By Casey Brown and Heather Francis, VRG Interns

The Vegetarian Resource Group had the opportunity to volunteer at Will of Wisdom Wellness Center, a program of Tuttie’s Place, which is an impressive non-profit organization located in West Baltimore. The center offers a summer camp to low-income students of various ages for six weeks. This summer their aim was in educating the kids about a healthy lifestyle and diet. Ayesha, the director at Tuttie’s Place invited The Vegetarian Resource Group to come speak about health in relation to being a vegetarian. Three VRG interns, Casey Brown, Heather Francis, and Alicia Hueckmann, along with Sam Stahler, a volunteer, spoke.

While there, we had a discussion with about thirty students, ages ranging from five to eighteen years old. We began by asking what they already knew about vegetarian and vegan diets/lifestyles. Many of them were familiar with the terms, though out of the thirty kids there was only one student who cut out some type of animal product from their diet. This was a high school student who was raised a pescatarian. While discussing the topic of nutrients, the kids thought someone who chose a vegetarian diet would have trouble incorporating protein into their diet. One young kid, in about fourth grade told us he couldn’t live without steak. We were able to explain, along with a young girl in the audience who knew, how protein comes from numerous sources such as beans, lentils, tofu, and whole grains. A few kids asked us what tofu was, which surprised us since tofu is something we have been used to eating in our diet and since we are surrounded by those who know what tofu is. The young kids were surprisingly also curious whether or not vegetarians were allowed to eat french fries, seeds, soda, and fruit juices. During our discussion, we were able to explain to them vegetarians could choose to eat those foods, along with many other vegan-friendly foods.

We also asked the students why they think people would go vegetarian, and most of the students only thought people chose to change their diets to begin eating healthier. We were able to explain some of the health benefits of going veggie, including a lower risk for many diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. We mentioned how many people also choose to eat less or no meat due to the inhumane treatment of animals along with the negative environmental impacts. We wish we could have gone into more detail on the ethical side and environmental side of veganism since veganism encompasses all three of them, but they are each a different type of presentation. Hopefully, in the future we can return with the intent on educating the kids on the mistreatment of animals.

While the students did not seem interested in committing to a fully vegetarian or vegan diet, many expressed they would be able to try it for one day out of the week.

After presenting, we had the kids make banana nice cream. We froze enough bananas to feed thirty kids and offered toppings alongside the dessert. Using a Yonanas machine, each of the students made their own bowl of banana ice cream and topped it with their choice of strawberries, dairy-free chocolate chips, sprinkles, shredded coconut, walnuts, and/or peanut butter. The students enjoyed making the ice cream themselves, and they all seemed to love the healthy, dairy-free alternative. They were eager to try it and were excited to share the recipe with their family once they got home. The student who said he could not live without steak, shared with us how he was nervous because he expected the ice cream to consist of tofu, but was instead surprised to find he loved the creamy banana texture. The ice cream recipe uses only frozen bananas either processed through a Yonanas machine, or blended in a blender. For information on the Yonanas machine see: http://yonanas.com/

After we cleaned up the kitchen, Ayesha, the director took us for a tour through the center. We learned the center is in conjunction with Tuttie’s Place, which is a Group home for males in the area. The Will of Wisdom Wellness Center is not a group home, but a program for students in schools in multiple schools in Baltimore. There are three classrooms, 5-8 years old, 9-13 years old, and 14-21 years old. Right now there is a waiting list for students to be introduced into the program. The center helps students in high school with college applications, tying ties, job interviews, and basic life skills. Right now there is an after-care program, and summer camp, and they are working on including a before-care program as well for the upcoming school year. The center makes a tremendous contribution within their community, and we are thankful we were able to come volunteer and make an impact on these students-whether it is big or small.

In the future, The Vegetarian Resource Group plans to table at booths and come speak with the students again about veganism. We found a lot of kids don’t know what it means to be vegetarian or vegan, so by staying involved with this program we will be able to spread awareness and share our resources with the students about veggie diets.

For more information on Tuttie’s Place and The Will of Wisdom Center in Baltimore, Maryland, please visit: http://tuttiesplace.org/np/

To intern with The Vegetarian Resource Group, see http://www.vrg.org/student/index.php

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group outreach, donate at www.vrg.org/donate

By Riccardo Racicot, MS

“Study finds that Vegetarians are Mutant” (1)
“Vegetarian Diet May Alter Human DNA, Raising Cancer, Heart Disease Risks” (2)
“Being a Vegetarian Could Kill You, Science Warns.” (3)

These sensational headlines are based on new research published for advanced access in the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution by a research group from Cornell University (4). As a molecular biologist and nutrition researcher I was skeptical about these claims and was eager to learn more about the study. What I found was a fantastic study with exciting findings in need of no embellishment.

This new research focused on the omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid, arachidonic acid. Arachidonic acid plays many roles in the human body and is a main constituent of cell membranes. Dietary sources of arachidonic acid include meat, fish, poultry, and eggs. Unlike most omega-6 fatty acids, which are usually consumed in our diet as vegetable oils, arachidonic acid is not found in plants. However, humans are able to convert a precursor found in plants, another omega-6 fatty acid, known as linoleic acid into arachidonic acid. In their study, Kumar Kothapalli and his colleagues at Cornell University found that some people are more efficient at this conversion than others (4).

The reason: Genetics.
To gain a better understanding of the findings of this research I spoke directly with Dr. Kothapalli. According to Kothapalli, the study demonstrated that a population which has been practicing vegetarianism for many generations actively produce more of a particular enzyme known as fatty acid desaturase, which is responsible for converting linoleic acid to arachidonic acid.

Initially, the researchers found different versions of the fatty acid desaturase gene in a Japanese population. In some people they found a small section of DNA to be deleted in this gene. Since we have two copies of each gene, this allows for 3 different variations; those with both copies intact (I/I), those which have one copy with the section deleted (I/D) and those which have both copies with the section deleted (D/D). They found those with both copies intact (I/I) had significantly higher amounts of fatty acid desaturase, indicating they would be more efficient at converting the plant-based linoleic acid to arachidonic acid than those with both sections of the gene deleted (D/D) (4).

