One of the hardest things to do before going vegan is letting go of your favorite candy. We all tend to believe that there’s no way we can substitute our favorite sweets & treats but in reality, there’s a lot more options than you’d think!
But before I give you the MASSIVE list of vegan candies to enjoy, let’s first focus on what you’re not losing by avoiding the non-vegan selections.
Article NavigationCommon Non-Vegan Ingredients Found in CandyList of Vegan CandyUnique Vegan Candies We Think You Should TryGin GinsSQUISHSurf SweetsTruJoy SweetsCocomelsDried Cereal MarshmallowsGo Ahead and Treat Yo Self
Common Non-Vegan Ingredients Found in Candy
The thing is that most non-vegan candies can contain a variety of ingredients that are not only stomach turning at the thought but could also come with some side effects.
- Gelatin is a common ingredient in all sorts of foods, including candy. It is a protein that is derived from the skin and bone of pigs and cows. It has been connected to the appearance of not only an allergic reaction but also, to side effects that affect the gastrointestinal tract after its consumption. It can also be referred to as “hydrolyzed animal protein,” so be sure to keep that in mind next time you take a look at the ingredients of any candy!
- Shellac is a type of resin that is secreted from the female lac bug, which lives on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. It is used to give foods a high-gloss varnish, and it can appear on food labels as “confectioner’s wax” or “confectioner’s glaze.” Shellac may trigger an allergic reaction in some people.
- Carmine is a red, insect-based dye (pretty much ground up bugs) that is used in many foods, including candies. It can also appear on labels as carmine cochineal or carminic acid and has also been linked to allergic reactions.
- exclamation-triangleBone Char in Sugar. Yes, you read that right. As if Gelatin production was not enough, left over cattle bones are used in the production of some white sugar by acting as a filter to draw out the color while the sugar is in a liquidized form. Fortunately, many if not most major sugar making brands avoid using this technique. For more info, check out this very detailed article by PETA.
After seeing these examples, it’s normal to never want store bought candy again – and no one can blame you!
So with all the negative stuff out of the way, let’s explore the world of vegan candies and see if we can find out what your next, vegan-friendly treat will be!
List of Vegan Candy
This list is not meant to be exhaustive by any means. In fact, it’s an ever growing and expanding list as more and more brands make a commitment to ethical means of product creation.
With that said, if you know of any products or brands that are not on this list, please leave a comment or send us and email so we can investigate and add it to the article!
Now, let us begin, shall we?
- Airheads – They offer so many flavors to choose from and are chewy! Yum!
- Annie’s Organic Bunny Fruit Snacks – I haven’t had these myself, but they are so cute and come in different flavors too.
- Atomic Fireballs – This would be the best pick for any hardcore cinnamon lover!
- Big League Chew
- Brach’s – As you will notice from the following lines, Brach’s is a company with many vegan candy options for every sweet tooth!
- Brach’s Cinnamon Hard Candy
- Brach’s Hi-C Fruit Slices
- Brach’s Hi-C Orange Slices
- Brach’s Root Beer Barrels
- Brach’s Star Brites
- Bottle Caps – Bottle Caps are little tablet candies that vegan. They are made to look like soda bottle caps and come in various flavors too!
- Charms Blow Pops – I don’t know about you, but I love when lollipops have gum in the middle, and that’s exactly what this candy is.
- Cry baby
- Dem Bones – As their name states, they are a bunch of bones in a baggy and are totally vegan!
- DOTS – Apart from being delicious, for some reason, I want to use these as edible monopoly figures.
- Dum Dums
- Fruit By The Foot – A roll of fruity candy that
- Fruit Roll Ups
- Fun Dip
- Fuzzy Peach – They are sweet and chewy and sugary and just delicious.
- Hubba Bubba Bubblegum
- Jed’s Maple Products – This brand offers some delicious maple candies made from their homemade maple syrup and are just incredible.
- Jolly Rancher Hard Candy
- Jolly Rancher Lollipops
- Jujubes – They are common in the US but don’t confuse them with the Canadian Jujubes as these are usually not vegan.
- Jujyfruits – Similar to Jujubes, they are sweet jelly candies with many flavors to choose from.
- Laffy Taffy – Stick to the fun size because the big versions of the candies still contain egg!
- Lemonheads – Both sweet and sour, Lemonheads have just the flavor you seek.
- Mamba Fruit Chews – The flavors are great, and they are very similar to Starburst.
- Mary Jane Peanut Butter Kisses
- Nerds
- Now & Later
- Panda Licorice – Even though many don’t love the flavor of Licorice, you shouldn’t be afraid to give this one a try! No pandas were harmed in its production.
- PEZ – If you haven’t had PEZ candies before, let me just tell you that as a kid, I loved them so much that I used to collect the different dispensers.
- Pixy Stix
- RealFruit – Berry shaped candies that even mention on the front of their packaging that they are gelatin free!
- Red Vines – Red Vines are a very similar treat to Twizzlers.
- Ring Pops – I believe we have all had a Ring Pop as kids and it’s good to know one of our favorite childhood candy is vegan.
