Vegans avoid eating honey to take a stand against bee exploitation and farming practices that are thought to harm bee health.
For some vegans, this extends to honey, because it is produced from the labor of bees. Honey-avoiding vegans believe that exploiting the labor of bees and then harvesting their energy source is immoral — and they point out that large-scale beekeeping operations can harm or kill bees.
Since honey comes from an animal, it is not considered vegan. As The Vegan Society states, “honey is made by bees for bees.” Just like cow's milk and chicken eggs, the natural production of honey is not intended for human consumption. (Scroll to the bottom of the article for some of the best vegan honey alternatives.)
They believe that bees overproduce honey
Another reason some vegans use honey is that they believe bees produce more honey than they actually need. So, removing much of the honey from hives does not deprive bees of their food source.
2. Bees are hurt in the process of collecting honey. When bee farmers collect honey, they're often careless and end up tearing off the bees' sensitive wings and legs. Farmers also cut off the queen bee's wings to make sure that she can't leave the hive.
Generally speaking, no. If we assume that a honeybee is an animal, then the honey they produce is an animal product and is therefore not vegan-friendly. However, there are shades of grey, like all ethical considerations, when debating whether honey production is humane or cruel.
According to some anecdotal data, the percentage of vegans which think honey is vegan is as high as 20%. A lot of it comes down to where the honey they're eating comes from. Local beekeepers are more likely to treat their bees with respect and reverence, compared to large-scale operations.
Vegans try to avoid or minimize all forms of animal exploitation, including that of bees. As a result, most vegans exclude honey from their diets. Some vegans also avoid honey to take a stand against conventional beekeeping practices that can harm bee health.
Honey is by definition not vegan, since it a bee product, and bees are animals. Here's a nuanced article about how the ethical issues surrounding this sweetener fit into the broader concept of vegan living.
The good news is that vegan honey substitutes exist! One of the most popular is agave nectar. You can also try maple syrup, molasses, brown rice syrup, or golden syrups like sorghum and barley malt for a more traditional flavor.
One of the earliest followers of what we now consider a vegan diet was Arab philosopher and poet Al-Maʿarri who abstained from animal products for his health and beliefs on the transmigration of souls and animal welfare.
If we look at the beekeeping industry as a whole, the answer is no. Beekeeping isn't vegan.
Vegans typically classify honey and beeswax to be non-vegan because they consider the bees are 'exploited' by harvesting the honey and that their health is sacrificed when the honey and wax are harvested – hence not adhering to this above definition.
The most common animal-derived ingredients used in wine are casein (milk protein), egg whites and isinglass (fish bladder extract). If you see any of these listed on a wine label, then you can be sure that the wine is not vegan.
But is maple syrup vegan? And while pure maple syrup is vegan by nature, there are plenty of maple syrup brands selling versions that have added animal products. Many vegans may be unknowingly indulging in a product with hidden animal products they believe to be plant-based.
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.
Manuka honey is not vegan or a vegan type of honey as it is also processed by the bees when they extract nectar from the manuka plant, so vegans can't really have Manuka honey on this diet, What is this? Generally, after bees have digested the honey, it is stored in combs.
Waxed Fruit
Because it's not enough that bananas aren't always vegan, you also have to worry about non-organic apples and citrus fruits. Unnaturally shiny fruits are often treated with beeswax or insect-derived shellac to give them that extra sparkle.
Any beer brewed with ingredients derived from animals or insects is not vegan. Ingredients like isinglass and gelatin may be used as fining agents, while whey, lactose, and honey are sometimes added as ingredients ( 15 ).
Vegans can, and often do, breastfeed their babies. And if you're a breastfeeding mother who has had an epiphany about the cruelty behind the gallon of cow's milk in the fridge, it's never too late to make the transition to a healthy—and compassionate—vegan lifestyle for yourself and your family.
Fortunately, virtually every brand of hard liquor—bourbon, whiskey, vodka, gin, and rum—is vegan. Nearly all distilled spirits are vegan except for cream-based liqueurs and products that mention honey on the label.
Honey is only as good as the beekeepers who extract it.
If you're open to eating honey, look for a product that comes from beekeepers who practice ethical and biodynamic beekeeping. The three types of beekeepers that use ethical practices are Balanced Beekeepers, Natural Beekeepers, and Biodynamic Beekeepers.
Profiting from honey requires the manipulation and exploitation of the insects' desire to live and protect their hive. Like other factory-farmed animals, honeybees are victims of unnatural living conditions, genetic manipulation, and stressful transportation.
By definition, vegans do not consume animal products. Honey, as a product of bees, does not meet the vegan criteria.
In the past, beeswax and honey were sometimes harvested through complete destruction of the hive. However, commercial beeswax operations may be considered cruelty-free if harvesting is done at a slow rate, with enough of the hive left intact so as not to harm the overall colony.