Kothapalli and his colleagues then determined how often each variation occurs using human DNA samples. The DNA samples were taken from a population in Pune, India who are primarily vegetarian and have been vegetarian for many generations. Their DNA samples were compared with samples from the United States. The analysis found the I/I variation occurred in 68% of the Indian population and only in 18% of the United States population (4). The researchers then used global genetic data to determine how frequently the variants occur world-wide. Globally, the I/I variation was found in of 70% of South Asians, 53% of Africans, 29% of East Asians, and 17% of Europeans (4).

To confirm that the I/I variation did in fact lead to increased conversion of linoleic acid to arachidonic acid, the researchers performed biochemical tests on human samples. As they predicted, arachidonic acid levels were 8% higher in I/I individuals than D/D (4). The activity of the enzyme was also shown to be higher in the I/I group, with 31% greater conversion of linoleic to arachidonic acid than the D/D group (4).

Overall, what this study truly shows is that over generations, populations who eat predominantly vegetarian diets (that usually include dairy products but not eggs) have adapted to low intakes of arachidonic acid by becoming more efficient at producing arachidonic acid. So, why did these results garner the sensational headlines?

To understand this, we need to take a look at the current hypothesis of how different types of unsaturated fats affect our health. The best model we have today is the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio. This ratio is used to compare the balance of different types of unsaturated fats in our diets.

According to some, the types of fats we eat have changed dramatically over the past 150 years. These researchers believe humans evolved eating foods such as lean meats, fish, fruits, vegetables, and nuts, resulting in a dietary fatty acid ratio of 1:1 omega-6 to omega-3 (5). Today the intake ratio for the general population has tilted heavily in favor of omega-6 fatty acids to 15:1 (5). This is largely due to the increased availability of seed oils such as soy, corn, and cottonseed and inexpensive grain-fed meats. For vegetarians and vegans this ratio may be even higher because their diets often contain few omega-3 fatty acids. For example, the omega-3 fatty acids DHA and EPA are mainly found in cold-water fatty fish.

The relatively higher intake of omega-6 fatty acids is believed by some researchers to result in inflammation and pro-inflammatory diseases like heart disease and colon cancer (6, 7). The science on omega-3 fatty acids seems to be pretty clear; they are anti-inflammatory. However, when it comes to the omega-6 fatty acids, specifically arachidonic acid, the science appears to be more complicated. Arachidonic acid itself is a precursor to both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory molecules (8). This connection between omega-6 fatty acids and pro-inflammatory diseases misled some journalists to believe higher arachidonic acid production in those with the I/I variation would make them be at higher risk for those diseases. In reality, vegetarians tend to have lower risks for these chronic diseases (9).

For now, the hypothesis that the dietary omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is relevant for health seems to fall into the realm of expert opinion rather than that of sound scientific findings. Historical fatty acid ratio findings are based on extrapolations from a handful of anthropological nutrition studies and observations on wild animals. The data suggesting a high omega-6 to omega-3 ratio is harmful come from small studies with few participants, cell culture studies, and epidemiological observations.

Skepticism surrounding these findings seems justified when considering the breadth of data suggesting omega-6 intake is associated with decreased risk of heart disease. Over the past few decades, randomized trials, case-control and cohort studies, and long-term animal feeding experiments have all demonstrated a decreased risk of heart disease for those eating 5-10% of calories from omega-6 fatty acids when compared to eating lower amounts (10). In line with these findings, a 2009 science advisory from the American Heart Association, “recommends that people aim for at least 5 percent to 10 percent of calories from omega-6 fatty acids.” (10).

Kothapalli, however, is a firm believer of the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio hypothesis. When asked about the implication of the study for those eating a vegetarian diet he responded: “If they are eating a vegetarian diet they should balance the omega-3s and omega-6s in their diet. Don’t eat more omega-6 from…vegetable oils. They need to balance between omega-6 and omega-3, then they will be okay.”

To gain a better perspective on the extensive amount of variable findings, I met with leading expert on all things fat-related, Dr. Eric Decker, Head of the Department of Food Science at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. His answer was rather simple: the data are largely inconclusive with the exception that the general population is not currently consuming enough long chain omega-3 fatty acids on average here in the United States. Regardless who you are, vegetarian, vegan, omnivore, you should be eating more long chain omega-3s.

The US Dietary Guidelines suggest consuming the equivalent amount of DHA and EPA from 2 servings of fatty fish per week, which works out to be about 250 milligrams of EPA and DHA per day (11). On average, Americans consume 63 mg of DHA and 23 mg of EPA per day (12). In vegetarians and vegans these intake levels are even lower and sometimes even nonexistent. Vegan dietary sources of DHA and EPA are limited to sea vegetables, fortified foods, and supplements. Microalgae-derived DHA is vegan and widely available in supplement form. Sea vegetables have been growing in popularity in recent years as they are sustainable and provide EPA. A list of DHA and EPA sources can be found below:

Source: Sanchez-Machado DI, Lopez-Hernandez J, Paseiro-Losada P, Lopez-Cervantes J. Fatty acids, total lipid, protein and ash contents of processed edible seaweeds. Food Chem. 2004;85:439-444 and manufacturers’ information.

Unfortunately, as with most nutrition related inquiries, there is no definitive answer as of yet. The beauty of this study is that it brings us one step closer to better answers. As of now we are reliant on unreliable data for our information. With the advent of the fields of nutrigenetics (the study of the effects of dietary patterns on genetics over time) and nutrigenomics (the study of the effects of nutrient intake on gene expression) we are becoming ever closer to making personalized dietary recommendations.

