Is Bone Char Vegan?

Vegan status: Not Vegan

Also known as: Bone black, Natural carbon, Animal charcoal

Source

Produced by heating cattle bones at very high temperatures until they become a porous carbon filter material. Used in the sugar refining process to decolorize and remove impurities from raw sugar.

Commonly found in

Refined white sugar, icing sugar, some brown sugars. Not present in the final product but used during processing.

Vegan alternative: Unrefined cane sugar, beet sugar (always processed without bone char), coconut sugar, maple syrup. Look for 'unrefined' or 'raw' cane sugar, or contact brands to ask about their filtration process.

Notes

A major hidden non-vegan processing aid. Not listed on ingredients because it is a filter medium, not an ingredient. Particularly relevant in the USA — UK and European sugar is more commonly filtered through ion-exchange resins. Beet sugar never uses bone char.