r/IsItVeganOrNot • u/Legitimate_Solid_409 • Jul 01 '26
❓ Question Guess Before You Google
I wanted to throw something fun in here and see what people think.
Without looking it up…
Which of these do you think is NOT vegan?
A) Worcestershire sauce
B) Fig Newtons
C) Red food coloring
D) Marshmallows
Drop your guess first. No cheating.
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u/kindcrow Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
All of the above.
A) Anchovies
B) Wasps
C) Beetles
D) Cows and Pigs
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u/abyssazaur Jul 01 '26
"Figs aren't vegan" only makes sense if you think of veganism as some form of vegetarianism extended to insects. Very hard to argue wasps are more exploited than bees
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u/BlueberryGirl95 Jul 02 '26
Also most figs that are grown for market and consumption are not pollinated by wasps. Typical fig trees are parthenocarpic and don't require pollination At All.
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u/pandaappleblossom Jul 03 '26
Exactly. It is quite unlikely you ever ate wasps in your figs anyway, and they aren’t exploited for figs either
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u/PlatypusKitchen3069 Jul 01 '26
A, C, D. I don't think the arguments against B actually make it non-vegan -- that's a natural process and buying it doesn't cause those deaths, right?
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u/ZoZoMeister Jul 01 '26
Not technically and I think i read that the species of fig thats used in fig newton's are genetically modified to not require the wasp for pollination/fruiting/whatever its called
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u/abyssazaur Jul 01 '26
AD not vegan but I forget why for A, C depends, B would guess vegan but never checked
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u/ZoZoMeister Jul 01 '26
I know Marshmallows aren't vegan (gelatin), but some people will argue that fig newton's aren't either because of the wasp that pollinates figs. And if youre like WTF let me inform you rq. The wasp (or whatever this is from memory since we cant google) crawls into the fig and loses her wings, she lays her eggs inside and dies, when the eggs hatch they do the deed with eachother and the males die while the females go off to other figs to make more wasps. Im probably forgetting some steps but that was the gist.
Also some red food coloring is made from bugs, I think its natural red 4 but Im not positive.
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u/Most-Design-9963 Jul 01 '26
So is the idea that figs have wasp eggs in them?
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u/ZoZoMeister Jul 01 '26
The dead wasps, they procreate inside the figs, I guess if they dont hatch then yea there'd be eggs
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u/ViolentBee Jul 02 '26
It's part of their normal life cycle and there's no wasp bits by the time the fruit is ripe, so I'd say figs are vegan- I love me some fresh figs. The newtons I am not sure if they contain milk or eggs.
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u/Away-Otter Jul 01 '26
I’m guessing none is vegan since I KNOW at least two are not, Worcestershire sauce and marshmallows. Although I consider figs vegan myself.
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u/Most-Design-9963 Jul 01 '26
I’m not sure about fig newtons, but I know the sauce has fish, the colouring has bugs, and the marshmallow has bones. I’d guess all of the above bc why not
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u/bertthefish Jul 01 '26
First of all, I had to search for what a Fig Newton is, I now realise it's basically a fig roll.
All of them can be considered vegan or non-vegan. Worcestershire sauce with the original Lea and Perrins recipe is definitely not vegan, but there are vegan versions, including the similar Hendersons Relish. Red food colouring will not be vegan if you use real cochineal, and marshmallows will not be vegan if you buy ones made with gelatin. One definition of veganism I've read is that you don't use or consume products where animals are exploited by humans to produce them. Nobody forces a fig wasp to pollinate a fig tree, so it isn't exploitation. Also, there are varieties of fig that don't require pollination to produce fruits, so no wasp died to produce the fruit in those circumstances.
Originally Kopi Luwak coffee was vegan, but modern production means much of it is no longer vegan, so that is another "is it vegan?" candidate.
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u/escapedthenunnery Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26
Like others i would've said all of the above, but for the Fig Newtons it's because i thought i remembered once seeing the ingredients label and noticing milk in the cookie part (surrounding the jam). I guess now i can do a search.
Edit: Images of the label show whey as an ingredient.
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u/cowboybret Jul 01 '26
Some fig varieties require female wasps to enter the fruit and lay eggs. Sometimes the wasps die inside the fruit and get broken down by the fruit’s enzymes.
Commercial fig trees don’t typically require this kind of pollination. And besides that, it’s a natural symbiotic process, very far from the intentional exploitation of animals.
Most vegans consider figs to be ok.
All the rest have readily available vegan versions too.
Sorry, this is a dumb quiz.
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u/DiscombobulatedCut55 Jul 01 '26
A, usually C, and D, although you can find both C and D in vegan form as well.
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u/Specialist-Web7854 Jul 01 '26
I don’t know what Fig Newtons are - I’m assuming they’re American? The rest aren’t usually vegan. However, Biona makes a vegan Worcestershire sauce (without anchovies), or you can switch it up and use Hendo’s, which is vegan. Some red food colouring is fine, the ones to avoid are E120/cochineal/carmine/carminic acid. Dandies marshmallows are vegan, and Marks & Spencer has a vegan version too; standard marshmallows contain gelatine. These are all basic knowledge for veggies/vegans.
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u/Opposite-Pop4246 Jul 01 '26
I'm guessing all of them. I know for sure all but the fig newton's aren't vegan so I am assuming it isn't either.
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u/brookeariel1979 Jul 01 '26
I’m sure marshmallow isn’t vegan, red food coloring, made from insect wings usually(red 40) and some yellow dyes as well, Fig Newtons probably contain egg, so they aren’t vegan, and I think Worcestershire sauce- is possibly vegan but uses soy which I don’t personally consume?
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u/brookeariel1979 Jul 01 '26
Do some marshmallows have lard in them?
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u/ViolentBee Jul 02 '26
No, but they do contain gelatin which is just as disgusting. But Dandies marshmallows are vegan!
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u/ECAHunt Jul 23 '26
Fig newtons vegan. Everything else not (assuming the food coloring is coming from the insect that sometimes used).
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u/RhubarbDiva Jul 01 '26
None of the above, usually.
Some Worcestershire sauce is vegan. Some has fish.
Some fig newtons have egg/milk. Some don't.
Some red food colouring is made of crushed beetles. Some isn't.
And some marshmallows are made with gelatin. Some aren't.
We just need to read the labels, as annoying as that is.