For now, I am able to leave you with three definitive takeaways from this article:
1) Being a vegetarian will not change your genes
2) Being a vegetarian will not kill you
3) Eat more omega-3 fatty acids

Citations:
1. Hamaker P. Study finds that vegetarians are mutants. http://www.examiner.com/article/study-finds-that-vegetarians-are-mutants. Published March 29, 2016. Accessed May 21 2016.
2. Pascual K. Vegetarian diet may alter human DNA, raising cancer, heart disease risks. TechTimes website. http://www.techtimes.com/articles/145561/20160331/vegetarian-diet-may-alter-human-dna-raising-cancer-heart-disease-risks.htm. Published March 31, 2016. Accessed May 21 2016.
3. Li DK. Being a vegetarian could kill you, science warns. New York Post website. http://nypost.com/2016/03/30/being-a-vegetarian-could-kill-you-science-warns/. Published March 31, 2016. Accessed May 21 2016.
4. Kothapalli K, Ye K, Gadgil M, et al. Positive selection on a regulatory insertion-deletion polymorphism in FADS2 influences apparent endogenous synthesis of arachidonic acid. Mol Biol Evol 2016;March 29 pii: msw049. [Epub ahead of print]
5. Simopoulos A. Evolutionary aspects of diet, the omega-6/omega-3 ratio and genetic variation: nutritional implications for chronic diseases. Biomed Pharmac 2006; Nov;60 (9):502-7.
6. Ramsden C, Zamora D, Leelarthaepin B, et al. Use of dietary linoleic acid for secondary prevention of coronary heart disease and death: evaluation of recovered data from the Sydney Diet Heart Study and updated meta-analysis. BMJ 2013; 346:e8707.
7. Simopoulos A. The Importance of the omega-6/omega-3 fatty acid ratio in cardiovascular disease and other chronic diseases. Exp Biol Med 2008;23:674-688.
8. Needleman P, Truk J, Jakschik B, Morrison A, Lefkowith J. Arachidonic acid metabolism. Annu Rev Biochem 1986;55:69-102.
9. Craig WJ, Mangels AR. Position of The American Dietetic Association: Vegetarian diets. J Am Diet Assoc. 2009;109:1266-82.
10. Harris W, Mozaffarian D, Rimm E, et al. Omega-6 fatty acids and risk for cardiovascular disease: A Science Advisory from the American Heart Association Nutrition Subcommittee of the Council on Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism; Council on Cardiovascular Nursing; and Council on Epidemiology and Prevention. Circulation 2009;119:902-907.
11. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture. 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. 8th Edition. December 2015. http://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/
12. Papanikolaou Y, Brooks J, Reider C, Fulgoni VL. U.S. adults are not meeting recommended levels for fish and omega-3 fatty acid intake: results of an analysis using observational data from NHANES 2003-2008. Nutr J. 2014;Apr 2;13:31.

Riccardo Racicot recently graduated from the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a master’s degree in Molecular Biology.

Established in 1759 in Ireland Guinness has used fish-derived isinglass as a processing aid to clarify or fine (i.e., make clear) its brews. The company announced in 2015 that it will remove isinglass from its process in 2016.

Isinglass: An Unlabeled Processing Aid
As a processing aid isinglass is exempt from governmental labeling requirements. See 21CFR101.100.3.ii http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/cfrsearch.cfm?fr=101.100

More specifically on page 2 of a brochure published by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau http://www.ttb.gov/pdf/brochures/p51903.pdf there is no mention of a requirement to list fining agents on beer labels.

On its website Guinness lists only “key ingredients”: barley, hops, yeast, and water. A search for isinglass on its website showed zero results.

Here’s an overview of Guinness’ beer-making methods through a series of videos with no mention of isinglass: https://www.guinness.com/en-us/our-craft/

The closest mention of the clarification process occurs in this video: https://www.guinness.com/en-us/our-craft/guinness-nitro-ipa-video/ when brewer Feodora Heavey states “…when it’s actually finished fermentation…the yeast is all removed….” but doesn’t elaborate further on how the yeast is removed.

The Vegetarian Resource Group wondered what made isinglass such a great beer clarifying agent such that one of the oldest and most famous beer brewing companies in the world would use it. Lacking information on the Guinness website we turned to other resources.

What’s So Special about Isinglass Fining?

Isinglass fining refers to the removal of suspended particles especially yeast cells, proteins and polyphenols in beer. Isinglass is classified as a processing aid which by definition is a substance used in very small amounts leaving no residue with any technical function in the finished product.

The article Clear Beer through Finings Technology and the Wort and Beer Clarification Manual both by Ian Ward describe the function of isinglass as a clarifier in beer. Information presented in this section is adapted from these two documents:

https://bsgcraftbrewing.com/Resources/CraftBrewing/PDFs/Brewing_Processes_and_Techniques/ClearBeerTechnology.pdf

https://bsgcraftbrewing.com/Resources%5CCraftBrewing%5CPDFs%5CBrewing_Processes_and_Techniques/WortandBeerFiningManual.pdf

Here are some interesting points about isinglass from Ward’s publications:

Isinglass is commonly used in the UK because “the climate does not permit natural lagering in the Bavarian style.” Clear Beer Through Finings Technology (p. 1).

Approximately 10% of the world’s production of isinglass from several fish species is used in the beer industry. Most is consumed in China as a delicacy. Wort and Beer Clarification Manual (p. 16).

The various types of isinglass produce different appearances (clear, hazy, etc.) in beers. They are all forms of collagen, a protein that is the active ingredient in isinglass. Wort and Beer Clarification Manual (p. 16, 22).

Most commercial isinglass products are blends of isinglass types. Wort and Beer Clarification Manual (p.22).

Because isinglass fining accelerates the clarification process using it may quadruple production capacity with minimal outlay compared to unfined (i.e., natural) sedimentation that occurs very slowly. Wort and Beer Clarification Manual (p. 29).

Isinglass enhances the foam stability of certain beers. Wort and Beer Clarification Manual (p. 32).

Typical isinglass dosage rates for filtered beers are between 0.25 and 0.5% of beer volume. Clear Beer Through Finings Technology (p. 4).

The exact mechanism of isinglass fining is not well understood. Here are synopses of two proposed mechanisms as described in the Wort and Beer Clarification Manual (p. 19):

One hypothesis states that positively charged isinglass reacts with negatively charged yeast to form a neutral floc (precipitate) which then falls out of solution. The role of auxiliary finings along with
isinglass in beer production is to interact with the positively charged protein particles which would otherwise not react with the isinglass and pull them out of solution, too.

