[kayehamilton]

I have been a vegitarian for a very long time. This year, after doing research about the ways in which eggs and milk are obtained, and cheese is made, I decided that I would like to attempt to go vegan. I'm doing it very slowly, but I need some help with which ingredients I need to avoid in certain products. I stopped eating cheese at the end of march, which has been much easier than I thought, and I have stopped drinking milk, or eating eggs, though I still eat products which contrain these things as ingredients, like mayo and cake, etc. It is important to me to stop eating anything that contains dairy, but I am concerned about other ingredients.<br><br><br><br>
For instance, I was not even aware of what rennet was until I came to this board to research going vegan. And today, I've found out that casein is sometimes used in veggie cheese. If it is not coagulated with rennet, however, for milk, etc. would it not be okay to eat? Because casein itself is only a protein. But do they always use rennet when they have used casein?<br><br><br><br>
Also, in certain things such as bread, I am really unclear as to why it is not vegan? The bread I have doesn't contain any milk or egg products, is there another ingredient I need to be wary and aware of?<br><br><br><br>
Please help clarify for me, it's really important to me to be able to go vegan eventually.

 

[Tesseract]

Major non-vegan ingredients in many commercial breads are milk products, including non-fat dry milk and whey, occasionally egg, and honey.<br><br><br><br>
Another ingredient in some breads that some people are concerned about is l-cysteine, which is made from human hair and therefore is non-vegan. However, there's no evidence AFAIK that people are being abused and exploited for their hair, so from a cruelty/exploitation angle, I personally am not sure it's worth worrying about. The issue has also been raised whether it may be possible for human hair to carry the prion that causes the human version of mad cow disease, known as CJDnv.<br><br><br><br>
Are there any that I missed?<br><br><br><br>
BTW, if you want a head start on mayonnaise, there are a couple of vegan mayos that are widely available: Nayonaise and Vegenaise. It seems that most people love one and hate the other, but which one they love/hate varies! <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/smiley.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="">

 

[kayehamilton]

Thank you so much, that really clarified things for me.<br><br><br><br>
And about the mayo, would I be able to buy either of those at Whole Foods? I live in Canada, and the selection of vegitarian/vegan products in the usual grocery stores is really limited.<br><br><br><br>
Thanks again! <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/smiley.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="">

 

[meatless]

I can get at least 3-4 brands of vegan mayonnaise in Ottawa.<br><br><br><br>
veganaise is available in most Loblaws stores, as well as health food stores.

 

[meatless]

<div class="quote-container"><span>Quote:</span>
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by <strong>kayehamilton</strong> <a href="/forum/post/0"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style=""></a><br><br><br>
For instance, I was not even aware of what rennet was until I came to this board to research going vegan. And today, I've found out that casein is sometimes used in veggie cheese. If it is not coagulated with rennet, however, for milk, etc. would it not be okay to eat? Because casein itself is only a protein. But do they always use rennet when they have used casein?<br></div>
</div>
<br><br><br>
Casein is what makes cheese melt. I don't think any veggie cheeses (rice cheese, soy cheese) would contain rennet, but like you've observed, they often contain casein.<br><br><br><br>
You may want to try Vegan Gourmet (<a href="http:" target="_blank">www.imearthkind.com)</a>. It's available at many health food stores, Loblaws, etc.

 

[kayehamilton]

Thanks meatless <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/smiley.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title=""><br><br><br><br>
I never shop at Lowblaws, and it seems they have a better selection than say Sobeys or A&P, so thank you!

 

[meatless]

Yeah, I've been to one Sobeys and it was *ok*, but not great. A&P has very little I think.<br><br><br><br>
Look for Loblaws' that have Natural Value sections, those will have the best selection. Also, Loblaws has their own line of organic products, President's Choice organics, and it's pretty extensive and has lots of good stuff at affordable prices.

 

[MJZ]

<div class="quote-container"><span>Quote:</span>
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by <strong>Tesseract</strong> <a href="/forum/post/0"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style=""></a><br><br><br>
Another ingredient in some breads that some people are concerned about is l-cysteine, which is made from human hair and therefore is non-vegan. However, there's no evidence AFAIK that people are being abused and exploited for their hair, so from a cruelty/exploitation angle, I personally am not sure it's worth worrying about. The issue has also been raised whether it may be possible for human hair to carry the prion that causes the human version of mad cow disease, known as CJDnv.<br><br><br></div>
</div>
<br><br><br>
"The source of L-Cysteine is human hair, chicken feathers, cow horn, petroleum by-products and synthetic material. It was reported by a food company that a Rabbi refused to Kosher certify L-cysteine from human hair obtained from a temple in India where hairs are cut because of religious rituals."<br><br><br><br>
It is possible to get L-Cysteine as a animal by product though rare in america because human hair is the cheapest source<br><br><br><br>
Came across that at <a href="http://www.albalagh.net/halal/col2.shtml" target="_blank">http://www.albalagh.net/halal/col2.shtml</a>