In this article we will look closely at whether the very tasty breakfast cereal Cheerios is considered to be a vegan friendly breakfast cereal. So continue reading to find out Are Cheerios Vegan?
What are Cheerios?
Cheerios are a very popular breakfast cereal from Nestle that many children and adults indulge in every day. From the outside they appear to be a more ‘healthy’ option then some other popular cereal brands. However they are still a processed food, with a fair amount of sugar inside them. They are in the shape of an O to symbolise the whole grain oats that are used as a key ingredient in this tasty cereal, but are these tasty Cheerios Vegan friendly or not?
Can Vegans eat Cheerios?
So unfortunately Cheerios are not entirely vegan. But for some vegans who our perhaps not as strict with some of their foods they may opt to decide that Cheerios are totally fine. Do there are two ingredients that vegans would want to avoid: The source of the vitamin D that is in Cheerios actually comes from sheep’s wool and then there’s the sugar which was likely to be refined sugar which would have gone through the filtering process using bone char read our informative article on Is Sugar Vegan? .
What ingredients are in cheerios?
So in cheerios you will find ingredients that are vegan as well as ingredients that are considered not to be vegan due to how the ingredient may have been processed or where it may have come from.
Original Cheerios
Ingredients:
- Whole grain oats
- Corn starch
- Sugar
- Salt
- Tripotassium phosphate
- Vitamin e (mixed tocopherols)
- Calcium carbonate (mineral nutrients)
- Iron and zinc
- Vitamin c ( sodium ascorbate)
- A B Vitamin (nacinamide)
- Vitamin B 6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride)
- Vitamin A (palmitate)
- Vitamin B 1 (thiamin mononitrate)
- A B Vitamin (folic acid)
- Vitamin B12
- Vitamin D3
What Cheerio flavours are Vegan?
There are actually over 20 different flavours although the top favourite cheerios flavours are:
- Original cheerios
- Honey nut cheerios
- Multigrain cheerios
BUT unfortunately, none of the many flavors of cheerios would be considered vegan friendly as they all contain D3 and Sugar and some of flavours contain honey which is considered to be a non vegan ingredient as honey as a product from an animal. The amount of sugar found in each serving of cheerios is less than 1 gram of sugar. The vitamins and minerals have been placed in the cheerios to ensure a balanced amount of these nutrients are getting into our bodies – with over 12 different vitamins and minerals. They are low in fat and in comparison to many of the high sugary cereals out there these generally speaking are quite a good option.
Honey, Sugar and Vitamin D3
These ingredients, honey, sugar and vitamin D are considered to not be vegan due to where they have come from and how they have been produced. However, there is conflict as to how vegan friendly these products are and most vegans tend to not be too worried about sugar.
What cereal can I eat on a vegan diet?
Luckily there are a whole range of cereals out there that are suitable for vegans. So, the main reason cereals are automatically presumed not vegan is that they are paired with milk or yogurt. So all you need to do is swap the dairy product for an alternative. I tend to use almond milk or oat milk as my main two milk alternatives and then you can get some great dairy free yogurts which are made from soy or coconut milk which are great paired with a vegan granola. Check out our blog post on Vegan cereal to find out more information.
FAQ’s
What type of Cheerios are vegan?
Depending on how strict a vegan diet you are following (Sugar being the main culprit here – read my blog post on Is Sugar Vegan? To make a more informed decision) the below cheerio products maybe suitable:
- Oat Cheerios
- Multigrain Cheerios
- Yellow box Cheerios
Are Cheerios plant based diet?
Due to Cheerios containing processed sugar, honey and D3 which are all ingredients that are not considered Vegan and therefore not plant based.
Is Very Berry Cheerios vegan?
Again no they are not vegan, though some may consider them vegan friendly depending on how strict a vegan diet you follow.
Are Cheerios vegan and gluten free?
Unfortunately they are not vegan but they are gluten free. As well as being fortified in many essential vitamins and minerals.
Summary… Can Vegans treat themselves to a bowl of delicious oat cheerios?
So if you are happy to overlook the tiniest amount of sugar and the fact that the Vitamin D has been gathered from sheep’s wool then feel free to indulge in some tasty cheerios. However it is possible to find cereals that are 100% vegan out there. In health food shops and online stores you can even buy multigrain hoops aka cheerios that are 100% vegan and if it’s your kids that indulge in the tasty Cheerio treat they probably wouldn’t even notice the difference! – Waitrose have a tasty chocolate alternative called Alpha Bites which your kids would love.