An alternative mechanism proposes that soluble collagen (isinglass) reacts with a soluble beer component to form a precipitate (floc). Upon formation, the floc surrounds and enmeshes and then binds to the yeast and protein particles and settles out of the beer sweeping up further particulate material on its way to the bottom of the vessel. The role of auxiliary finings is to either react with positively charged soluble beer components which would compete with isinglass, or to react directly with the isinglass itself to produce the flocs required for fining.

Ward later defined “auxiliary finings” as acidified silicates and acidic polysaccharides on p. 20 of Wort and Beer Clarification Manual. These compound classes are both vegan.

According to Ward “Indeed, still today there are no effective alternatives to the use of isinglass in producing bright unfiltered beer.” Wort and Beer Clarification Manual (p.28).

Guinness Responds

In December 2015 we asked Guinness about the change from isinglass to a filtration system. Consumer relations representative Aaron of Diageo® a multinational alcoholic beverages company that owns the Guinness brand responded:

“Isinglass has been used widely within the brewing industry as a means of filtration for decades. However, because of its use we could not label Guinness as suitable for vegetarians and have been looking for an alternative solution for some time.

We are now pleased to have identified a new process through investment in a state-of-the-art filtration system at St. James’s Gate which, once in place, will remove the use of isinglass in the
brewing process.

We hope to have the new system up and running by late 2016 and [isinglass-free beer] available for purchase in stores soon after.”

The VRG still had questions for Guinness, namely:

Will you be using any other clarification agent such as Irish moss,
albumen or gelatin to replace the isinglass?

Or will the filtration system totally replace the need for a
clarifying agent that you add to the beer?

Aaron responded:
“Our Brewing Team has confirmed that the filtration system will
replace the need for a clarifying agent.”

To be absolutely sure the new filtration system was vegan The VRG asked
Guinness
Can you confirm that the filtration system is not made of an animal
product such as cow bone char used to filter sugar?

Again Aaron replied:
“Our Brewing Team has advised that the filtration system is not made
of animal products and no animal products are used in operation of
this system.”

Other Beer Companies Respond

The VRG wanted to see if other beer companies with a major presence in the U.S. market used any animal-derived clarifying agent such as isinglass. MillerCoors® responded in November 2015:
“MillerCoors does not use any animal by-products in our brewing process, nor are there any animal sources used in our packaging.Isinglass is not used in our brewing. There are five basic ingredients in all MillerCoors products. These include pure water, malted barley, corn syrup, hops, and yeast. Corn syrup is one of the basic ingredients used in most MillerCoors products as US consumers prefer its taste. Again, we do not use animal derived ingredients in our beer.

We also asked Anheiser-Busch® the same question. Here is their email reply: “We provide ingredient information about many of our beers on our global consumer information website:

The VRG looked up a few of their American beers and saw these ingredients:
Budweiser®: water, barley malt, rice, yeast, hops
Busch®: water; corn, rice and/or dextrose syrup; barley malt; hops; hop
extract; malt extract; yeast
Michelob® Ultra: water, rice, barley malt, hops, yeast

As isinglass or any other clarifying agent is not listed we scoured the website to see if anything about the filtering process could be located.

We found only this: http://www.tapintoyourbeer.com/age_check.cfm “The beer is normally filtered to make it visually bright by removing yeast and protein material, and then it’s transferred to a finishing tank. Not all beer is filtered.”

We called Anheiser-Busch in January 2016 and asked about their filtering method and if an animal-derived clarifier was used. A customer service representative repeated that “all ingredient information is listed on the website and I have no further information.”

When we explained that a clarifying agent is a processing aid not an ingredient and so does not have to be labeled, she told us that “if it’s used but not on the label then it’s proprietary” and so she would be unable to divulge any further details.

Attempting to get further clarification The VRG emailed Anheiser-Busch the response we had received from MillerCoors reprinted above and asked if they could confirm that their beer is also brewed without any animal-derived clarifying agent.

After one week and no response we called Anheiser-Busch again in February 2016. This time consumer representative Alicia typed in “isinglass” into her database and told us it was listed with this
statement: “We do not use isinglass all at in any of our products.”

She noted that only Budweiser Chelada® products contain an animal-derived ingredient: clam juice. An ingredient list containing clam juice was not evident for the Chelada beverages on the Anhueser-Busch website noted above as it was for the sample beers we chose to include here even though Alicia said it would appear on bottle labels. (“Clamato” appears on the label but is not defined.)

Isinglass Alternatives

Alternatives to animal-, egg-, or dairy-derived clarifying agents suchas isinglass, gelatin, albumen or casein include several vegan beer clarifying agents that are used by many brewers. These include the following:
Biofine® Clear http://www.brewing-solutions.com/products/?id=16
(Note: There is also a Biofine isinglass product.)
http://hbd.org/discus/messages/50162/Biofine_Clear_A3_5B06808_PDS-50553.pdf
diatomaceous earth (kieselguhr)
http://maltingandbrewing.com/kieselguhr-kg-or-diatomaceous-earth-de.html
http://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2013/april/widely-used-filtering-material-adds-arsenic-to-beers.html
Divergan®
http://www.crosspure.basf.com/web/global/crosspure/en_GB/about_divergan/index
http://www.ashland.com/Ashland/Static/Documents/ASI/Reppe_to_Mola_and_Rehmanji.pdf
Irish moss
http://homebrewandchemistry.blogspot.com/2009/01/irish-moss-brief-description.html
Polyclar®
http://www.ashland.com/Ashland/Static/Documents/ASI/PC_11444_Products_for_Beer.pdf

ReGrained: Eat Beer

An aspect of the beer industry that is receiving more attention especially in urban areas with the rise of craft beers, microbreweries, and home brewers is the repurposing of brewer spent grains (BSG).
http://www.businessinsider.com/craft-beer-is-taking-over-america-2015-3

http://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2015/06/17/2014-was-another-great-year-for-american-craft-beer-infographic/#77aae3c16f01
https://www.brewersassociation.org/statistics/national-beer-sales-production-data/
http://share.iit.edu/bitstream/handle/10560/1935/AlternativeUsesForBrewers’SpentGrainIPRO340FinalReportSp11.pdf?sequence=3

This is significant because approximately 90% of the nutritional value
of grains used in beer production remains in the spent grains.
Considering the billions of pounds of grains used every year in the beer
industry as well as the energy, water and land requirements to produce
those grains this huge loss represents an enormously inefficient use of
resources.

