Is e521 vegan?
E521 is a vegan food ingredient.
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"You are amazing, this has saved me so much time when grocery shopping!"
— Austin, a user who reached out with feedback
"It's been a great tool since starting my journey! You take a pic of the nutrition/ingredients, and it'll warn you of anything questionable or not vegan. 😁"
— Ashe, a Vegan For Beginners Facebook Group member
"Use a vegan app when you go shopping, I use WhatsVegan."
— Dóra, a Vegan For Beginners Facebook Group member
So, what is e521?
E521 is the European food additive code for aluminium sodium sulphate, also known as sodium alum, an inorganic compound used as a firming agent, raising agent, and acidity regulator. It is produced synthetically through the combination of aluminium sulphate and sodium sulphate solutions, which are crystallized to form a double salt. It can also be derived by refining naturally occurring mineral deposits containing bauxite and sulphate salts.
In commercial food manufacturing, E521 appears primarily in industrial baking powders, flours, processed cheeses, confectioneries, and pickled fruits and vegetables. Its main functions include releasing carbon dioxide in doughs to help them rise, stabilizing acidity levels, and maintaining the crispness of preserved produce.
E521 is classified as vegan because its origin is entirely synthetic and mineral. No animal tissues, animal-derived byproducts, or animal enzymes are involved in its production or chemical synthesis.
How to quickly find the source of ingredients like e521?
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It allows you to avoid non-vegan ingredients - just take a picture of a product's ingredient list, and the app tells you if the product is vegan or not.
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