Oreo cookies: are they really vegan?

Many of us grew up eating Oreos as kids, separating the creamy middle from the cookie half and dunking it into a tall glass of milk.

The iconic sandwich cookie has long been considered a vegan treat, and now it comes in a variety of other delicious dairy-free flavors, too. Does this mean that they are really vegan?

Vegan ingredients, but not healthy

Oreos have been one of the few cookies that vegans could consume until recently. It really has been considered a vegan and dairy-free cookie since they were first released. Despite the creamy filling in the center, the biscuit does not contain milk. With the exception of some flavors that contain some animal ingredients like honey, most Oreo cookies are vegan. However, there is a risk of cross contamination in the manufacturing process. So people with dairy allergies should not be too trusting with this product.

The ingredients listed on the packaging are: «unbleached enriched flour, sugar, palm and/or canola oil, cocoa, high fructose corn syrup, yeast, corn starch, salt, soy lecithin, vanillin, and unsweetened chocolate.” There's no mention of dairy or eggs, but the Oreo company itself says they don't consider the cookie "vegan-friendly." This is because they maintain the presence of milk as cross contact and, therefore, they are not suitable for demanding vegans.

Unfortunately, the fact that Oreos are vegan is just one type of hitch from fast food producers. None of the ingredients found in an Oreo cookie are real, whole foods. Like others processed foods, Oreos contain many harmful genetically modified ingredients, including high fructose corn syrup, a ubiquitous sweetener, and soy lecithin, an emulsifier extracted from soybeans. So Oreo cookies are a perfect example that just because something is vegan doesn't make it healthy.

Shouldn't vegans eat Oreos?

Since most products are made in facilities that contain animal products, does that imply that a small amount of milk makes something non-vegan? For an answer, PETA commented that foods containing small amounts of animal products do not raise any concerns. In a statement they said:

"Some packaged foods have a long list of ingredients. The further down an ingredient is on the list, the less of that component will be in the food. People who have made the compassionate decision to stop eating animal meat, eggs, and dairy products may wonder if they need to read all the ingredients to check for small amounts of unknown animal products. Our general advice is not to worry too much. The goal of following a vegetarian or vegan diet is to help animals and reduce suffering; this is done by choosing a bean burrito or veggie burger instead of chicken, or choosing scrambled tofu over eggs, not refusing to eat an otherwise vegan food because it has 0.001 grams of monoglycerides that are possibly of animal origin«.

All types of vegan Oreos

• Original. The original chocolate and vanilla cookies are the classic option. Enjoy your favorite vegan milk flavors and start the soak.
• Double cream. The union of two Oreo cookies with double cream.
• Gluten Free Oreos. Oreo, but gluten free! These delicious treats include chocolate chip cookies made with rice and oat flour instead of wheat.
• Chocolate cream. Chocolate Fudge - A cocoa lover's dream, with dairy-free cream sandwiched between two crunchy cookies.
• Dark chocolate. If regular chocolate isn't enough for you, then dark chocolate Oreos are for you.
• java chip. Your favorite frappe meets "milk's favorite cookie." These cookies have a coffee flavored cream speckled with tiny chocolate chips.
• Carrot cake. There are no actual carrots in Carrot Cake Oreos, but that shouldn't stop you from eating them.
• Lemon. If you're not already on the lemon team, let Oreo help you out. Nothing is quite as refreshing as crisp and soft Lemon Oreos that are equally tart and equally sweet. It's like lemonade without the hassle of drinking.
• Golden. Vanilla is not always boring. And when it comes to vanilla-flavored Golden Oreo cookies on top of Oreo vanilla cream?
• Chocolate Peanut Butter. Oreos with a delicious touch of dried fruit and the best gift for lovers of chocolate and butter peanut.
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake. Nothing beats a slice of chocolate and peanut cake.
• Cinnamon bun. Eating a whole cinnamon bun is hard work. These Oreos are creamy, slightly tangy, and perfectly dunkable and leaves gooey buns for the kids.
• Thin Mint. While the regular Oreo Mint flavor contains honey, the Thins version does not contain honey. And with a burst of peppermint oil, they're as cool as they are delicious.
• Birthday cake. The flavor of the Birthday Cake is popping up everywhere. If you are the first to have a piece of cake at children's parties, then this is for you.
• Coconut Caramel. These sweet Oreo cookies are proof that caramel and coconut go together like cookies and cream.
• chocolate marshmallow. Inspired by the famous clouds, these summery Oreos contain marshmallow pieces that are completely vegan.
• Chocolate with Hazelnut. These dipping cookies are filled with a chocolate hazelnut spread that tastes a lot like Nutella, but without dairy.