Using AllergenFinder for Vegan Diets

AllergenFinder isn't just for medical allergies. It's a powerful tool for ethical vegans who want to ensure their purchases align with their values. While many products are obvious, thousands of additives are derived from animal sources.

How to Configure for Vegan Diets

When you first set up AllergenFinder, you write your dietary restrictions in plain language. For vegan diets, you can describe what you need to avoid in your own words, such as "I avoid all animal products including meat, dairy, eggs, honey, gelatin, and animal-derived additives."

The AI then analyzes ingredient lists against your restrictions, identifying animal-derived ingredients that might be hiding under technical names:

• Carmine / Cochineal: Red dye made from crushed beetles.
• Gelatin: Made from animal bones/hides.
• L-Cysteine: Bread additive often made from duck feathers or hog hair.
• Shellac/Confectioner's Glaze: Made from insect secretions.

Customizing Your Restrictions

Honey is controversial even in the plant-based world. Since you write your restrictions in plain language, you can be as specific as you need:

• Include honey in restrictions: "I avoid all animal products including honey"
• Allow honey: "I avoid animal products but honey is okay"

The AI interprets your written restrictions and applies them consistently to every label you scan.

Vitamin D3 and Hidden Derivatives

Many cereals are fortified with Vitamin D3. Unless specified as lichen-derived, D3 is almost always sourced from lanolin (sheep wool grease). When you've included animal derivatives in your restrictions, AllergenFinder's AI will identify "Vitamin D3" as a potential concern based on its typical animal origin, unless the label explicitly states a plant-based source.