E441 Foods - Forbidden For Vegetarians And Vegans

Author: Maryam Ayres Time for reading: ~1 minutes Last Updated: August 08, 2022

In this article, learn more about E441 Foods - Forbidden For Vegetarians And Vegans. E441 is the code used to denote gelatin in the food industry..

Even foods of seemingly all-plant origin may be unsuitable for consumption by vegans and vegetarians . The risk comes from the use of various additives in them, which may be obtained from animal raw materials. One such additive is E441 . This code in the food industry means gelatin . Any food labeled with E441 can violate the strict diet of people who avoid animal foods.

Like any food supplement whose code begins with E and the first digit 4, E441 is used as a gelling agent.

Gelatin can easily be considered on its own as a food product, because it is a pure protein . However, it is still used in food production as a supplement and has its own identification code. Like all food additives denoted by E and first digit 4, E441 is used as an emulsifier and thickener, in this case as a gelling agent. This explains why E441 is mainly used in the confectionery and canning industries and may be present in products that do not appear to contain animal products.

However, gelatin is obtained mainly by cooking animal products - most often bones, cartilage, skins, etc., and hydrolysis of collagen contained in them. Statistics show that E441 is the most widely used gelling agent in the food industry . Thus, even harmless jelly foods may be unsuitable for consumption by vegetarians and especially by strict vegans.

There is a tendency in recent years to replace animal gelatin in the food industry with plant gelling agents - most often agar or pectin. If vegetable gelatin is included in the composition of food products , this makes them completely harmless for consumption by vegans and vegetarians. The origin of the gelling agent in food should be indicated on the label with their content.

E441 is an approved additive for use within the European Union, the United States and virtually anywhere in the world.

There is no evidence that the supplement has dangerous health consequences, but it is known that gelatin can exacerbate the manifestations of health problems such as asthma , increased allergic mood and others. Thus, foods containing E441 should be consumed with caution by asthmatics, people with allergies, especially to sulfites , and others.

E441 Foods - Forbidden For Vegetarians And Vegans

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