The world of commercially processed food is highly regulated to protect health and safety of consumers. There are also many regulations to protect brand names, intellectual property, and ensure everyone (including the consumer) is getting treated fairly at a commercial level. These regulatory bodies are under no obligation to inform consumers whether their food comes from animal-based sources. Nor do these bodies have any obligation to inform consumers whether animal-based products are used in the production of their products.
Before you begin looking at this topic in detail you might like to remind yourself of the
Vegan Society (1988) definition of veganism ‘… a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude—as far as is possible and practicable—all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals …’
As we have said elsewhere, pay particular attention to the phrase ‘—as far as is possible and practicable—’ because it is easy to get overwhelmed in the pervasiveness of animal by-products that are pushed into many processed foods.
The following links provide you access to many bodies involved in the regulation of food supply to introduce you to some of the complexities.
These people regulate food manufactures and ensure they list all the ingredients on the label. They bring you that list of numbers you will have seen as ‘… contains E127, E242, and E308 …’ As soon as the food manufacture has identified these additives on the label, they have completed their obligation. Consumers then have to go to one of the regulatory authorities like the ‘UK Food Standards Agency’ and look up their listing of what these numbers mean.
Have a look at this website: https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/approved-additives-and-e-numbers
The European Commission publicises approved food additives for Europe at: https://ec.europa.eu/food/safety/food_improvement_agents/additives/database_en
The NZ Government publish food additive names and codes here https://gazette.govt.nz/notice/id/2015-gs1933
The NZ Government also produces a document for consumers to read with more information about food additives https://www.mpi.govt.nz/dmsdocument/3433/direct
Food additives are a major concern to people with allergies and intolerances. Groups such as FEDUP publish a list of food additives that commonly cause problems to people with sensitive constitutions https://www.fedup.com.au/information/information/complete-lists-of-additives
The NZ Vegetarian Society publish a list of Hidden Food ingredients that are animal based at http://www.vegetarian.org.nz/food-dining/hidden-ingredients/
Many alcoholic products such as beer and wine contain animal products. The Barnivore guide contains a database of common beers and wines noting which are vegan and which contain animal parts at http://www.barnivore.com
A common ingredient in many processed foods is white vinegar. White vinegar is a product that is made out of the cheapest available ingredients in the country where it is produced. In New Zealand it is made from whey which is a waste product from the dairy industry. Hence most New Zealand manufactured white vinegar is not vegan friendly. Healthline provide an article on the manufacture of white vinegar at https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/white-vinegar
The Veganeasy website manage a list of non-vegan food additives at https://www.veganeasy.org/food/food-additives/
Peta manage a list of animal derived food additives at https://www.peta.org/living/food/animal-ingredients-list/.