It is still common for brewers to sell spent grains for animal feed although this practice has its problems as explained on page 3 of this article:
http://jotamac.typepad.com/jotamacs_weblog/files/no_waste_economy__gunter_pauli.pdf.

Alternatively BSG deposited in landfills contributes to the growing and costly problem of urban waste as tipping fees (A fee charged for the amount of waste) mount. Increasingly however value-added products such as xylitol derived from BSG are entering the marketplace. http://www.foodnavigator.com/Science/Scientists-make-cheap-xylitol-from-spent-grain
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0733521005000706

In 2015, two San Francisco home brewers decided to address the problems created by urban BSG by repurposing it into nutritional bars intended for human consumption.
http://www.bakeryandsnacks.com/Ingredients/ReGrained-repurposes-spent-beer-grain-as-baking-ingredient/?utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=23-Dec-2015&c=yazB%2FDHFv2VDUSPbxPPEtw%3D%3D&p2=

Their company ReGrained® was launched. http://www.regrained.com/

We corresponded with ReGrained co-founders Dan Kurzrock and Jordan Schwartz about their company and products in January-February 2016. They assured us that their BSG suppliers are local craft brewers who do not use isinglass. Dan told us that their current brewery partners are 21st Amendment® Brewery http://21st-amendment.com/, Triple Voodoo® Brewery https://www.triplevoodoo.com/ and Magnolia® Brewing Company http://www.magnoliabrewing.com/. Dan wrote in an email to us: “Any clarifying agent that a brewery might use would be added to the sugary liquids (called wort) extracted from the grains…Any fining agent would be added to the liquid portion, not the grain…To my knowledge, most craft breweries (especially the small/local ones) do not filter their beers or add animal-based clarifying agents. This is in part a resources issue, and in part because in most [cases] unfiltered beer tastes better (my objective opinion 😉 )”

Chief Grainmaster Jordan added:
“As for fining agents, my understanding is that fining agents are sometimes used in the boil portion of beer making and…as part of the fermentation step. (Although I am not sure that any of our brewery partners use fining agents anyway.) Our grains come from the very first step of the process in which the only ingredients used are the grain bill itself and hot water. This hot sugary water (called wort), is drained from this tank, into another tank called a boil kettle, leaving behind the solid grain in the ‘mash tun.’…We only take the solid grains. Yeast is not introduced until much later in the brewing process. There is no clarification process, it is just water and malted barley. In my understanding, no animal products are used to make beers from our brewers…The only thing that we do to the grain is dehydrate it to dry.

One of ReGrained’s BSG suppliers further explained the process:
“Brewers use a few different methods for filtering. Some still use isinglass, but that is mostly traditional British-style brewing and some cask ales after hop or spice additions directly to the cask.The overwhelming majority use either plate and frame filtering, centrifuge…and/or Biofine. These methods are all vegan, although I think there is one version of Biofine that is not vegan… The various fining agents that you add either in the last 15 minutes of the boil (whirfloc) or on the cold side before carbonation & packaging (Biofine and the like) work by pulling/attracting matter that is chemically charged – hops, yeast, etc. The issue is all this matter is not all positively or negatively charged and the brewer sometimes needs to use a combination of agents to get the clarity they want. Plate and frame…and centrifuge do not have this issue. They work by either using a barrier to trap the matter as it passes through (plate & frame…) or by spinning it at such a velocity that the matter separates from the liquid (centrifuge).

Regrained Bars
Dan told us:
“Our Stout 2.0® bars will be released around March 2016 and will be vegan. The Honey Almond IPA® will no longer have egg but still will have honey…We’ll have future other products though that will be vegan friendly.”

The Honey Almond IPA bar ingredients:
almonds, tapioca syrup*, brown rice syrup*, honey*, brewer’s spent grain, puffed quinoa*, oats*, non-GMO canola-olive oil blend, puffed brown rice*, ground flax*, cinnamon, sea salt, xantham gum. * = organic

According to an email from Dan: The [Chocolate Coffee] Stout® bar has “fair trade/organic semi-sweet chocolate, plus the aforementioned minus honey.”

Here’s the complete ingredient list for the Chocolate Coffee Stout bar: almonds, brown rice syrup*, tapioca syrup*, brewer’s spent grain,
semi sweet chocolate [sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter], oats*, puffed quinoa*, non-GMO canola-olive oil blend, puffed brown
rice*, round flax*, coffee, sea salt, xantham gum, soy lecithin, real vanilla.* = organic

We spoke to Dan in February 2016 about the sugar in the Stout bar which he had previously described as “organic/fair trade.” He told us that although ReGrained doesn’t add either beet or cane sugar to the bars as a separate ingredient, he didn’t know if his chocolate supplier used cane sugar that had been whitened through cow bone char. We also pointed out that although he had previously described to us in an email that the chocolate was organic, the ingredient label does not use the organic qualifier for the chocolate. Since only organic sugar is never whitened by cow bone char or anything else, The VRG still questioned whether the sugar in the chocolate had been filtered through cow bone char. Dan suggested that we call his chocolate supplier to find out more information.

The VRG called ReGrained’s supplier Guittard® Chocolate Company https://www.guittard.com/ in March 2016. Without any hesitation after hearing our question about the whitening methods of the sugar used in their chocolate Nikki a Guittard employee told us “the sugar is processed through cow bone char in all chocolate including semi sweet (excluding unsweetened) for cooking and eating except the organic chocolate.”

We also asked Dan if the ReGrained bar contained any alcoholic content. He said that since the spent grains used to make the bars are removed from the beer-making process “well before” fermentation begins there is no alcoholic content. “Fermentation occurs when yeast interacts with the hopped sugary wort extracted from the grain.”

