Is Skinny Pop Vegan? | List Of All Skinny Pop Flavors
Popcorn is a great snack option for home movie nights or friends’ sleepover parties. Any occasion, day or night, calls for a big bowl of popcorn. It is perfect for binge eating on a loop without worrying about weight gain or unhealthy calories. However, if you are beginner to vegan diet then you might wonder is popcorn vegan?. With growing veganism market is filled with various vegan-friendly microwave popcorns, Kettle corn, Air-popped popcorn.
But today will be talking about a famous pre-popped popcorn Skinny pops. Skinny Pops is a popular food manufacturing brand which sells popcorn and popcorn-like packaged food items.
We are here to answer – is Skinny Pop Vegan? If you see naturally, popcorns are vegan as they are popped from kernels, that are plant-based. But certain flavoring agents and ingredients make popcorn uneatable by vegans, like cheese powders, low-fat milk, etc. In this article, we will find out whether skinny pop is vegan and what are some vegan options that strict herbivores can safely consume.
Skinny Pop – Brand Overview
Skinny pop was established as a food manufacturing brand in 2010 by Andy Friedman, who is famously known as “The Kernel King.” The idea behind this venture was to provide people with healthy yet delicious snacking options for guilt-free eating.
Skinny Pop manufactured its first popcorn range using just a few basic ingredients- corn kernels, sunflower oil, and salt. This simplicity won the tastebuds of the entire world.
Today Skinny Pop is the fastest-growing popcorn brand, manufacturing a unique range of products like popcorn cakes, chips, and microwave popcorn in exciting flavors and fusions.
Is Skinny Pop Vegan?
Most products of skinny pop are vegan. Skinny pop uses simple and all-vegan ingredients in its popcorn: kernels, salt, and oil. They have gone out of their way to use non-dairy cheese flavor to make the popcorn vegan-friendly.That said, some products are an exception.
Some popcorn flavors like butter and aged white cheddar contain dairy ingredients like Organic Cheddar Cheese, Organic Whey, and Organic Non-Fat Dry Milk.
Skinny Pop Popcorn Ingredients
Skinny pop popcorn making is no rocket science. They use the most basic ingredients in their flavored popcorn which are natural, low-fat, and gluten-free. We have to see the ingredient list from a vegan lens. Here are the core ingredients of skinny pop popcorn:
- Corn Kernels: Pure plant-based corn kernels are the pre-form of popcorn. They pop up and expand when exposed to heat or high temperature. They are airy and low-calorie.
- Sunflower Oil: Oil pops the kernels with a nice flavor. The oil induces heat and helps in the expansion and inflation of kernels.
- Salt: Salt is a basic condiment used to give a simple salty taste to popcorn. It is in the original flavored skinny pop kettle.
- Sugar: Sugar or cane sugar is involved in making some flavors of skinny pop, like the sweet and salty kettle and sweet vanilla kettle.
- Natural Flavours: lime extract, citric acid, vanilla extract, and other natural flavors are used in many tempting skinny pop variations.
- Rice Flour: for that extra crispiness in popcorn.
Controversial Ingredients In Skinny Pops
Skinny pop mentions on its website that almost all products are dairy free. But some ingredients are controversial when it comes to being 100% vegan products. Some ingredients are:
- Lactic Acid: Lactic Acid is vegan, but it depends on where it is produced. Lactic acid is formed by breaking down sugar in plant-based food and dairy products. Skinny Pop usually uses vegan ingredients, so the chances are lactic acid is also vegan.
- Non-Dairy Cheddar Cheese: People are skeptical about this ingredient as skinny pop has not mentioned what exactly is used instead of dairy in non-dairy cheddar cheese. Therefore, vegans often feel insecure about the purity and reliability of this flavor and product. Skinny Pop needs to disclose the formulation ingredients of the non-dairy cheddar flavor.
- Aged Cheddar Cheese: This is undoubtedly a non-vegan ingredient. Aged real cheddar cheese is made from milk solids, whey, etc., Which makes it a dairy product. Therefore, aged cheddar cheese-flavored skinny pop product is not vegan.
- Butter: Butter again can be vegan or non-vegan. Butter is derived by churning cows’ milk and treating fat and protein, which is striked off in veganism. However, vegan butter is also available for use. It’s not clear which skinny pop uses which butter.
Skinny Popcorn Flavors
Skinny Pop has introduced 8 lip-smacking, sweet, and savory popcorn flavors to the world in the healthiest and gluten-free form. All flavors are naturally infused into the popcorn with top-quality herbs and condiments. Let’s see these flavors in depth:
1. Skinny Pop Original Popcorn
The classic and original popcorn flavor. It’s simply the pure taste of kernels with sunflower oil topped with a pinch of table salt. You will experience a raw taste of real popcorn with this flavor. It never goes out of style as it’s authentic.
The first popcorns were just salted to perfection. It contains only three staple ingredients– corn kernels. Sunflower oil and salt. No added preservatives or artificial flavor. Since all components are plant-based and dairy-free, Original Skinny Popcorn is vegan.
