Are Nerds Candy Vegan?

The answer to the question are nerds candy vegan depends on your definition of veganism. Some varieties of the popular snack are vegan, but others contain ingredients that are not suitable for vegan diets.

The red and pink colored nerds contain food coloring that is made from carmine, which is derived from crushed insects. Also, the nerds rope contains gelatin that is not suitable for a vegan diet.

Gelatin

Gelatin is a common ingredient found in many types of candy, including Nerds. It’s made by boiling skin, tendons, ligaments, and bones from animals. This makes it unsuitable for vegans who avoid animal products. Some brands of gelatin are kosher, which means it’s derived from kosher cow or pig parts. However, the majority of gelatin is made from the hooves, bones, and cartilage of animals killed for their meat.

Nerds Gummy Clusters and Rainbow, Gummy Nerds, Sour Big Chewy Nerds, and Super Nerds contain gelatin that’s sourced from pigs. The other flavors of Nerds don’t contain gelatin, so they may be suitable for vegans. However, it’s important to read the ingredients list carefully and double-check the manufacturer’s website for any updates.

Moreover, some Nerds varieties contain Carmine color, which is a red dye sourced from cochineal beetles. This coloring doesn’t align with the principles of veganism. The other issue with Carmine is that it is often subjected to animal testing before being used in food.

The good news is that there are plant-based alternatives to gelatin, such as agar agar. Agar is a type of seaweed that’s commonly used in cooking, and it can be used as a substitute for gelatin. Agar is also free from lard and other fats that are often found in traditional recipes.

In addition, many companies now use an alternative to gelatin called xantham gum, which is vegan-friendly. Xantham gum is a byproduct of the fermentation of xylose, which is a sugar alcohol. It is also made from the bark of certain trees.

Despite these alternatives, some Nerds candies still contain questionable ingredients that aren’t suitable for vegans. White sugar, for example, is sometimes processed using bone char from animals. Similarly, artificial colors and dyes can be made from a variety of sources, including insects and coal. For this reason, some vegans choose to stick with natural, whole foods. Others are willing to make exceptions for special occasions or treats. Regardless of which approach you take, it’s essential to eat in moderation to maintain a healthy diet.

Carmine

Nerds are a staple of many people’s diets and they make for a delicious treat. However, vegans have to be careful when they choose which flavors of nerds to buy as most varieties of this candy are not vegan due to ingredients like carmine and gelatin. The good news is that there are a few Nerds flavors that are vegan, including strawberry and grape.

These two Nerds flavors do not contain any animal ingredients, but they do have some questionable ingredients such as malic acid and carmine. Malic acid is a sour-tasting chemical that can be found naturally in some fruits. It is also used as a flavor enhancer in some candies and food items. Unfortunately, malic acid is also produced in the bodies of certain insects, which makes it unsuitable for a vegan diet. Carmine is another ingredient that is used in the coloring of Nerds candies and is also a problem for vegans. This red dye is derived from crushed cochineal beetles. It is used in a wide variety of products, including cosmetics and food coloring.

The good news is that the other ingredients in Nerds are vegan friendly, such as dextrose, corn syrup, and carnauba wax. The latter is a natural plant-based wax that is sourced from the leaves of palm trees. This ingredient is commonly used to help the candy maintain its shape and it helps to keep the little pieces from sticking together inside of the packaging. The main reason that Nerds are not vegan is the coloring, which is derived from carmine and other insect-derived colors.

Some people choose to be vegan because they believe in animal rights, while others are simply avoiding animals for health or ethical reasons. However, there are also many people who choose to be flexitarian or omnivorous, which means that they eat both plant-based and meat-based foods. It is up to each individual person to decide what kind of diet they want to follow. Regardless of what kind of diet you are following, there is always room in your life for some Nerds!

Carnauba Wax

Carnauba wax is a natural, plant-based material that’s commonly used in food products. It is harvested from the leaves of the Copernicia prunifera palm tree in Brazil and refined to make it more usable for various purposes. The wax is a common ingredient in many hard candies, including Nerds and Tic-Tacs. It’s also an ingredient in gummy candies, including Gummi Bears, Skittles and Candy Corn, and the outer coating on some pharmaceutical pills.

In Nerds, the wax is used to give the candies their bright sheen and protect them from melting. It’s also a crucial component of their distinctive shape. Each Nerd starts out as an individual sugar crystal and is coated in the wax to help give them their recognizable shapes. Carnauba wax also gives the candies their smooth, soft texture and their slick grip.

Wax might seem like a strange substance to eat, but it’s deemed safe for human consumption in small amounts. It’s nontoxic and hypoallergenic, making it a popular choice in food products. It can also pass right through the digestive system without breaking down. It may be used in place of beeswax, which is often avoided by vegans, or petroleum-based waxes that are considered unacceptable to eat.

Some manufacturers may use other types of wax to coat foods, which are usually not a problem for vegans. Candelilla wax, vegetable oil and beeswax are some of the most common alternatives to carnauba. However, these options may be used in conjunction with other ingredients that are not suitable for a vegan diet.

Some manufacturers of Nerds include a “may contain milk” warning on their product packaging, so they may not be suitable for those with dairy allergies or sensitivities. This is because the candies are made in a facility that uses milk to manufacture other ingredients. Those looking for an alternative to the classic Nerds can try Pop-Rocks, Welch’s Fruit Snacks or Twizzlers instead. All of those are free of milk, gluten and peanuts but do contain tree nuts. They can also be found at most major retailers in the United States.

Artificial Flavorings

The process of making candy is a pretty fascinating one. It’s hard not to feel a little bit like Charlie Bucket when you see those tiny, individually-shaped treats being made right in front of you. That’s why it’s not too surprising that nerds have inspired their fair share of spin-off products. Some of these have been more successful than others, though.

One of the biggest Nerds spin-offs was a partnership with Sonic Drive-In in 2014. The resulting Nerds Slushes were basically just normal slushies with Nerds mixed in to offer both more flavor and some extra crunchy texture. This was probably not the best Nerds experiment, but it’s certainly not the only one that didn’t quite take off.

The Nerds brand also produced a bumpy variant on their jelly beans in 2018, per Eater, and a series of seasonal Nerds candies with fun flavors like “What-A-Melon” and “Road Rash Grape.” In addition to these year-round offerings, there are some more seasonal Nerds products, including a chocolate version and Nerds candy canes that appear around Easter.

A class action lawsuit filed against Ferrara Candy Company in 2017 claimed that the candy company failed to properly disclose that dl-malic acid, which is an artificial flavoring, is used in its nerds. The lawsuit said that reasonable consumers would not have purchased the nerds if they had been informed that they contained artificial flavoring, and it claimed that the candy manufacturer unjustly enriched itself by this deception.

Unlike natural flavors, which are created from the seeds or pulp of fruits and vegetables, artificial flavors are synthetically produced in a lab. They can be derived from natural sources like petroleum or made using chemicals like methyl cinnamate and methyl alcohol. Artificial flavors are usually considered vegan.

The FDA doesn’t require flavor manufacturers to list the ingredients that make up their flavors, but they do have to disclose whether artificial or natural flavors are used. Because there can be 50 to 100 different compounds in a single flavor, listing each of them would be impractical. However, the FDA does require that any ingredients that are derived from animal byproducts be noted on the label.