Lastly Dan informed The VRG that their new bars will be packaged in “NatureFlex® film, which will biodegrade in soil in your own backyard. This is in contrast to most ‘compostable’ wrappers that will only actually break down in industrial compost settings.”
http://www.innoviafilms.com/NatureFlex.aspx

More Information on Beer:
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/hey-vegans-there-may-be-fish-bladder-in-your-guinness-2001644/?no-ist

http://www.popsci.com/how-is-guinness-going-vegan

http://www.barnivore.com/faq
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/j.2050-0416.2007.tb00761.x/pdf
http://www.businessinsider.com/big-beer-vs-craft-beer-battle-gets-ugly-2016-2

The contents of this posting, our website and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal, are not intended to provide personal
medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgement about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own.

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group research, donate at www.vrg.org/donate

Or join at
http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

The new Dietary Guidelines have been released by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans is a resource for health professionals and policymakers as they design and implement food and nutrition programs that feed the American people, such as USDA’s National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program, which feed more than 30 million children each school day. The Dietary Guidelines also provides information that helps Americans make healthy choices for themselves and their families.

Included in the Dietary Guidelines is a Healthy Vegetarian Eating Pattern.
See http://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/appendix-5/

The text of the Dietary Guidelines states: “The Healthy Vegetarian Pattern is adapted from Dietary Guidelines Healthy U.S.-Style Pattern, modifying amounts recommended from some food groups to more closely reflect eating patterns reported by self-identified vegetarians in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). This analysis allowed development of a Pattern that is based on evidence of the foods and amounts consumed by vegetarians, in addition to meeting the same nutrient and Dietary Guidelines standards as the Healthy U.S.-Style Pattern. Based on a comparison of the food choices of these vegetarians to nonvegetarians in NHANES, amounts of soy products (particularly tofu and other processed soy products), legumes, nuts and seeds, and whole grains were increased, and meat, poultry, and seafood were eliminated. Dairy and eggs were included because they were consumed by the majority of these vegetarians. This Pattern can be vegan if all dairy choices are comprised of fortified soy beverages (soymilk) or other plant-based dairy substitutes. Note that vegetarian adaptations of the USDA Food Patterns were included in the 2010 Dietary Guidelines. However, those adaptations did not modify the underlying structure of the Patterns, but substituted the same amounts of plant foods for animal foods in each food group. In contrast, the current Healthy Vegetarian Pattern includes changes in food group composition and amounts, based on assessing the food choices of vegetarians. The Pattern is similar in meeting nutrient standards to the Healthy U.S.-Style Pattern, but somewhat higher in calcium and fiber and lower in vitamin D due to differences in the foods included.”

“To follow this Pattern, identify the appropriate calorie level, choose a variety of foods in each group and subgroup over time in recommended amounts, and limit choices that are not in nutrient-dense forms so that the overall calorie limit is not exceeded.” See Table A5-1 http://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/guidelines/appendix-5/

Readers may also be interested in VRG’s My Vegan Plate.
http://www.vrg.org/nutshell/MyVeganPlate.pdf

By Anne Custer

Do you live in Dallas, Houston, Denver, Des Moines, or Omaha? You’re in luck! Blue Bunny has come out with a dairy free ice cream line and it is being tested in Kroger stores in select cities. The line features four flavors: Chocolate, Vanilla, Mint Chip, and Mocha Fudge. The packaging does not claim to be vegan, but the ingredients look to be free of animal products. The source of sugar is not labeled. We have reached out to Blue Bunny asking if it is vegan and what exactly is in the “natural flavors.” Their response was: “Blue Bunny Dairy Free Ice Cream is not certified Vegan. The ingredients of the natural flavors are proprietary to our suppliers.” Whether or not this ice cream meets your needs, hopefully other companies will follow suit with their own dairy free ice cream. According to the Huffington Post, Ben & Jerry’s are currently in the works of their own product, but it won’t hit shelves until spring 2016. Here is the list of ingredients for Blue Bunny Dairy Free Ice Cream.

Chocolate:
INGREDIENTS: Almond Milk (Water, Almonds), Sugar, Corn Syrup, Coconut Oil, Cocoa Processed with Alkali, Inulin, Isolated Soy Protein, Contains 1% or less of Natural Flavors, Calcium Carbonate, Carob Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Carrageenan, Soy Lecithin.

Vanilla:
INGREDIENTS: Almond Milk (Water, Almonds), Water, Sugar, Corn Syrup, Coconut Oil, Inulin, Isolated Soy Protein, Vanilla Extract, Contains 1% or less of Calcium Carbonate, Carob Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Carrageenan, Soy Lecithin.

Mint Chip:
INGREDIENTS: Almond Milk (Water, Almonds), Sugar, Corn Syrup, Coconut Oil, Unsweetened Chocolate, Inulin, Isolated Soy Protein, Contains 1% or less of Natural Flavors, Calcium Carbonate, Carob Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Carrageenan, Soy Lecithin, Dextrose, Spirulina Extract for Color, Turmeric for Color.

Mocha Fudge:
INGREDIENTS: Almond Milk (Water, Almonds), Sugar, Chocolate Ribbon (Sugar, Water, Cocoa, Chocolate Liquor, Food Starch, Carrageenan, Vanilla Extract), Corn Syrup, Coconut Oil, Inulin, Isolated Soy Protein, Contains 1% or less of Natural Flavors, Coffee, Calcium Carbonate, Carob Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Carrageenan, Soy Lecithin, Caramel Color.

Information on inulin is here:
http://www.vrg.org/blog/2012/10/22/oligofructose-and-fructooligosaccharides-fos-derived-mostly-from-chicory-root-or-cane-sugar/

The contents of this posting, our website and our other publications, including Vegetarian Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views, and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your own. If you are concerned, you may want to only eat at vegetarian or vegan restaurants.

