If you're looking for a list of cereals that are vegan, you're in the right place! Like many products, breakfast cereals often have hidden non-vegan ingredients.
In this article we'll cover what to look for when shopping for a vegan friendly cereal, and which brands are guaranteed safe for a plant based diet.
Jump to:
- What Can Make A Cereal Non Vegan?
- What Cereals Are Vegan?
- Nature's Path Vegan Cereal
- Barbara's Organic Vegan Cereal
- Cascadian Farm Vegan Cereals
- Cap'n Crunch - Vegan Cereal Options
- Kellogg's Cereals - Vegan Options
- Kashi Vegan Friendly Cereals
- 365 Everyday Value Vegan Cereal
- Food For Life
- Frequently Asked Questions
Busy mornings just call out for a bowl of cereal! But, if you're vegan, it's not as simple as just buying a box of cereal off the shelf. Breakfast cereals can contain hidden non-vegan ingredients.
So, before we get to the list of vegan cereal brands that you can safely include in your plant based diet, lets take a look at what non-vegan ingredients you should be on the lookout for.
What Can Make A Cereal Non Vegan?
Several unsuspecting non-vegan ingredients can sneak into your bowl of cereal. Here's a list of things to look out for:
- Milk Proteins
- Honey: (see my article on why most vegans don't eat honey).
- Refined White Sugar: In some parts of the world, refined sugar is processed using bone char, which is not vegan. Some vegans don't mind consuming refined sugar, but if this is on your no-go list, be sure to check the ingredients list on any cereal that you're considering buying. The exception is organic cane sugar, which is vegan because it doesn't go through the process of refinement that uses bone char.
- Vitamin D3: Many cereals are fortified, which is great if your looking for extra vitamins, but unfortunately Vitamin D3 is derived from sheep's wool, so it isn't exactly vegan friendly.
- Gelatin: Gelatin is made from the ground up bones and ligaments of animals and fish, so it's not vegan friendly. Surprisingly, you'll find it in quite a few cereals.
***We Cannot Guarantee The Accuracy Of Ingredients. Always Check The Packaging Thoroughly Before Consuming.
What Cereals Are Vegan?
We obviously can't cover every single brand of vegan cereal on the shelves. But, the following comprehensive list contains cereals that have no non-vegan ingredients listed on their label. As always, please be sure to check ingredients before purchasing a cereal.
Nature's Path Vegan Cereal
Nature's Path cereals are always organic and they never contain genetically modified ingredients. That means refined sugar will never be a problem. So, if you're someone who avoids refined sugar due to potential bone char processing, this cereal brand might be what you're looking for.
- Crispy Rice Cereal
- Crunchy Maple Sunrise
- Crunchy Vanilla Sunrise
- Flax Plus Maple Pecan Crunch
- Flax Plus Pumpkin Raisin Crunch
- Flax Plus Multi Bran Flakes (also with cinnamon)
- Fruit Juice Sweetened Cornflakes
- Love Crunch Cereal
- Kamut Puffs
- Mesa Sunrise Flakes
- Millet Rice Flakes
- Multigrain Flakes
- Qi’a Superfood (Apple Cinnamon, Cranberry Vanilla, and Original)
- Rice Puffs
- Smart Bran Cereal
- Whole-O's Cereal
For a full list of Nature's Path's vegan cereals have a look at their website. They also stock many varieties of vegan friendly granola!
Barbara's Organic Vegan Cereal
Barbara's Cereal never contains genetically modified ingredients, and many of them are organic. These cereals are wholesome, but still retain the fun quality of a big bowl of Rice Krispies or Cheerios.
- Barbara's Multigrain Puffin's Cereal
- Barbara's Organic Cornflakes
- Barbara's Peanut Butter Puffins
- Barbara's Peanut Butter And Chocolate Puffins Cereal
- Barbara's Puffins Cinnamon Cereal
- Barbara's Organic Brown Rice Crisps
- Barbara's Organic Crunchy Cinnamon Raisin Bran
- Barbara's Shredded Wheat Cereal
- Barbara's Morning Oat Crunch
For a full up to date list of all of Barbara's vegan cereals have a look at their website.
Cascadian Farm Vegan Cereals
Cascadian Farm cereal is always organic, which means you'll never have to struggle with the "is sugar vegan" issue. In addition, they are to committed to helping our planet by improving farming practices.
- Cascadian Farm Cinnamon Crunch Cereal
- Cascadian Farm Graham Crunch Cereal
- Cascadian Farm Raisin Bran Cereal
- Cascadian Farm Multi-Grain Squares Cereal
See Cascadian Farm's website for a full up to date list of cereals and ingredients. In addition you can check out the exciting environmental project this company is involved with.
