Ozone (Surface Treatment) — Hidden Processing Agent — Is It Vegan?

Vegan status: Vegan

Also known as: O₃, Ozonated water, Ozone washing

Source

Generated from oxygen by electrical discharge. Entirely inorganic.

Used in

Fresh produce washing and sanitisation (kills bacteria and extends shelf life without chemical residues), water treatment in food processing, surface sanitisation, storage atmosphere treatment.

Appears on label: No. Not required on labels. Ozone decomposes to oxygen and leaves no residue.

How to avoid

No need to avoid — ozone is vegan.

Notes

Ozone is a powerful sanitising agent approved by the FDA as GRAS for direct food contact applications. It is particularly effective against E. coli, Salmonella, and Listeria. Ozone washed produce is not chemically treated in the conventional sense — the ozone decomposes completely to oxygen within minutes. Used in organic farming as a non-chemical alternative to chlorine washing.