"Vegan" Cane Sugar by 365
Posted by stride4unity on Nov 18, 2007 · Member since Feb 2005 · 211 posts
2 weeks ago I visited Whole Foods and noticed that their 365 brand now sells vegan cane sugar in bulk for 4 pounds and the price is cheaper than what I pay for the Florida Crystals. Here is my question though: the 365 brand sugar cane bag is labeled as "Vegan Cane Sugar" and the ingredients on the back say "fair trade cane sugar". Is this filtered with animal bone char? It says NOTHING about its filtration process. I assume that since it is labeled as "vegan" that is musn't be filtered with animal bone char, but sometimes the "vegan" label is used too loosely! Has anyone ever brought this bag before? Do you think it's filtered without animal bone char? The price cant be beat!
I haven't asked anyone at Whole Foods, but I feel confident that they, of all stores, know that vegan sugar would not be filtered with bone char. CeltKat, bookpapa, and I bought some of this at Whole Foods just yesterday and were excited to see it. The only thing that would make it better would be for it to be organic. I guess the fact that it is not is what helps keep the price so low--$1/pound.
I thought any un-refined sugar didn't need bone char processing? Hence all evaporated-cane-juice things are vegan. Maybe not. Anyone know?
I think that is the case. We were just excited to see something marked "vegan" in huge letters. :D
EDIT: Somehow I got on bookpapa's login on the computer I had been logged in on...weird. Anyway...bookmama posting on this one.
so looks and texture wise is it more like regular granulated sugar as opposed to sugar-in-the-raw?
2 weeks ago I visited Whole Foods and noticed that their 365 brand now sells vegan cane sugar in bulk for 4 pounds and the price is cheaper than what I pay for the Florida Crystals. Here is my question though: the 365 brand sugar cane bag is labeled as "Vegan Cane Sugar" and the ingredients on the back say "fair trade cane sugar". Is this filtered with animal bone char? It says NOTHING about its filtration process. I assume that since it is labeled as "vegan" that is musn't be filtered with animal bone char, but sometimes the "vegan" label is used too loosely! Has anyone ever brought this bag before? Do you think it's filtered without animal bone char? The price cant be beat!
I too had the same doubts about the sugar after I bought it.So I mailed Whole Foods and they promptly replied.Turns out the sugar is vegan.I am posting their response for your benefit.:-
Thank you for your questions regarding our 365 and 365 Organic Everyday Value Sugars. Bone char is a process used to decolorize sugar created by calcinating animal bones. When this process is used it renders the product unsuitable for many vegetarians and vegans. The following is a list of the sugars we offer and if they are processed vegan.
365 Organic Cane Sugar - bone char is NOT used
365 Organic Powdered Sugar - bone char is NOT used
365 Turbinado Sugar - bone char is NOT used
365 Vegan White Sugar - bone char is NOT used
365 Brown Sugar - bone char IS used
Our 365 Vegan White Sugar goes through a 100% animal-free carbon deactivation process to decolorize. The only private label sugar we offer that does go through a bone char process is our 365 Brown Sugar; however, we are transitioning this product to 365 Organic. The new product will be processed without the use of animal products making all 365 and 365 Organic Everyday Value Sugars vegan.
Jason Hays
Guest Services Content Administrator, Private Label
______________________________________________________________________________________
Hope this helps!!!
I bought this too thinking that if it's labeled vegan it has to be, but I'm really happy to hear their organic line is also vegan!!! I'm going to buy their powdered sugar now!
That's great news, Rashmi! Thanks for sharing!!
But it still seems silly to me to decolorize sugar at all... I guess I can understand powdered sugar, since it's often used for presentation, but it has always struck me as unnecessary.
Thank you Rashmi! I was going to do just that but I came here after searching on the topic.
I wouldn't be surprised if USDA/FDA prohibited writing that piece of info. ("This product does not go through bone char") on the packaging for similar reasons that it requires milk cartons to explicitly state that milk from cows treated with rBGH is the same as milk from cows NOT treated with rBGH.
Sharway, Good point! I was even surprised to see that brown sugar goes thro' bone char. Is it because it's too brown otherwise?
Hmmm... I wonder what they do in India. I will have to find out.
Sharway, Good point! I was even surprised to see that brown sugar goes thro' bone char. Is it because it's too brown otherwise?
Hmmm... I wonder what they do in India. I will have to find out.
Really have no idea why brown sugar goes thru bone char........I thought the process of filtering thru bone char was meant to give sugar its white color!!!!!Beats me why brown sugar needs that!
As far as Ur question about what happens in India,well I am originally from India,though I am currently based here in the US. Back in India the sugar we get is granulated,it is not so fine as the sugar we get here. Also there is no such brand of sugar available there ,it's mostly unbranded.............As far as I know I really don't think sugar in India is filtered through bone char, mainly I would say for religious purposes. A majority of Indians are vegetarian ,morever the cow is actually worshipped there,so it would seriously hurt religious sentiments if such a thing is done!!!!!!!
but the sad thing is they stopped carrying florida crystals. I could be mistaken, but I think it was less processed than what they offer now. The turbinado sugar crystals are a little too big for baking, I think.
Sharway, Good point! I was even surprised to see that brown sugar goes thro' bone char. Is it because it's too brown otherwise?
I'm sure it's for standardization. Make white sugar, then add a specific measurement of molasses back to it so it's the same color/texture from batch to batch. I think brown sugar is so stupid. Imagine the amount of processing they do to turn natural sugar white, THEN brown, as opposed to something like turbinado, which is brown because it's, DUH, not as processed.