By Myrial Holbrook

Looking back at my first few years of being vegetarian (I’ve been a vegetarian since the age of six), I definitely needed nutritional help. I found it difficult to balance my meal choices, especially at school, where I was bombarded by a surfeit of unhealthy vegetarian options: French fries, cookies, onion rings, potato chips, and processed white bread. I ate healthy meals at home under the guidance of my vegetarian mom, but at school I didn’t have much self-restraint. I was also always involved in sports, so my unhealthy choices soon began to take their toll on my athletic performance. As I grew increasingly exhausted and anemic, I finally realized that my diet had to change. I did make the necessary changes to meet my nutritional needs, but it took me years to get it right. I really could have benefited from the help of a registered dietitian. On my first day as a VRG intern in the office, 9 dietetic interns from the University of Maryland visited The Vegetarian Resource Group to learn and discuss how to counsel vegetarians and vegans. The advice came too late for me, but it was still interesting to hear the different approaches and philosophies of these future dietitians.

As part of the agenda, we created vegan meal plans for varying dietary and caloric needs. Some of the vegetarian dietetic interns mentioned a diverse range of meal options, including recipes with nutritional yeast, tempeh, seitan, exotic vegetables, and different legumes. Most of the dietetic interns’ meal plans, however, relied primarily on oatmeal and granola for breakfast and some variation of a quinoa or black bean dish for lunch and dinner. Personally, I love oatmeal, nuts, quinoa, and black beans, but I wouldn’t want to eat them for every meal. I definitely think that dietitians in general could benefit from looking into more diverse veggie options. With more people eating vegetarian and vegan, both temporarily and permanently, it’s essential to have a wide range of choices for clients. Furthermore, dietitians need to be versed in a diverse array of options to consider a full range of clientele, especially those allergic to gluten, soy, nuts, and/or dairy.

During the interns’ visit, we also discussed ethical concerns in the food industry. Charles asked the interns if they would work for Pepsi or Taco Bell if offered a position, even if they didn’t agree with the nutritional content or production methods of the company. Some of the interns immediately said that they wouldn’t accept such a position, but others said that they would, for they viewed the job as an opportunity to make healthful changes within the company. The contrast in viewpoint was interesting, especially because the interns didn’t cite money as a motivating factor, even though most people definitely include it as a practical consideration.

The potential conflict between authority and accuracy raises another concern for dietitians. Essentially, the question is: if a dietitian encounters outdated, inaccurate information that has been promoted by a higher authority in the dietitian’s company or organization, how should the dietitian react? The interns suggested a non-confrontational response involving the collection of extensive, verified research, followed by the respectful approach of the higher authority with this information. All of the dietetic interns who visited were women, so I wondered if this uniformity of approach might be associated with the stereotypical female tendency to be more non-confrontational. I would definitely be interested to hear how male dietetic interns would respond to the same question.

The dietetic interns’ visit gave me a better sense of the concerns of nutritional counsel and ethical dilemmas. No one ever suggested that I meet with a dietitian when I turned vegetarian, but I feel that a few consultations would have proved beneficial to my long-term well-being. I realized that many other people also never consult with a dietitian, even when they might really need advice. Instead, they turn to fad diets or unfounded “research,” trusting their bodies to the whims of the web. Perhaps the most important task for dietitians, therefore, is making accurate nutritional counsel more available and accessible.

For information about VRG internships, see: http://www.vrg.org/student/index.php
To support vegetarian education, join at VRG at: http://www.vrg.org/party/index.php

Following are the comments submitted by The Vegetarian Resource Group on the Report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. This report will be the basis for the 2015 Dietary Guidelines.

We commend the Dietary Guidelines Advisory committee on the thoroughness of the Scientific Report of the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. We strongly support the recommendations included in this report to consume generous amounts of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, legumes and nuts and to reduce consumption of red and processed meats, sugar-sweetened foods and beverages, and refined grains. These recommendations are evidence-based and, if followed, will result in substantial health benefits. Many studies have found strong associations between the amount of red and processed meat consumed and risk of death from cancer or cardiovascular disease.^1,2 Researchers from the National Cancer Institute estimated that 11% of deaths in men and 16% of deaths in women could be prevented by people decreasing their red meat consumption.¹ For women, a marked decrease in red meat or processed meat consumption was estimated to prevent about 1 in 5 deaths from cardiovascular disease.¹ Results such as these, as well as results of other studies finding that high intakes of red meat and processed meat have been linked to type 2 diabetes,³ colorectal cancer ^4-6 and breast cancer,^7.8 lend support to the benefits of limiting consumption of red and processed meats.

Substantial health benefits are associated with plant-based diets and with components of plant-based diets including vegetables, fruit, whole grains, legumes, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.^9-11

Based on the health benefits associated with a plant-based diet and the risks associated with red and processed meats, we strongly support having the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans include a recommendation to limit red and processed meat intake. These products should be replaced with non-animal foods such as legumes, whole grains, nuts, and seeds.

We strongly support the inclusion in Dietary Guidelines of a Healthy Vegetarian Pattern as a dietary pattern associated with health benefits. A body of research consistently indicates that a vegetarian dietary pattern is beneficial in the prevention of a number of chronic diseases.¹² Specific information about vegan and lacto-ovo vegetarian diets should be included in the Dietary Guidelines to meet the needs of consumers.

In addition, we applaud the inclusion of information about food sustainability. We agree with the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s statement that “a diet higher in plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in calories and animal based foods is more health promoting and is associated with less environmental impact than is the current U.S. diet.” We support the inclusion of this message in Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2015.

The latest edition of Dietary Guidelines for Americans represents an opportunity to promote dietary changes that will have a substantial impact on the nation’s health and health care costs and on the global environment. We support the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee that Americans consume less meat and more plant-based foods.

Thank you for your consideration of our comments.

Sincerely,

Reed Mangels, PhD, RD, LDN, FADA

Charles Stahler

Debra Wasserman

The Vegetarian Resource Group

References:

1. Sinha R, Cross AJ, Graubard BI, et al. Meat intake and mortality. A prospective study of over half a million people. Arch intern Med. 2009;169:562-571.

2. Pan A, Sun Q, Bernstein AM, et al. Red meat consumption and mortality: results from 2 prospective cohort studies. Arch Intern Med. 2012;172:555-63.

3. Pan A, Sun Q, Bernstein AM, Manson JE, Willett WC, Hu FB. Changes in red meat consumption and subsequent risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus: three cohorts of US men and women. JAMA Intern Med. 2013;173:1328-35.

