do vegetarians eat honey

Can Vegetarians Or Vegans Eat Honey (Quick Facts)

Honey is sweet, sticky, and delicious with many different healthy and healing properties but, can vegetarians or vegans eat honey?

Many vegetarians choose to still consume honey whereas most vegans do not. There is a lot of confusion surrounding honey, making it hard for people to determine if they can eat it or not. A person’s benefits often determine if they eat honey or not.

Is Honey Vegetarian Or Vegan

Honey is a controversial food among both vegetarians and vegans.

It’s very easy to classify meat, dairy products, and eggs as being non-vegan foods but, products from insects like honey bees can be confusing and up for debate for many.

Many vegetarians will still consume honey whereas the majority of vegans will not.

Why Wouldn’t Honey Be Vegetarian

There is a wide range of vegetarian types from those who don’t eat meat but, still eat dairy and eggs and those that eliminate one or two of those animal-based food products.

Most vegetarians avoid eating any food product that has caused an animal’s life to end.

The grey area for vegetarians is everyone’s different perspective and awareness towards animal cruelty involved in the dairy and egg industry.

Just like the large variety of types of vegetarians, there are many different reasons behind a person becoming a vegetarian.

  • Health
  • Food Preferences
  • Social Reasons
  • Animal Cruelty

If a vegetarian has chosen vegetarianism based on animal cruelty is it possible that they would not eat honey due to the controversy behind harvesting honey from bees for our enjoyment.

Why Is Honey Not Vegan

Veganism and why people choose a vegan lifestyle are often easier to understand compared to those that choose to be vegetarians.

Many vegans are very passionate about the ethical treatment of all livings things and avoid eating or using any product where an animal has been harmed.

Reasons Why Vegans Don’t Eat Honey

  • Honey Bees are exploted in mass breeding farms
  • Honey Bees are injured and die due to humans
  • Honey Bees are making the honey for themsleves not for humans
  • Producing honey is a lot of work for the bees
  • Humans interact and manipulate the bees to increase and insure honey production
  • Wild Honey bees are important to biodiveristy
  • Wild Honey Bees are essential for human survival
  • Honey Bees are living creatures not a human commodity

Why Is Honey Cruel

Honey is made by the bees with the intention of being their food source.

Farmers take the honey in order to sell it and replace it with sugar syrup.

This sugar syrup is not very good for the bees and makes them more vulnerable to diseases.

Honey Bees are treated like farm animals.

Farmers use many of the same practices during honey production as they do for farm animals including artificial insemination and selective breeding.

Are Bees Killed For Honey

Many bees lose their lives during the process to obtain their precious honey.

Some bees are lost because they don’t get enough food, disease, parasites, or lack of insulation in the hive.

Some farmers actually kill off the entire hive before winter because it’s not economical to feed them during the winter.

Is Beeswax Vegetarian Or Vegan?

Is There Animal Protein In Honey

Honey contains a large number of proteins that could be considered animal protein.

It is how you look at it, honey is not the same as animal flesh but, it is created from bees for food.

Can I Eat Honey On A Plant Based Diet

If you are on a plant-based diet you can eat honey as long as it fits within your moral and ethical beliefs.

Most people that are on plant-based diets have chosen the lifestyle based on maintaining a healthy diet and lifestyle.

Everyone is different, there will be many people who are plant-based that also reduce animal products due to their feeling towards animal cruelty.

do vegans eat honey

Is There Vegan Honey

There is vegan honey!

Besides the obvious sweet and sticky replacements like maple syrup and agave nectar, there is true vegan honey.

Is Vegan Honey Real Honey

Vegan honey is real honey, the honey is created by humans who have naturally extracted with pollen and nectar from the plants.

What Is Vegan Honey

Vegan honey is created by people who have often used plants, fruits, and roots to create beautiful honey that is not made by bees.

Vegan honey often doesn’t contain the same bacteria as regular honey as well.

What Is The Difference Between Regular Honey And Vegan Honey

The biggest difference between regular honey and vegan honey is that regular honey is made by bees whereas vegan honey does not require bees at all, it is made by humans instead.

What Brands Of Honey Are Vegan

Is Manuka Honey Vegan

Manuka honey is not vegan.

Manuka honey is made from honey bees found in Australia and New Zealand that use pollen from a bush called the tea tree.

This honey is said to have specific and special healing powers that are unique, compared to other honey types.

Does Vegan Honey Taste The Same

Vegan honey doesn’t taste exactly the same when compared to regular honey.

Due to the production of regular honey and vegan honey being very different you may notice it in the flavor.

That doesn’t mean that vegan honey won’t have a similar flavor as real honey or that it won’t be delicious.

Vegan honey is

Is Honey Bee Vomit

There is a lot of controversy over whether honey is made with bee vomit.

The word regurgitate is often used to describe the action of bees returning to the hive with the precious nectar that they have collected.

Regurgitating often means vomiting.

In the case of bees, the nectar does not go into the bee’s stomach instead it is held in a special compartment just for this purpose.

Since the bee is not digesting the nectar it is not bee vomit.

Do Bees Eat Honey

Bees eat honey!

Honey is the food source for honey bees.

We as humans, have discovered how delicious it is and want to enjoy it as well.

Final Thoughts

It’s up to you to decide if consuming honey is the right choice.

Many vegetarians consume honey whereas many vegans do not.

Personally, I don’t agree with a lot of the practices used in honey farming but, I still consume honey.

I do purchase organic honey which means the plants around the hives are not treated with pesticides and the treatment of the bees is to organic farming standards.

I know it’s not perfect but, we all need to choose what works best for ourselves.

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