Vegan foods may contain animal traces

Until 'vegan' is defined in Irish or EU law, there is a risk of cross-contamination in the production process, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has warned. File Picture.

Labelling food as 'vegan' does not always guarantee the absence of animal products, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has warned.

There is no legal definition of 'vegan' in EU or Irish food law, meaning that products which are labelled as 'vegan' do not necessarily contain no traces of egg, milk, fish, molluscs and crustaceans.

The FSAI said it was potentially dangerous for people to eat these vegan products in the belief that they completely free from animal-based allergens. 

The authority said consumers often believe that because the foods are declared as vegan, there will be zero ingredients of animal origin. 

This is not always the case as there can be 'low-level accidental cross-contamination' from animal-based allergens during the production process, the FSAI said. 

As 'vegan' is not defined in EU or Irish food law, there are no limits on the proportion of animal-derived ingredients permitted in food which claims to be vegan. 

"The FSAI is also urging food businesses who make vegan-labelled food to double their efforts to ensure that their production and packaging processes are sufficient to minimise the risk of cross-contamination with animal-derived ingredients," the FSAI said in a statement.

Vegan diets are becoming increasingly popular in Ireland.

In 2018, 4.1% of Irish adults considered themselves to be dietary vegans, which accounts for over 146,000 adults. 

This includes so-called 'dietary vegans', who are vegan for food consumption only, rather than in all aspects of their life.

Additionally, 4.3% of Irish adults described themselves as vegetarians, meaning they do not consume meat products, but they still consume other ingredients derived from animals, like egg and dairy products.

There has also been a noticeable increase in the sale of foods which are marketed as vegan.

However, this increase in plant-based foods in our diets does not come without health risks for those with animal-based allergies, and they should be aware of the potential dangers, said Dr Pamela Byrne, Chief Executive of the FSAI.

"With the proportion of the population adhering to plant-based diets, including dietary vegans, growing significantly in recent years, there has been a corresponding upsurge in products on the market purporting to cater for such diets," she said.

"Most people who follow dietary vegan or plant-based diets do not have allergies to animal-derived products, but for those who do, accidental cross-contamination of the foods labelled as vegan could have very serious health consequences. 

"The five animal-derived food allergens must be declared at all times when used as ingredients to produce food. 

"However, if a food is accidentally cross-contaminated, this will not be the case," Dr Byrne added.

"Despite the best hygiene controls being applied correctly, cross-contamination of a vegan food with low levels of animal-derived ingredients is always a possibility."

Dr Byrne said once the legal status of vegan-labelled foods is fully addressed at an EU level, it will be clearer as to what levels of animal-derived ingredients will be tolerated in foods calling themselves vegan.

"Only when such guidelines are available will susceptible consumers be better equipped to judge for themselves whether or not they can safely consume vegan foods."