- Seitenbacher Happy – Fruits – They offer some very original flavors, like their passion fruit or the black currant
- Skittles – Yes, Skittles are vegan! You can find these almost everywhere, and they are perfect for when you find yourself wanting a quick and accessible vegan candy!
- Smarties Tablet Candy (or Rockets for Canada!)
- Sour Patch Kids – I’m pretty sure almost everyone loves these sweet and sour candies even though they make our mouths hurt after a few too many!
- Starburst minis – When it comes to this sweet candy, the UK version of it contains vegan gelatin (thumbs up!), but the US one a contains non-vegetarian one and is therefore it is not suitable for vegans.
- Super Bubble
- Swedish Berries – If you’ve never had these before, they are adorable (and delicious) little berry shaped candies.
- Swedish Fish – These little vegan-friendly candies are soft, chewy and fat-free.
- Twizzlers – I believe we all had something similar to these as a kid and used them as weapons or bracelets. (I sure did!)
- Wonka Candies – The Wonka brand offers a good selection of vegan candies as well, and you are bound to find something you’ll enjoy.
- Wonka Gobstoppers
- Wonka Nerds
- Wonka Sweet Tarts
- Yum Earth Gummy Worms – Naturally flavored jellies that offer awesome flavors such as raspberry, mango (my personal favorite) and pineapple.
- Zotz – Zotz is a hard candy with a fizzy and sour center
Unique Vegan Candies We Think You Should Try
Now that we’ve gone through all of these delicious, sweet yummies, I would like to introduce you to a few additional candies that you might not be able to find at your local health food store or supermarket.
These sweets could potentially up your vegan candy game whether you get them as a treat for yourself or a special friend!
Gin Gins
Gin Gins is a candy I came across on Amazon and knew I had to include on this list. This chewy ginger candy offers a nice strong taste for all the ginger lovers.
Why You Should Try Them…
If you are not already curious enough to see what a ginger candy tastes like, you might change your mind after you find out that this also has medicinal properties.
These little guys are known to help with stomach problems, nausea and morning sickness, and are even used by ladies during pregnancy to help ease their symptoms. After all, they can’t be America’s #1 selling ginger candy for no reason!
SQUISH
Squish is a Canadian candy store that currently offers 11 vegan options for gummy candies.
They use real fruit extracts in their products, as well as no artificial flavorings or colors and are also very affordable!
Why You Should Try Them…
They offer you such a nice variety of flavors and combinations to choose from that you are bound to find something you will love. Because their ingredients are natural and not artificial, they taste very fresh and juicy.
Moreover, they all look super cute, so they could be perfect for offering them as a gift to a vegan friend, in a cute little mason jar!
Surf Sweets
Surf sweets are little jelly candies that you could easily find online or in some stores in the US. There are 9 different flavors to choose from, and they are all made from organic ingredients.
Why You Should Try Them…
There are many unique flavors to choose from that I hadn’t seen before.
The candies are also gluten free, made with no synthetic colors and with real and recognizable ingredients. A little plus is that they provide 100% of the Vitamin C you need per day, so you can definitely add them to your diet as a healthy snack.
TruJoy Sweets
TruJoy Sweets offer quite a selection of vegan chewy snacks.
One of the things I have been very excited to try from their brand is the Organic Choco Chews. They also come with a peppermint flavor that can give a very fresh taste to this chocolate stuffed candy.
Why You Should Try Them…
Their Organic Original Fruit Chews are made with high-quality organic ingredients and can be the healthier, organic version to the non-vegan gummy candies we used to eat.
Also, TruJoy Sweets donates 1% of all sales to help environmental causes via 1% For The Planet, so you can feel even better while you’re unwrapping these little candies.
Cocomels
These caramels are among the tastiest candies you will find on this list. They’re made to melt in your mouth and accompany a delicious creamy texture, all thanks to their organic and premium coconut milk.
Why You Should Try Them…
Cocomels come in various flavors, and they will not disappoint your taste buds. You can choose between Espresso, Sea Salt, Vanilla or their Original. Each one of them will be just as creamy as the previous and best of all they are free of GMOs, Soy, Corn Syrup and Gluten!
Dried Cereal Marshmallows
These miniature candy marshmallow bites are bound to bring back memories of your childhood. You can find them on the Sweet and Sara website, or in some stores in the US.
Why You Should Try Them…
They are the perfect little candy to add to your vegan cereal and hot chocolate, or you could munch on them straight from the box. These little marshmallows are made with non-GMO corn starch, non-GMO soy and all the ingredients used in them are natural.
If you miss Lucky Charms, these will become your best friend.
Go Ahead and Treat Yo Self
It is surprising, to say the least, that I went without snacking on any of this delicious vegan candy while writing this!
I sure hope this article will help you shed some light on your craving problems and give you a way to have access to tasty treats without always having to worry if it is vegan or not.
Considering that there are thousands of non-vegan candy options in the world, this list may seem small. But it is still great to see that more and more brands are turning towards vegan-friendly, organic and non-GMO ingredients for the production of their products.
Not sit back and indulge!