Atlanta Newbie
August 21st, 2004, 09:40 AM
For those of you are interested, these are e-mail messages I sent to and received from General Mills as well as PETA on the question of Cheerios containing vitamin D3.
Message to General Mills:
I have read that Cheerios (the original whole grain variety) is not considered vegetarian because General Mills uses vitamin D3 in its formulation. The box only lists "vitamin D" but does not specify if the type is D2 (plant-derived) or D3 (animal-derived). Could you please clarify this for me? As I try to avoid consumption of animal by-products when possible, I want to make sure that I am making an informed purchase decision. Thank you for your time.
Response from General Mills:
Thank you for contacting General Mills with your inquiry.
There is vitamin D3 in Cheerios.
We hope you find this information helpful. Please let us know if we can help you again.
Message to PETA:
Hi there, thank you for creating the great "I Can't Believe It's Vegan" site. I have two questions:
1) Cheerios contains vitamin D3. (I verified this with General Mills.. it is D3 although the box only specifies vitamin D.) Doesn't this make Cheerios non-vegan (and non-vegetarian)?
2) Do you have plans to expand your site to include household items (cleaning, bath, etc.) or is there a similar site for those items?
Thanks!!
Response from PETA:
Thank you for contacting PETA about the products that appear on our “I Can’t Believe It’s Vegan!” list. We understand your concern that some of these products may contain ingredients, such as monoglycerides, stearoyl lactylic acid, and natural flavors, that are derived from animals. We also appreciate this chance to explain our position.
Since you’re checking out lists of animal ingredients in the first place, we’re betting that you’re trying to root them out of your diet, and we applaud you for going vegan—without question, it is the best thing that you can do for animals, yourself, and the Earth. However, it’s important to remember that veganism isn’t a dogma but rather an animal-friendly lifestyle.
We want to offer as many options as possible to people who are trying to make the switch to a more compassionate way of living. We prepared the list of vegan foods in order to demonstrate how easy it can be to become a vegan. We want all those who currently believe that vegans have “nothing to eat” to realize that veganism is a feasible, realistic option for everyone. Adopting a vegan diet should not be regarded as a chore; we want to help people make the switch to a compassionate diet with as little effort as possible.
Unfortunately, it is virtually impossible to make absolutely sure that nothing that we eat has ever come into contact with animal-derived products. Let’s not pretend that even “pure” vegan food hasn’t been processed with electricity that destroys habitat, delivered in gas-fueled vehicles, and so on. Sadly, everything that we eat involves some degree of animal suffering. Indeed, there are many “pure” vegan foods that surely cause more suffering (to animals who are caught in combines, who eat pesticides or herbicides, etc.) than foods that contain minuscule amounts of some product that may be animal-derived. Our goal is to reduce animal suffering as much as possible.
For a further discussion of this topic, please check out the essay on the following Web page: CaringConsumer.com/labels.html. Please also view www.caringconsumer.com for the information you were searching for regarding cruelty-free cosmetic and household items.
We respect your views and realize that the issues that you raise are complex. As animal activists, we face similar issues and decisions every day. Thank you for taking the time to contact us and for doing all you can to help animals.
Message to General Mills:
I have read that Cheerios (the original whole grain variety) is not considered vegetarian because General Mills uses vitamin D3 in its formulation. The box only lists "vitamin D" but does not specify if the type is D2 (plant-derived) or D3 (animal-derived). Could you please clarify this for me? As I try to avoid consumption of animal by-products when possible, I want to make sure that I am making an informed purchase decision. Thank you for your time.
Response from General Mills:
Thank you for contacting General Mills with your inquiry.
There is vitamin D3 in Cheerios.
We hope you find this information helpful. Please let us know if we can help you again.
Message to PETA:
Hi there, thank you for creating the great "I Can't Believe It's Vegan" site. I have two questions:
1) Cheerios contains vitamin D3. (I verified this with General Mills.. it is D3 although the box only specifies vitamin D.) Doesn't this make Cheerios non-vegan (and non-vegetarian)?
2) Do you have plans to expand your site to include household items (cleaning, bath, etc.) or is there a similar site for those items?
Thanks!!
Response from PETA:
Thank you for contacting PETA about the products that appear on our “I Can’t Believe It’s Vegan!” list. We understand your concern that some of these products may contain ingredients, such as monoglycerides, stearoyl lactylic acid, and natural flavors, that are derived from animals. We also appreciate this chance to explain our position.
Since you’re checking out lists of animal ingredients in the first place, we’re betting that you’re trying to root them out of your diet, and we applaud you for going vegan—without question, it is the best thing that you can do for animals, yourself, and the Earth. However, it’s important to remember that veganism isn’t a dogma but rather an animal-friendly lifestyle.
We want to offer as many options as possible to people who are trying to make the switch to a more compassionate way of living. We prepared the list of vegan foods in order to demonstrate how easy it can be to become a vegan. We want all those who currently believe that vegans have “nothing to eat” to realize that veganism is a feasible, realistic option for everyone. Adopting a vegan diet should not be regarded as a chore; we want to help people make the switch to a compassionate diet with as little effort as possible.
Unfortunately, it is virtually impossible to make absolutely sure that nothing that we eat has ever come into contact with animal-derived products. Let’s not pretend that even “pure” vegan food hasn’t been processed with electricity that destroys habitat, delivered in gas-fueled vehicles, and so on. Sadly, everything that we eat involves some degree of animal suffering. Indeed, there are many “pure” vegan foods that surely cause more suffering (to animals who are caught in combines, who eat pesticides or herbicides, etc.) than foods that contain minuscule amounts of some product that may be animal-derived. Our goal is to reduce animal suffering as much as possible.
For a further discussion of this topic, please check out the essay on the following Web page: CaringConsumer.com/labels.html. Please also view www.caringconsumer.com for the information you were searching for regarding cruelty-free cosmetic and household items.
We respect your views and realize that the issues that you raise are complex. As animal activists, we face similar issues and decisions every day. Thank you for taking the time to contact us and for doing all you can to help animals.