Vegan Forum

bfrau · by **bfrau** » Jul 5, 2011 9:17 pm

i'm usually really careful when i check ingredients, but i was in a rush today and bought a thing of granola without checking. it wasn't until i had already eaten some for breakfast that i realized it listed whey as an ingredient. i obviously feel terrible about this, but it's one of the only slip ups i've had while being vegan. my question is what to do with the rest: i offered it to my roommate to finish, but if she doesn't like it, is it more harmful and unethical to just throw it away or to eat it myself? i just wanted some opinions on this because i've never had this problem before. thanks!

AndyBa · by **AndyBa** » Jul 21, 2011 5:46 pm

Just eat it. You have already paid for it. So the harm is done. Veganism is not about purity. If nobody wants to eat it, then you eat it.

ANne · by **ANne** » Jul 25, 2011 4:28 pm

dont repeat the mistake again.

dragonfly · by **dragonfly** » Aug 11, 2011 2:48 am

it could happen to anybody. don't sweat it.

AdamD · by **AdamD** » Aug 12, 2011 4:51 am

Just eat it!

I do it all the time and I feel great

VBryan · by **VBryan** » Aug 22, 2011 5:30 am

If you are vegan you can not eat it knowing it is not a vegan product essentially. So outside of giving it to someone else to eat, there is the option of throwing it I guess. Not sure if there is some other creative use for it.

Apocalyptica · by **Apocalyptica** » Sep 2, 2011 8:31 pm

I don't see any problem with eating it, because as AndyBa said it was the purchase of the product that supported the animal industry, not whether you finish the box or not. I just had the same thing happen with a box of cereal that contained honey, and I finished the box. Don't beat yourself up for it, we all make mistakes.

snog · by **snog** » Oct 5, 2011 9:45 am

AndyBa wrote:Just eat it. You have already paid for it. So the harm is done. Veganism is not about purity. If nobody wants to eat it, then you eat it.

Indeed. People do the best they can. I agree with the above that being vegan doesn't mean you have be anal retentive. Oprah had an episode on where she had spoken of being 'veganist': people eat primarily vegan, but do consume dairy once in a while...
in a perfect world, it'd be easy to be a vegan purist. I wouldn't miss icecream, etc if the vegan versions were as inexpensive as the dairy. It's all about marketing, most vegan items being a niche market... In the future, though, I bet nearly everything would be vegan. It'd have to be to sustain the planet, that's for sure...

Kensho · by **Kensho** » Oct 5, 2011 11:31 am

i forgive you... please find it within you to forgive yourself... don't stress over an honest mistake... but i would throw it away if it causes you pain... i've been a vegan for about 8-9 months now and in all honesty i use organic honey from time to time... two nights ago i enjoyed some on my baked sweet potato... despite others philosophical beliefs on the matter i still consider myself a vegan... i'm not killing the bee by consuming its honey... on the other hand eating the remnants of a sentient being who had its own level of consciousness is a completely different story...

Kensho