Is Laffy Taffy Vegan? Is Laffy Taffy Gluten Free?
For more than fifty years, Laffy Taffy has been one of the most popular candies in the United States. One bite transports you to your childhood, whether you are young or old. Green apple, banana, grape, strawberry, blueberry, and even chocolate mousse flavor are among the many options.
The fruity flavors may imply that they are vegan, but is this true? Every time you think about a food item, veganism prompts a series of questions. Many popular candies and snacks are non-vegan, and vegans are responsible for avoiding them. According to this standard, all Laffy Taffy ingredients are not vegan. Some Laffy Taffy varieties clearly contain animal-based ingredients, while others contain some controversial ingredients that strict vegans avoid.
Laffy Taffy – Brand Overview
The origins of Laffy Taffy can be traced back to the Beich’s Candy Company. Paul F. Beich established Beich’s in 1893. The Beich Whiz bar, a chocolate-covered marshmallow candy that was once popular, was sold by the company.
Laffy Taffy’s name has changed a few times over the years. First, the company was known as Beich’s Caramels, and its packaging included names like Beich’s Strawberry Caramels. The candy was eventually renamed Beich’s, Laffy Taffy. Nestle purchased the candy from Beich’s and changed the name to “Wonka Laffy Taffy” or simply Laffy Taffy.
Beich’s Laffy Taffy used to be somewhat square in shape and chunkier, and you could buy large quantities of multiple colors of small square Laffy Taffys for a time. Nevertheless, Laffy Taffy has become a flatter and longer candy, albeit still relatively small in comparison to other candies.
Laffy Taffy Minis Candy Ingredients
Corn syrup, sugar, hydrogenated cottonseed oil, malic acid, soy lecithin, palm oil, and artificial colorants are the main ingredients in this candy. Though there are no direct animal-based ingredients in this product, it does contain a number of contentious ingredients that strict vegans should avoid.
As you can see, Laffy Taffy Minis contain no animal products. As a result, they can be considered vegan. However, whether palm oil is vegan or not, many people have strong feelings about it.
Are Laffy Taffy Ropes Vegan?
Laffy Taffy ropes are long taffy pieces sold in most candy stores. They are less expensive than Laffy Taffy Minis, but the Ropes have fewer servings. Laffy Taffy Ropes’ Mystery Swirl flavor is especially popular. Banana, Cherry, Grape, Sour Apple, Blue Raspberry, and Strawberry are among the other Laffy Taffy candy flavors available.
The Laffy Taffy Ropes contain the same ingredients as the Laffy Taffy Minis Candy and are also considered a vegan variety of the brand.
Laffy Taffy Ropes Ingredients
Laffy Taffy Ropes are almost identical to Laffy Taffy Minis in terms of ingredients. Corn syrup, palm oil, sugar, hydrogenated cottonseed oil, soy lecithin (check vegan status), and artificial colors and flavors are all present.
Laffy Taffy Ropes, like Laffy Taffy Minis, contain questionable ingredients such as palm oil, sugar, Malic Acid, Salt, Soy Lecithin, Artificial Flavors, Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6.
Are Laffy Taffy Stretchy and Tangy Candy Vegan?
Laffy Taffy Stretchy and Tangy is a candy created by a collaboration between Laffy Taffy and Wonka. The candy is exactly as described on the package: stretchable taffy with a tart flavor.
Unexpectedly, the “Stretchy and Tangy” Laffy Taffy contains different ingredients than the mini and rope variants. Laffy Taffy’s ingredients were updated with the addition of Egg Albumen (i.e., egg whites). As a result, the Vegan Stretchy and Tangy Laffy Taffy is not vegan.
Laffy Taffy Stretchy and Tangy Candy Ingredients
Corn syrup, Hydrogenated Coconut Oil, less than 2% Malic Acid, Egg Albumen, Sodium Alginate, Calcium Acetate, Monoglycerides, and Triglycerides. Red 40 (check vegan status), Color Added, Natural Flavor
Because the above ingredient list is so contentious, we cannot say that Laffy Taffy Stretchy and Tangy are vegan. This candy is not vegan due to the addition of Egg Albumen, which is another name for egg whites.
Laffy Taffy Laff Bites Ingredients
While it lacks the controversial palm oil and sugar found in the other varieties, it does contain direct animal-based ingredients such as egg albumen. According to some standards, natural flavors and artificial coloring agents (Red 40) are also problematic ingredients.
Albumin functions similarly to gelatin in that it aerates the mixture of ingredients, resulting in a soft and chewy composition to the candy.
Is Laffy Taffy Gluten Free?
Laffy Taffy contains no gluten ingredients. As a result, you may consider that it is safe for you to eat. However, please be aware that it has not been gluten-tested. Furthermore, it is manufactured in a facility that may come into contact with gluten-containing ingredients.
As a result, some people may decide it is fine to consume, while others – particularly Celiacs – may eventually decide it is not safe to eat. So, we can say that there are no gluten ingredients but it is not a verified GLUTEN FREE product.
Laffy Taffy Ingredients: Controversial and Non-Vegan Ingredients
Now, let’s look at the contentious Laffy Taffy ingredients in the ingredient lists. These are ingredients that are technically vegan but have some contentious interpretations that you should decide for yourself.
1. Sugar
Sugar is added almost to every candy such as Welch’s Fruit Snacks, Kit Kats, Skittles, Twizzlers, and many more and this arises a major question on their vegan status. This is because refined cane sugar is naturally bleached white using bone char.
All of the bone char has been removed by the time the sugar is used in candy. However, because of the method used, some vegans like those who are Level 5 vegan choose not to consume refined cane sugar. Laffy Taffy does not specify the type of sugar used.
2. Palm Oil
Palm oil is a contentious ingredient because it is derived from palm trees and thus technically vegan. However, the production of palm oil and palm fats has resulted in increased deforestation and negative environmental consequences.
These effects have injured or killed animals by depriving them of their habitats and leaving them hungry, homeless, and on their own.
3. Natural Flavors
Vegans should begin to question manufacturers about the origins of natural flavors in vegan products. Since the FDA claims that natural flavors can be obtained both from plant and animal-based edible sources.
Fruits and vegetables, as well as meat and eggs, fall into this category. A natural flavor derived from animals could be used in a fruit-flavored candy. Strawberry and raspberry flavors are examples of this.
4. Artificial Colors
Laffy Taffy candy contains artificial colors such as Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6. Animals are not used in the production of any of these artificial coloring agents. All of these colors are man-made.
Blue 1 is synthesized in a laboratory, whereas Red 40 is derived from petroleum. This is not a sufficient reason to label a product as a vegan. Artificial colors are notorious for being tested on helpless animals in laboratories, where they eventually die as a result of their negative effects.
Conclusion
To summarize, some Laffy Taffy ingredients are vegan, and some are not. The Minis and Ropes are vegan, whereas the Stretchy and Tangy and Laffy Taffy Bites are not because they contain egg whites and beeswax. Although the two former Laffy Taffy varieties are vegan but do contain some contentious ingredients that you must think about before incorporating them into your vegan diet. Sugar and palm oil are two examples.
Suppose you are specifically looking for a purely vegan-friendly candy. In that case, you can opt for candies like Swedish Fish, Sour Patch Kids, Sour Punch Straws, Jolly Ranchers, and many more, as these candies will fit perfectly in your vegan lifestyle and will let you enjoy the savoring taste of candy.
