Is Chex Mix Vegan? Chex Mix Is Everywhere, but Is It Vegan?

Is Chex Mix Vegan?

Chex Mix has become an integral part of our lives over the years. Found at every convenience store like the most essential item, Chex Mix is indeed essential. It is impossible to watch mind-blasting thrillers without a beloved snack to munch on. Moreover, all flavors of Chex Mix are so carefully made, they all seem to be created just for you.

There is no denying the fact that Chex Mix is healthier than other chips and cannot be traded for anything else, but is Chex Mix vegan? 

As easy it is to find Chex Mix in America, you can easily spot the vegan and non-vegan ingredients in their list of constituents. It turns out that most flavors of Chex Mix are not vegan. There are certain direct and indirect non-vegan ingredients that are unacceptable in veganism. However, three flavors of Chex Mix are known to be definitely vegan. 

Which are the three vegan flavors of Chex Mix?

There are potential non-vegan ingredients even in the otherwise vegan varieties of Chex mix. These ingredients are monoglycerides and processed sugar. Traditional, Ghost Pepper, and Popped varieties are the two apparently vegan flavors of Chex Mix. 

Many vegans feel it is safe to assume that none of the various varieties of  Chex Mix is vegan. Let’s have a look at the two varieties we expect much of. 

The Traditional Variety of Chex Mix may be vegan

The traditional variety of Chex Mix is not certainly vegan. But it can be considered vegan if you don’t give importance to the potential non-vegan ingredients. These problematic ingredients are sugar and distilled monoglycerides. 

Chex Mix Traditional Snack Mix, Original, 40 Ounce

The Ghost Pepper variety of Chex Mix may be vegan

All the basic ingredients in the Ghost Pepper variety of Chex Mix appear to be vegan. This includes whole wheat, degermed yellow corn meal, enriched flour, rye flour, salt, dextrose, trisodium phosphate, and citric acid. 

There are a few ingredients that strict vegans find problematic. These are sugar, caramel color, and natural flavors. 

Chex Mix Ghost Pepper, 8.75 Oz

The Popped Variety of Chex Mix may also be vegan 

With the same two problematic ingredients as the original variety, Popped Chex Mix is probably vegan. It really depends on how strict a vegan you are. 

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Why is sugar problematic to vegans?

The debate around processed sugar is no news. Vegans worry that a large amount of sugar in America is bleached and whitened using cane sugar. This is true. More than half the sugar factories in America use bone char to whiten their cane sugar.

The process of bleaching cane sugar with bone char is problematic to vegans. Bone char is the resultant product of high temperature combustion of animal bones. Poor innocent animals like pigs and cows are no wonder sacrificed to this cruel practice. Bone char is highly absorbent and removes impurities from the brown cane sugar to render it white. 

Although no bone char is passed as a remnant into the finally whitened cane sugar, vegans boycott processed sugar because of the involvement of this cruel practice in the manufacturing process. It is noteworthy that all sugar is not bleached by bone char.

A large portion of sugar in America is also bleached using granular activated carbon. Apart from that, some sugar is derived from beetroot and coconut instead. The sugar derived from beetroot and coconut is naturally white and doesn’t require bleaching. 

Vegans must understand that boycotting all sugar is not a solution. Especially because a large portion of it is indeed vegan. It is advisable to focus on avoiding the more noteworthy and prominent non-vegan ingredients in foods like meat, eggs, and dairy. Removal of sugar from your diet will not be as impactful.

Why are natural flavors problematic to vegans?

The FDA has specified that natural flavors can be derived from all edible sources whether they are plant-based or animal-based. Unless specified, it is always possible for natural flavors to be obtained from animal-based sources. Vegans should question the manufacturers to clear the mystery around their natural flavors.

Why are monoglycerides problematic to vegans? 

It is possible to obtain monoglycerides from plant-based sources. But we really wish today’s manufacturers were as honest and dependable. It is widely known that most monoglycerides in today’s factory-made food are obtained from animal fats. 

For this purpose, numerous innocent animals are routinely sacrificed. It is important that the manufacturers are asked to address the sources from which these monoglycerides are obtained so that concerned consumers can stop the speculation. 

It is again advisable to not give up on foods solely because monoglycerides are mentioned in their list of ingredients. It is also possible that they are indeed obtained from plant-based sources. 

