As a fruit/drupe, coconuts are naturally vegan-friendly. They are the perfect alternative for those who are either lactose intolerant or living a vegan lifestyle. However, harvesting techniques used by some suppliers involve cruelty to monkeys which has been widely criticised by PETA and many of our local supermarkets.
Coconut milk is a dairy-free milk made from the pulp, flesh or meat of a coconut blended with water to produce a creamy white liquid known as coconut milk! You can make it fresh, or do what most of us do which is to buy a tin of coconut milk. It's affordable, widely available, and dairy free (and vegan).
Which Coconut Brands Don't Use Monkey Labor? Make sure the coconut milk you buy comes from A Taste of Thai, Native Forest, DREAM, or other brands that don't profit from monkey labor.
Because refined sugars made from sugarcane require bone char to achieve a clear white colour, most refined cane sugars are unsuitable for vegans. Some types of brown sugar also involve using bone char, such as those that are created by adding molasses to refined cane sugar to achieve the brown colour.
We could get caught up on this one, but we'd rather explore the awe-inspiring benefits of coconut water. Rich white flesh high in fat and nutrients, luxurious creamy milk and extraordinary silky water, the coconut is truly a giver of life and an absolute staple of the vegan diet.
While coconut milk doesn't contain any animal products, it is important to be sure that the brand from which you purchase uses ethical practices. Some companies cruelly force monkeys to harvest coconuts, endangering animal welfare; therefore, their products are not vegan.
In moderation, coconut milk can have health benefits, but consuming too much can have some undesirable effects. Coconut milk contains high levels of calories and fats. Combining a high intake of coconut milk with a carbohydrate-rich diet can result in weight gain.
Coconut milk
However, because coconuts are grown only in tropical areas, there is limited land area where they thrive. That means large-scale industrial production of coconut milk encroach on wildlife habitat when producers expand their operations.
When you crack open a can, there's often a layer of solid white stuff at the top, which is what's known as "coconut cream," and is the richest part of the equation, containing more fat and protein than the milky-looking liquid it is sitting on top of.
Why is coconut water pink? When you crack open a fresh young coconut and pour out its contents, the water will look transparent at first. But over time, it will gradually start to turn pink. This process occurs because coconut contains the enzyme polyphenol oxidase (PPO).
The coconut seed germinates and a shoot emerges from one of the pores. In addition to the plant in the seed, there is the endosperm or food to kick off the plant's life. The endosperm is what makes up most of the seed and, in the coconut's case, is the yummy white stuff we eat.
Plant milk is considered part of the vegan diet, provided no additives contain animal products. Almond milk is made from almonds and water but is sometimes added with honey which is not included in what vegans consume. Most brands use this syrup to add the sweet taste, but animal products like dairy milk.
But if you are questioning whether or not breast milk is vegan and whether breastfeeding supports a vegan lifestyle, the answer is a resounding yes!
There's one question we get a lot: “Is silk vegan?” and unfortunately, the answer is no. Because silk is made out of silkworms, even if it's with the fibron produced naturally by the insect in cruelty-free silk, it's still not considered vegan.
The laxative effects of coconut water are due to its magnesium and potassium content. Magnesium and potassium are essential minerals that play a role in numerous vital reactions within your body, such as energy generation and muscle contraction.
Although regular canned coconut milk is higher in calories and fat than whole dairy milk, the plant-based saturated fat in coconut milk may provide health benefits not found in the animal-based saturated fat in dairy milk.
Spray-dried and intermediate moisture products prepared from coconut skim milk contained low levels of viable microorganisms (3,100–13,000, mean 6,600/g). Bacterial counts of these products changed little during storage for 90–120 days at either 21 or 35°C.
Theoretically, soy milk should be one of the most sustainable choices. Studies show the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with its production are much lower than dairy and are about equal to almond and pea milk, and soybeans use less than a tenth of the water almonds do.
Almond and soy milk are both vegan, naturally lactose-free, and low cholesterol, but there are differences in their health benefits, nutrient content, and environmental impact.
Beer, wine and cider can be non-vegan due to the products used in the filtration process, such as isinglass, gelatine and casein. Additionally, some non-vegan flavourings such as honey may be added, and some cocktails rely on milk and eggs.
While Coke's ingredients are widely considered vegan, some of Coca-Cola's most well-known drink brands aren't. These include Lilt and some Schweppes products, as they contain fish gelatin.