4. Ferrucci LM, Sinha R, Huang WY, et al. Meat consumption and the risk of incident distal colon and rectal adenoma. Br J Cancer. 2012 Jan 31;106(3):608-16.

5. Ruder EH, Thiébaut AC, Thompson FE, et al. Adolescent and mid-life diet: risk of colorectal cancer in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study. Am J Clin Nutr. 2011 Dec;94(6):1607-19.

6. Magalhães B, Peleteiro B, Lunet N. Dietary patterns and colorectal cancer: systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur J Cancer Prev. 2012 Jan;21(1):15-23.

7. Cho E, Chen WY, Hunter DJ, et al. Red meat intake and risk of breast cancer among premenopausal women. Arch Intern Med. 2006;166:2253-9.

8. Linos E, Willett WC, Cho E, et al. Red meat consumption during adolescence among premenopausal women and risk of breast cancer. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2008 Aug;17(8):2146-51.

9. Liu RH. Health-promoting components of fruits and vegetables in the diet. Adv Nutr. 2013;4(3):384S-9.

10. Sabaté J, Ang Y. Nuts and health outcomes: new epidemiologic evidence. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;89(5):1643S-1648S.

11. Messina V. Nutritional and health benefits of dried beans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2014;100 Suppl 1:437S-42S.

12. Craig WJ, Mangels AR. Position of the American Dietetic Association: vegetarian diets. J Am Diet Assoc. 2009;109:1266-1282.

The Vegetarian Resource Group recently received the following note:

Hello!

Here at Legacy International’s Global Youth Village, with the snow falling, summer seems far away, but we are busy looking for summer staff who are inspired by our program and hope you can share information about summer job openings in our whole foods vegetarian kitchen with those in your network, be they students, colleagues, alumni, or friends. Below is some details.

Sincerely,
Yani Liu

—————————————————————————–

The Global Youth Village, a residential, international leadership camp in Virginia’s Blue Ridge foothills, is seeking seasonal food service staff in their vegetarian kitchen.

Every summer since 1979 a dynamic environment is created that emphasizes experiential learning and challenges young people to turn cross-cultural theory into practical action. This year 75+ youths (ages 14-18) and staff from around the world will participate. Workshops address issues concerning young people today, such as regional conflicts, distribution of world resources, prejudice, environmental concerns and other social pressures. Cultural programming and cooperative living help participants learn to respect differences and discover similarities that transcend cultural, religious, and political barriers.

Dates: June 22 – Aug. 7, 2015

Housing, meals and modest salary (Salaries begin at $325/week for experienced applicants; 225/week for entry level positions.)

Food service staff perform a vital function within the Global Youth Village. We believe that nutritious food is a cornerstone to a healthy, sustainable lifestyle. Food is not only viewed as a source of bodily nourishment, but as a means of expressing one’s culture. Kitchen staff are an integral part of the staff team, and are welcome to participate fully in Village life, enjoying the cultural, educational, and recreational activities as responsibilities allow. Legacy’s vegetarian kitchen serves three home style meals daily to approximately 75 people, using mostly unprocessed vegetables and fruits, and whole grains. International entrees are prepared from countries such as Greece, the Middle East, India, Indonesia, and Nigeria.

The Village is seeking an experienced chef or cook who is inspired by the goals and philosophy of the program. This person manages overall meal production and works with prep cooks while preparing entrees, soups, sauces, baked goods and desserts.

Qualifications:

Experience as a chef, sous chef, cook or assistant cook in a professional setting

Experience in vegetarian cooking preferred

Ability to work well with others in a close team work setting

Ability to delegate and train less experienced staff

Ability to prepare foods for special needs groups (vegans, people with food allergies, diabetes, etc.) as needed

Knowledge of health and safety standards of food preparation and serving, kitchen and sanitation procedures

Some previous supervisory experience (preferably in food service field)

Desire and ability to work in a rural, camp setting.

Entry level positions also available for prep cooks, baker, and kitchen assistant.

For more information and to download an application, please visit: http://www.globalyouthvillage.org/join-our-village-staff/

Questions? Contact Leila Baz, HR Coordinator, [email protected]

By Jeanne Yacoubou
VRG Research Director

Also known as: HFCS, glucose-fructose, glucose-fructose syrup, fructose-glucose syrup

Commercial source: corn

Used in: soft drinks, juice, bread, cereal, granola bars, yogurt, soup, condiments, confections, desserts, ice cream, pharmaceuticals

Used as: sweetener, texturizer, anti-crystallization agent
Definition: A mixture of simple sugars glucose and fructose, HFCS is produced by microbial enzymes that convert some glucose to fructose. The major types of HFCS contain roughly equal amounts of glucose and fructose.

Manufacturers:

http://www.adm.com/en-US/products/food/sweeteners/Pages/default.aspx

According to ADM, their high fructose corn syrups “…do not contain, and are not processed, with any animal products, by-products, or any animal derived products.”

http://www.tateandlyle.com/ingredientsandservices/chooseaningredientorservice/americas/pages/liquidcornsweeteners.aspx

According to Tate & Lyle, their high fructose corn syrups: “…do not contain any ingredient of animal origin. The processing aid used to produce these products is not derived from animal origins.”

http://sw.ingredion.us/Ingredients/sweeteners/Pages/Nutritive.aspx

According to Ingredion, “We do not create product from cane sugar or animal-derived processes.”

Classification: Vegan

Entry added: May 2014

For information on more ingredients, see http://www.vrg.org/ingredients/index.php

To support VRG research, donate at www.vrg.org/donate
To join The Vegetarian Resource Group, go to http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

A college food service asked us:

1. Should a dish containing pasta free of eggs as an actual ingredient,
but listed as a possible cross contact (due to the sharing of equipment
that processed product with egg) be labeled as vegan or vegetarian?

2. If a dish contains sugar (an unknown source), should it be labeled as
a vegan or vegetarian dish?

If you are a college student or work at a college, please e-mail your
opinion to [email protected]. Thank you.

-The Vegetarian Resource Group
http://www.vrg.org/fsupdate/index.htm
http://www.vrg.org/ingredients/index.php