals eat other animals, as humans we have survived for thousands of years eating animals, i think that the way we treat our planet and those on it now is terrible, but if i put a marshmallow in my mouth i wont feel bad.

I have no idea about this as I had never tasted this but I am thinking it may be non -vegetarian. But I think it will be tasty enough. Keep on sharing new and interesting things with us.

I’m with you!! First off, I don’t judge anyone else – how they choose to eat is entirely their business!! I became Vegan last July – “cold turkey” LOL. This decision was solely for health reasons – I am hoping to lower my cholesterol levels – eating no cholesterol. (I know our body produces cholesterol). I have leather and small bits of fur (more than 20 yrs old) and I don’t freak out when I realize I’ve eaten a healthy homemade cookie that may have one egg in 48 cookies!! I don’t eat Soy products either so I make my own faux meats – they’re incredible! Even my husband thinks they taste like meat. After eating meat for 60 yrs I still like the “taste” of chicken and BACON!! and I don’t apologize for that! My family eats meat – I don’t. I don’t judge them and gradually they are judging me less and less. My surprise bonus is that I lost 17 lbs in the first 3 months and have maintained that without starving my self or becoming an exercise fanatic, or . . . . . . . giving up beer and wine! 🙂

Hello! I have been vegetarian for almost 3 years now, and I have dabbled in both being vegan and being on a completely raw diet. Dairy is a large part of my diet that I am slowly trying to phase out. I own a pair of shoes that have leather, and occasionally I eat products with gelatin in them. I haven’t done much research in alcoholic beverages, but there are websites that have lists of drinks that tell you if they are vegan or not. I want to stop using animal products completely, but I honestly don’t know what to take out first.

Caitlin,
Thanks for the article. I think that we are going to have to declare marshmallows to be okay. The vegan alternative runs $1/oz versus $1/lbs for the non-vegan type.
My Dad tells a story about a Catholic fellow that he worked with at North American Aircraft Company in the 60s. In the 60s the Catholics were very big on only eating fish on Friday (still practiced, but not to the same extent). One Friday a coworker was making a run to the local burger joint and bringing back hamburgers for the crew. Dad’s Catholic friend went ahead and ordered a hamburger. Dad asked him about eating the hamburger when they all sat down to lunch and his friend reverently bowed his head and said “Lord bless this fish” and then moved on.
The moral of the story is obvious. I think that we will also pray that the Lord blesses our vegetarian efforts and move forward with eating marshmallows in good conscience.

My gray areas in life pretty much went away when I was diagnosed with Type2 diabetes. 10 years of strict vegetarianism — loads of vegetables — and complete proteins such as beans and rice. The carbs killed my system. There aren’t very many vegetarians proteins that aren’t also high in carbs. (a lifetime of tofu). Eggs and meat were back on my plate to save my life. I felt guilty for years.