Cap'n Crunch - Vegan Cereal Options
If Peta says they're vegan, who are we to disagree? If you're looking for a hit of sugar with your almond milk, Capitan Crunch has the following three varieties of cereals that are vegan friendly.
- Cap'n Crunch Original
- Cap'n Crunch Peanut Butter Crunch
- Cap'n Crunch's Crunch Berries
Kellogg's Cereals - Vegan Options
Kellogg's is arguably the most popular mainstream cereal brand. Unfortunately, most of their cereals are not vegan. A majority of their cereals contain animal-derived Vitamin D. The cereals listed here the safest options for a vegan diet.
- Kellogg's Mini Wheats - Unfrosted
- Special K Protein Plus
- Special K Red Berries
Kashi Vegan Friendly Cereals
Kashi labels their vegan cereal offerings as "vegan", so there's no need to scan the ingredients on the label.
- Kashi Whole Wheat Biscuits, Berry Fruitful
- Kashi Whole Wheat Biscuits, Cinnamon Harvest
- Kashi Organic Blueberry Clusters
- Kashi Strawberry Fields Cereal
- Kashi Whole Wheat Biscuits, Island Vanilla
- Kashi Whole Wheat Biscuits Autumn Wheat
- Kashi Go Peanut Butter Crunch
- Kashi Go Flow Cinnamon Crisp
For a full up to date list of Kashi's vegan cereals, visit their website.
365 Everyday Value Vegan Cereal
365 Everyday Value cereals, do include cane sugar, but it's organic, which means it won't have been processed with bone char.
- 365 Everyday Value Morning O's
- 365 Everyday Peanut Butter And Cocoa Balls Cereal
- 365 Everyday Bite Sized Wheat Squares
- 365 Everyday Bite Sized Frosted Wheat Squares
- 365 Everyday Organic Brown Rice Crisp Cereal
- 365 Everyday Organic Cinnamon Squares Cereal
- 365 Everyday Organic Fruit And Nut Muesli Cereal
- 365 Everyday Organic Corn Flakes
365 Organic Cereals can be purchased at Whole Foods.
Food For Life
Food for life is a great brand of cereal if you're looking for an organic cereal with sprouted grains. They don't use any GMOs, or anything artificial, including preservatives, shortenings and refined sugars.
- Ezekiel 4:9 Original
- Ezekiel 4:9 Almond Flake Cereal
- Ezekiel 4:9 Cinnamon Raisin Wholegrain Cereal
- Ezekiel 4:9 Flax And Chia Seed Sprouted Cereal
- Ezekiel 4:9 Flax Sprouted Cereal
- Ezekiel 4:9 Raisin Flake Cereal
- Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain Low Sodium Crunchy Cereal
- Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Whole Grain Cereal
Food For Life vegan cereals can be purchased at most major retailers. For a full list of ingredients have a look at their website.
Frequently Asked Questions
No, Cheerios are not vegan. Cheerios contains Vitamin D3, which is made from sheep's wool. They also contain cane sugar, which some vegans strive to avoid.
No, Frosted Flakes contains Vitamin D3, which is sourced from sheep's wool. It also contains sugar, which is controversial for some vegans.
No, Rice Krispies is not a vegan friendly cereal. It contains Vitamin D3, which is derived from animal products. However, there are many other puffed rice cereals that are suitable for a vegan diet.
No, Lucky charms is not a vegan cereal. It contains marshmallows, which contain gelatin.
Apple Jacks made in the USA contain Vitamin D3, which is an animal-derived vitamin, so they are not vegan friendly.
You Might Enjoy These Vegan Guides
Is Soy Sauce Ok For Vegans To Eat?
Is Maple Syrup Vegan Friendly?
Your Guide To Vegan Starbucks Drinks
Which Breads Are Vegan Friendly?
The Ten Best Vegan Egg Replacers
Andrea
this is so so helpful! thanks for proving such a detailed list of vegan cereals!
Jean
so many list and options for vegan cereals, you made me so happy!
Anaiah
Wow, I seriously had NO idea about Vitamin D3 not being vegan! I already avoid fortified foods anyway but that's just good info to know and share. Thank you for this list of vegan safe cereals!
nancy
what a useful list! i always wonder which ones really are vegan
Keri Bevan
It can be so hard to tell sometimes. Thanks for your comment, Nancy! x
Natalei
What a great informative article. And a great list. Thank you for sharing this.
Michelle
This is so helpful! Love when cereals are labeled vegan, I get so excited that I don't have to think about it 🙂
Lisa
This post is so useful, thank you!
Lucas
Finally found a perfect resourceful list of vegan cereals! Thanks for putting together this piece of content, it really helps me.
Keri Bevan
Thank you for letting me know, Lucas! I really appreciate the feedback.x