When picking out a cereal that fits in with your diet, things like snacks, or cereals, are things that are going to be on your list of considerations.
One cereal you might be fond of is Frosted flakes, as they are universally loved by many and give you a wonderful natural taste that can help kickstart your day.
While it isn’t technically vegan, many vegans are okay with eating them due to the ingredients used and the quantity, so let’s look into this further and find out what’s going on.
What Ingredients Are In Frosted Flakes?
While Frosted Flakes may be vegan, it all depends on the individual and how strict of a vegan diet they follow.
If you’ve just started this type of diet, you might be starting to look into cereals and how labeling works, so to make it easier, we’ve listed the ingredients for this cereal below.
- Malt Flavor
- Iron
- Sugar
- Vitamin B1, B2, B3, B6, and B9
- Vitamin D3
What About Any Questionable Ingredients?
The two ingredients that you may want to be wary of is the sugar and vitamin D3, and we know that white sugar in the US is often filtered with bone char that comes from cattle.
The inclusion of Vitamin D3 is where it gets complicated, as even though it can be made from lichen, which makes it vegan, many cereal manufacturers derive it through the oil in sheep’s wool, known as lanolin.
Even though this doesn’t sound harmful, it’s the practices that make it a concern for vegans, as animal abuse is well known in this industry as sheep are treated in barbaric means, which also makes wool products non-vegan as well.
What Vegan Cereals Are There?
Knowing that almost all cereals are in some way fortified and contain traces of D3, it is a small amount and is added to a lot of foods which makes it hard to avoid.
However, below you can find cereal brands that are entirely vegan and maybe ones you recognize or ones you can try for the first time.
- Natures Path
- Seven Sundays
- Quaker Original Life cereal
- Food For Life Ezekiel 4:9
- Barbara’s Bakery Peanut Butter Puffins
- Cascadian Farm
- General Mills Fibre One Original
- Kashi
What To Look Out For In Your Cereal
Looking for the vegan logo is a sure way to determine that it’s completely fine to consume, but those that contain D3 might still be in your sights.
As fewer refineries use bone char for filtering sugar, this may, over time, be a viable option for you.
Some ingredients stand out that are staples in many cereals and can help you determine if they are right for you or not.
These are:
- Honey, as a sweetener
- Dairy
- Eggs, which aren’t that common but can appear
- Refined white sugar
- Gelatin
- Carmine, or E122
- Vitamin D
Some of these may be more hidden than others which may not be distinct on the packaging as they might only be used in small amounts, but it helps to be vigilant.
How To Enjoy Vegan Cereal
Everyone knows that eating them on their own is bland and dull, so if you haven’t already, there are plenty of plant-based milk options for you to try, and you may find that almond milk has a sweeter taste.
You can still get the nutrients from plant-based than you would with regular, as plant-based types are fortified with B12 making them a reliable vegan option.
You can also find calcium made from ground-up limestone, which is chemically pure and well-absorbed, and you find that different types have more or less calcium, so it is recommended you pick a brand with at least 300mg per serving.
How To Pick Out The Perfect Cereal
This doesn’t have to be difficult, and the best way to pick out a healthy cereal is to look for those low in salt and GMOs and high in fiber, protein, antioxidants, omega 3, and iron.
The Bottom Line
You can also find cereals that give you a naturally fruity and nutty taste, so you don’t have to compromise to find the perfect cereal.
So as long as you are vigilant and know what flavors you like, you can have the perfect bowl of cereal for breakfast or even a well-earned snack to get your day going.
