Is Organic Honey Vegan? The answer is NO, which is mainly because of the honey-making process.
First of all, we need to understand that honey is a thick, yellow liquid secreted by bees. They make honey from plant sugar secretions then bring it back to the hive to eat in scarcity.
Most vegans don’t consider honey as a vegetarian food because:
- Honey is the result of bee mining.
- Many commercial beekeepers use vegan standards and unethical methods to optimize profits.
Why Do Vegans Not Use Honey?
Veganism aims to reduce cruelty to animals. Hence, Vegans abstain from eating lacticinia such as meat, eggs, dairy, and foods made from them.
Honey is often excluded from their diet, as people consider that the making process of honey is a form of animal exploitation.
In detail, bees produce honey to use as food. After sucking nectar from the pistil, they dehydrate the honey and store it in wax-sealed hive chambers as a winter food reserve.
The main function of honey is to supply bees with carbohydrates and other necessary nutrients such as acids amino, enzymes, and natural antibiotics.
During the winter months, when honey production is low, bees store honey and consume it. It gives bees energy and keeps them stay healthy and survive in cold weather.
But for selling organic honey, beekeepers have relocated some of the bees, blowing smoke out of the hive. This method can damage or kill a large number of bees.
Besides, providing sugar water to replace the amount of honey that has been taken away makes the bees’ immune system degraded and more susceptible to diseases.
There is ample evidence that these sweeteners damage their systems and lower their defenses against pesticides, affecting their genetics. Both of these effects can eventually damage an entire hive.
For those reasons, vegetarians decided to boycott honey from their menu.
What Can Vegetarian Foods Various Be Used To Replace Honey?
Honey is undeniably a very healthy nutrient, yet, we still have vegan alternatives to it!
- Maple syrup: They come from the maple tree’s sap. Maple syrup includes many nutrients and has more than 20 defensive antioxidants.
- Black cane molasses: A brown liquid taken by boiling sugarcane juice. Black molasses is rich in Fe and Ca.
- Brown rice syrup: Brown rice syrup is made by exposing sticky rice to enzymes that dissolve crystals in the rice, resulting in a thick, colored syrup.
- Vegetarian “Honey”: An emblazoned sweetener made of apples, sugar, and freshly squeezed lemon juice. It’s marketed as a vegan substitute that looks and tastes like real honey.
Conclusion
“Is organic honey vegan?” – The answer is NO. Although honey is a golden nutrient, it is not considered a vegetarian food for the above harmful reasons.
Instead of honey, vegans can start replacing honey with a variety of plant-based sugars, ranging from maple syrup to molasses, to ensure the nutrients remain intact while protecting the bees.