2. Skinny Pop Aged White Cheddar Popcorn
The delicious aged white cheddar cheese flavor has a distinct cheese flavor. The cheese tastes better with age, and this popcorn captures that essence effectively. Each bite of popcorn feels like melting cheese in the mouth. It’s an absolute favorite of people looking for sharp cheesy snacks low in gluten.
Aged white cheddar cheese flavor ingredients include kernels, sunflower oil, salt, and low-fat dry milk. Organic whey, organic cheddar cheese, lactic acid powder, and yeast extract. Some of these ingredients are dairy; therefore, it’s not a vegan choice.
3. Skinny Pop White Cheddar Dairy Free Popcorn
The name says this product is dairy free. That’s right skinny pops have excelled in making a cheesy yet dairy-free popcorn product for vegans. All popcorn pieces are generously coated in cheddar cheese. They can be munched on while walking, laying, partying, and watching tv.
It has become an anytime, anywhere, low-calorie snack. However, there isn’t enough information on what is non-dairy cheddar cheese. If it’s truly non-dairy, as skinny pop has mentioned in their product description, then this flavor is completely vegan.
4. Skinny Pop Sea Salt & Pepper Popcorn
A salty, spicy mix of sea salt and pepper in popcorn. A subtle black pepper kick gives it an edge, and sea salt for a unique taste. People have mostly given positive reviews about it. It is also very healthy, like classic popcorn.
It contains all the basic ingredients with just added sea salt and black pepper corn powder. It’s a vegan flavor.
5. Skinny Pop Real Butter Popcorn
Utterly Butterly popcorn that melts in your mouth like a golden cloud. Skinny Pop, real butter popcorn, is best in taste and flavor. There is an uncompromised amount of real butter, which tastes delicious.
The butter flavor is very rich and recognizable. This product contains real dairy butter, organic low-fat dry milk, organic whey, and fundamental ingredients. These dairy elements make this flavor non-vegan.
6. Skinny Pop Twist of Lime Popcorn
Zesty lime-flavored popcorn, an extraordinary flavor for popcorn. Every bite results in a refreshing burst of lime flavor on the tongue. You won’t stop at one bite with its citrus tang.
The ingredients of this product include- corn kernels, sunflower oil, rice flour, sugar, citric acid, and natural lime flavor. We can conclude safely that this flavor is vegan.
7. Skinny Pop Sweet & Salty Kettle Popcorn
The sweet and salty kettle popcorn has a great balance of sugar and salt. Neither too sweet nor too salty flavor feels like a light dessert treat after meals.
It has just the right amount of sweetness for your tongue and a low-calorie diet. The ingredients include all basics plus sugar. Therefore, this product is vegan.
8. Skinny Pop Sweet Vanilla Kettle Popcorn
A newly added flavor- the delectable vanilla flavor for simple sweet flavor lovers. It tastes a bit like caramelized popcorn. The fluffy popcorn with a hint of vanilla sounds like a hard-to-resist combination.
This flavor is made of- staples, sugar, rice flour, natural vanilla, vanilla bean, and natural flavors. All ingredients are vegan; hence, vegans can consume this flavor freely.
- Skinny Pop Original Popcorn
- Skinny Pop White Cheddar Dairy Free Popcorn
- Skinny Pop Sea Salt & Pepper Popcorn
- Skinny Pop Twist of Lime Popcorn
- Skinny Pop Sweet & Salty Kettle Popcorn
- Skinny Pop Sweet Vanilla Kettle Popcorn
- Skinny Pop Aged White Cheddar Cheese Popcorn
- Skinny Pop Real Butter Popcorn
Is Skinny Pop Popcorn Healthy?
Skinny Pop Popcorn is healthier than most packaged food items. It is made with plant-based and pure ingredients with no added preservatives, artificial colors, or flavors. All flavors are natural. Along with this, the nutritional profile of skinny pop is quite light in calories and fats. It contains some amount of dietary fiber as well. The brand is also gluten-free.
But that does not mean you load up popcorn like a maniac.
Skinny Pop contains sunflower oil, which is unhealthy compared to air-popped kernels. Some flavors, like sweet, salty, and vanilla, have refined sugar. Plus, aged white cheddar and real butter also are high in sodium. Overall, it’s a healthy snack to eat in moderation.
Skinny pops are neither the most healthy, oil-free, and weight-loss snacks nor are they unhealthy like junk and high-calorie snacks. Instead of these popcorns, there are various healthy vegan-friendly snacks that you can opt for suchs as popcorns made from cauliflower, nuts, fruits, seeds, and many more.
Conclusion
Now that we know the plant-friendly nature of skinny popcorns, Vegans be ready to munch on their favorite popcorns on the go. Skinny Pop revolutionized popcorn making and consumption. With these many lip-smacking flavors for everyone, even with any diet restrictions or particular lifestyles followers, skinny Pop has something in store for everyone.
Similar to skinny pops there are other popular snack brands that do provide some vegan flavors like fritos, pringles, lays, doritos, takis, etc. But as a consumer its responsibility to check the ingredients list and make informed decisions before choosing any snacks.