Which are the non-vegan varieties of Chex Mix?

There are six other varieties of Chex Mix and they all appear to be non-vegan. After taking a look at their ingredients, we found out that all of them have some or the other direct non-vegan ingredient totally unacceptable in a vegan diet.

Cheddar Chex Mix

As is common with this variety, Cheddar flavors are seldom vegan. Although it is entirely possible to attain this flavor using vegan ingredients, it is most commonly made using dairy-based milk products. 

The Cheddar in Chex Mix contains whey powder, sour cream, dried cheddar cheese, cheese powder, sugar, and butter concentrate. All of these ingredients are obtained from dairy. 

It is impossible to include dairy products in a vegan diet. Dairy is a form of exploitation of innocent cows that produce milk solely for their young. The young calves of these cows are refrained from consuming their mother’s milk and all the produce is harbored for human consumption. 

Dairy is a cruel industry and dairy products must always be avoided. 

Bold Party flavor of Chex Mix

This flavor is not vegan. It could have been easily made using vegan cheese instead of cheese derived from dairy milk. But Bold Party Mix contains dried romano cheese and parmesan cheese instead. Distilled monoglycerides and sugar are other problematic ingredients strict vegans take note of. 

Hot & Spicy flavor of Chex Mix 

Like other delectable flavors of Chex Mix, this product also contains dairy-based constituents. Dried cheddar cheese and sour cream solids are present in the list of ingredients. 

Vegans should avoid these flavors and look for other vegan options that suit their taste and ethics.

Jalapeno Cheddar flavored Chex Mix 

This flavor sounds dreamy and it will definitely water your mouth, but vegans are stronger than such attractions. The Jalapeno Cheddar variety of Chex Mix contains whey powder, buttermilk powder, cheddar cheese powder, butter concentrate, sour cream solids, and sugar. 

As we know, all these ingredients are products of the cruel dairy industry and are impermissible in a vegan diet.

Honey Nut flavored Chex Mix

Listed amongst the non-vegan flavors of Chex Mix, some vegans might have different opinions on this flavor. Primarily because many vegans don’t think honey is vegan. 

Apart from dried honey, this flavor also contains nonfat milk and sugar. So it isn’t possible for vegans to consume this flavor even if they still want to consume honey. 

Why is honey a topic of debate amongst vegans? 

Honey is produced by honey bees to feed and nourish their own large colonies. Bees work hard to gather nectar and then process it into honey over several days in order to build a viable and dependable source of nutrition. The hard working bees are exploited by the honey industry that steals honey from bees and often kills many bees in the process.

The important thing to understand is that bees do not make honey for us. We steal it from the. Bees are animals and stealing honey is a form of animal exploitation just like dairy. 

Exploitation is not the sole problem with the honey industry. Constant inbreeding has resulted in increased genetic defects in the native populations of bees. With the introduction of non-resident populations of bees, newer diseases have emerged and propagated in the native varieties. 

Bees are an integral part of our ecosystem. We cannot tolerate their absence. The already dwindling population of bees is also the result of such malpractices by the honey industry.

Turtle flavored Chex Mix

This flavor contains whey derived from dairy milk, nonfat milk and sugar. As all these ingredients are unacceptable in a vegan diet, Turtle Chex Mix is not vegan. 

Apart from the above mentioned flavors, all the other varieties of Chex Mix are also non-vegan. Max’d Buffalo Ranch, Max’d Spicy Dill, Honey BBQ, Sour Cream & Onion, Trail Mix, and Dark Chocolate are all non-vegan varieties of Chex Mix that contain one or the other animal-based ingredient. 

So is Chex Mix vegan?

Most flavors of Chex Mix are not vegan. Traditional, Popped, and Ghost Pepper are the only vegan varieties of Chex Mix, all others contain animal-based ingredients and are not vegan.

Veganism is about abstaining from the use of products sourced from animals. It is also about urging the manufacturers to shift their production methods to vegan standards. This is caused by creating a shift in demand. It is important for us as a community to opt for only the vegan varieties of food items so the manufacturers are certain about what we want.

Joe became a vegan after watching Cowspiracy. He always knew something was off with the way we consume animal products, but watching the documentary made him realized how bad it actually is. Joe is now making sure that every product he buys is 100% vegan!