Are Whoppers Malt Balls Vegan?
Whoppers Malt Balls are a much beloved sweet among Americans. Those having made the switch to the vegan diet may wish to know if they can still enjoy this delicious treat. While on most of the ingredients are not in conflict with the vegan diet unfortunately they are not vegan given that they contain dairy milk.
Are Malt Balls Vegan?
The ingredients are: sugar, corn syrup, partially hydrogenated palm kernel oil, whey (milk), malted milk (barley malt, wheat flour, milk, salt, sodium bicarbonate), cocoa, 2% or less of: resinous glaze, sorbitan tristearate, soy lecithin, salt, natural and artificial flavors, calcium carbonate, tapioca dextrin.
As you can see above the milk content makes them off limits for the vegan diet.
There are many reasons people choose to be vegan but ethical conditions are often one of the top reasons. Due to this, ethical vegans will also likely have issues with other ingredients such as palm oil. Palm oil, while not inherently bad itself, is responsible for much deforestation in the rainforest. There are definitely projects which aim to provide palm oil in an ethical manner however those are in the minority. Many vegan specific products will state that they use sustainable palm oil in their ingredients. However if it is not explicitly stated you must assume that it is not sustainable and in this case there is no mention of it being sustainable palm oil. So it would be something to avoid if you have ethical qualms about palm oil and deforestation.
Irrespective of this point the Whoppers Malt balls are already off limits to vegans due to the milk content but the above information is something to think about when searching for other related products as you skim through the ingredients list.
Vegan Candy Alternatives
You may be disappointed by this news but fear not! There are plenty of vegan alternatives for those who have a sweet tooth which will be just as delicious of not moreso!
Firstly we can list some commercial candys which can be considered suitable for the vegan diet:
1) Twizzlers. Credit: Hershey’s. …
2) Hubba Bubba Chewing Gum. Credit: Wrigley. …
3) Cracker Jacks, Original Recipe.
4) Jolly Ranchers, All Standard Flavors.
5) Mamba Fruit Chews.
6) Sour Patch Kids.
7) Swedish Fish.
8) Skittles.
Having ascertained these candys as vegan it is worth noting that even though they are vegan they still have a lot of artificial ingredients which many vegans would find distressing. Being a vegan, for a lot of people is about leading a healthy lifestyle and so artificial contents in sweets will not sit right with them for maintaining that healthy lifestyle. Almost everyone enjoys a treat now and then however and there are still ways to have something sweet but without the artificial flavorings. This can form somewhat of a happy medium.
If that is the case for you and you still want to enjoy a sweet snack while it having all natural ingredients then perhaps look for these sweet yet natural alternatives listed below.
Bixby Chocolate Bars
This company is a small fledgling (circa 2011) company headed by a young female entrepeneur named Kate McAleer. The company does not make exclusively vegan products however they clearly state the products which are vegan on their website. This is very useful as how many fellow vegans can relate to furiously skimming through ingredient list after ingredient list to find any offending articles! Some of the listed vegan products their site offers includes (quoted from the site):
Bixby Bars, Peanut Butter Bites, Caramel Bites and Clusters, to name a few, bear certifications that include:
- Organic
- Non-GMO
- Kosher, Gluten-Free
- Vegan
They also state the ingredients are ethically sourced and Rainforest Alliance Certified as well as certified Women-Owned.
Original Cocomels Coconut Milk Caramels
This is a company specialising in coconut milk caramel. Their mission statement is to “deliver unexpectedly delicious moments of joy”. Another young company, founded in 2009 they have been making their caramel ever since. They offer a range of options to satify the tastebuds. Flavors include Original (coconut caramel), Sea Salt, Vanilla, Espresso, Coconut Sugar.
The website states that their whole product range is gluten, egg, dairy, peanuts or tree nut free, with coconut being the primary ingredient (which could also be classified as a tree nut, but that is the only one!) They are also organic, non-gmo and vegan.
YumEarth Organic Natural Candy Drops
If hard candy is your thing these candy drops are USDA organic, vegan, gluten-free, non-GMO project verified, kosher, and free from eggs, fish, milk ,peanuts, shellfish, soy, and tree-nuts. They come in a range of flavors which include Pomegranate Pucker, Mango Tango, Wet-face Watermelon, Perfectly Peach, Strawberry Smash, and Very Very Cherry.
These are just a few of the available option for vegan candy which can scratch that itch that your sweettooth craves. There are many more but those should give you a good idea that many options exist if you take some time to look.
Homemade Vegan Candy
Another option is always to make your own. This enables you to create the delicacy of your heart’s desire as you are able to put exactly what ingredients you want in. You can of course choose only vegan ingredients and you can also choose just how much or little sugar you want.
The only limit here is your creativity. What I often do is look at commercial options and their ingredients for a given vegan product just to get ideas and inspiration to make something myself. I then go ahead and think of how I would like to make something according to my tastes.
Conclusion
Often when you find that your old favorite is not an option now you are on a vegan diet you are initially disappointed. After that moment passes though you are then open to new possibilities and other options. This can be a blessing in disguise as if you had simply stayed with that brand you would never have found what else was out there. When you are forced to look outside the box you may find there were many even nicer options you would never have found otherwise.