Cereals are one of the most favorite first meals of the day, and millions of people (kids and adults alike, there is nothing easier to make) in the world eat them in a desire to regulate body weight.

The reasoning behind this is the fact that you are thinking that you are not taking too many carbs, unlike when you eat bread, and on the box, you can read signs – healthy and fit.

However, the amount of added sugar and the proportion of sodium should be monitored when you eat boxed cereals, and it is important to look at the package and to look for is there a high proportion of dietary fiber and low-fat content (on the market you can find numerous kinds, and some of them are unhealthy and filled with sugar).

When you know all of this, you, as a vegan, may have even more problems in finding a suitable healthy and vegan version. It is true that the market is very well equipped, but vegans need to pay extra attention, that is for sure.

Those who do not understand well what about is the vegan lifestyle presumes that all vegans and vegetarians eat plain and impersonal meals like salad and that such meals cannot fill you up or give you the energy that is necessary for daily obligations or sports activities.

Always have in mind that vegans do eat a lot of salads, fresh fruits, and vegetables. Still, there are so many other products and dishes that they can enjoy – such as various pies, beans, potatoes, chickpeas, plant burgers, stews that are made out of vegetables, and lentils, etc. Store-bought versions are always a good option for those vegans that do not have enough time.

Perhaps, their obvious option is to buy some regular kind the one that they have been using for years and that is made out of rice, as a safe version.

If you want to eat the one kind that is made out of chocolate, the task is even harder, so maybe some of the regular kinds that you use to eat are, in fact, vegan?

Maybe Coco Pops, can they fall under the category vegan (and healthy)?

Chocolate rice pebbles that suit every taste

These are one of the most favorite rice cereals for all those chocolate lovers around the world – they are easy to make.

In some way, the imperative is that they fulfill your need to take in something “light,” but also sweet at the same time, especially in the morning when you need something light but also that will give enough energy to go through the day.

The most popular flavors are chocolate and fruits, and often vanilla, and brown sugar, dried fruits, dried grapes, apples, and berries are used to coat them.

These small pebbles are great with the cup of cold milk, or some vegan version (soy or almond milk, with maybe some vanilla flavoring), but can you eat them – are they vegan?

We will check the list of all ingredients and then will tell – it is surprising how some products that you would never think can have any connection to the “animal source,” in fact, do have.

On the market, there can be found a much healthier version, and it reduces the level of sugar, which is a piece of good news, but the vegan status is still unclear.

Ingredients

When you look at the ingredients on the box of Coco Pops, you will see and think subsequently that this product is, in fact, vegan – no meat, no dairy, no eggs, what can go wrong?

But do not be fooled, you need to look deeper than you think so that you can find the hidden elements that may be derived from an animal source.

Now to look at the ingredients list – first of all, this is one rice cereal.

The main ingredients are rice and chocolate, or in this case, a cocoa powder that has reduced fat (this may sound like great news, but it is not. When you are buying cocoa, you should always buy high-fat cocoa.

Really good cocoa tastes good and has about 24 percent more fat than cheap ones).

Also, we can find sugar, salt, cocoa mass, flavoring, and barley malt flavoring.

There are also vitamins and minerals among them there are Vitamins B6, B2, B1, B12, D, along with calcium, niacin, iron, and folic acid (for example this acid can be found in dark green leafy vegetables, spinach, whole grain cereals, beans, soybeans, and milk).

Are Coco Pops Vegan? 

What part causes the problem here – it is not salt or sugar (for some it is because there is a cause of question that the production of white sugar represents the problem. It is said that manufacturers use bone char to make sugar seems whiter, but to be honest, today, even in the USA, there are numerous producers that make sugar that is vegan friendly).

To go back to that other matter in Coco Pops that is a problem for vegans, it is the presence of vitamin D that in artificial form comes from animals, or eggs, for example. Or in this case from sheep’s wool.

The process of obtaining vitamin D goes like this – the lanolin is collected from the wool of sheep that are exposed to the strong Sun (the most quality version comes from countries that are sunny, like Australia or New Zealand). Sheep’s wool contains lanolin that is, in fact, the real source of vitamin D.

Not acceptable for vegans out there, but the vitamin that is necessary for all human beings in the world – it represents an essential role in supporting the health of bones and teeth, it is the vitamin that increases muscle function, and immune function, and many other things.

You can switch up to the version that has written that is suitable for vegans, there are such boxes of cereals in the market, for example, chocolate-chip Weetabix.

Make your own version of Coco Pops – you can make some rice, and add cocoa powder, and start from there. Add ingredients that you like.

In any case, the best version is to make your flakes with some raw seeds like pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, flax, and raw nuts. These are products that have no added sugar and are vegan.

Are Coco Pops Healthy? 

The problem, at least from a health point of view is this – the amount of sugar that is found in these cereals – these are empty calories, since they have no nutritional value, but only energy.

Since there are hidden calories in most industrial products and often not known quantity, they should be reduced.

There is no doubt that our kids are attracted to these products, especially because they are marketed well, and are very tasty -sweet. Knowing that there will be more harm than good in the intake of sugar, parents should show by example how to treat sugar.

Still, nutritionists say that as we eat these cereals, we forget that despite their sweet taste, they contain a certain amount of salt. The recommended maximum intake for a healthy population is a teaspoon of salt per day. Therefore, care must be taken, and cardiac and renal patients should be especially careful.

Chocolate-based cereal mixes (just like this one) have a high energy value, about 380 kilocalories per 100 grams, and given that they are a frequent breakfast for children and adults, the meal should not, on average, contain more than 4-5 tablespoons of cereal with one cup of milk. So that should be moderate, too.

Before you decide to eat any of these products, check the nutrition declaration and the sugar content well, because often these products are enriched with sugars, especially for children, to make them taste more attractive – do not be fooled by the labels that say that the product inside of the box is ‘ fit ”, ” fitness ”, ” healthy ”. It’s usually a marketing campaign that only highlights the positives of the product, hiding the bad ones, like a lot of added sugar.

Summary

One thing is certain – any type of cereals, or the majority of them, are tasty, and they will fill you up for breakfast, or some snack, that is for sure. Kids love them; the sweetness, amazing flavors, and easy preparation are the reasons that will put them in the top 3 breakfasts in the world.

There are millions of versions, and cereals can be based on rice, wheat, oats, etc. – everything else is added to enhance the taste, to give it a certain flavor, etc.

Some people use it so abundantly that they make them one day ahead – they leave them in the fridge in combination with milk, orange juice, and honey, they can be served as a dessert, with fresh apple and yogurt.

In the concrete example, when it comes to Coco Pops, they are not suitable for vegans out there – as we have shown you, there are two main reasons why this product does not deserve the vegan status.

First of all, there is a matter of sugar – by some; the production of sugar is what raises questions, because it is related to the animals. Another, bigger issues, in this case, come from one seemingly “innocent” element – vitamin D.

Yes, as we were able to show you, this vitamin that is often added to food, especially in the cereals, is not vegan; it comes from an animal source (sheep, in this case, even some other sources are also known, the best quality is this, for sure).

As you were able to see Coco Pops are not vegan, and meaning that a certain product is vegan, do not mean that it is not made with meat or dairy, it is much more than this.

There can be hidden elements that are connected to an animal source – look in your local grocery store for some vegan version (it does not mean that they are healthy, just because they are vegan), or, the best option (for those who have time) is to make their own cereal-based meal.