Image by Дарья Яковлева from Pixabay
Dum Dums are spherical lollipops made in 16 flavors with new flavors rotating into the mix every so often. They are famous for their “Mystery Flavor” which is the result of the end of one batch mixing with the next batch, rather than stopping production to clean machines in between flavors. As Dum Dums are one of the most popular lollipops on the market, we wanted to know “Are Dum Dums Vegan?”
A full vegan-friendly analysis of Dum Dums Lollipops can be found in the following sections.
Controversial Vegan Ingredients
Before we start our vegan analysis, we would like to make note of the controversial ingredients that are assumed to be vegan in this analysis. Even though we consider them to be vegan, we will still highlight these ingredients if they appear in any posted ingredient lists. These controversial ingredients include:
Sugar
In almost all candy products, one of the first few ingredients is Sugar. Sugar is a controversial product in the vegan community because refined cane sugar is processed with bone char to achieve the pure white color. The sugar itself does not contain any bone char particles, but is not vegan due to the processing methods used. Since the type of sugar is typically not stated, it is assumed to be vegan in this analysis. If you choose to avoid non-vegan sugars than all of the products in this analysis should be avoided. A full rundown on if sugar is vegan can be found in our article titled “Is Your Sugar Vegan? Lets Find Out!“
Natural and Artificial Flavorings
Natural flavors can come from both animal or plant sources, but the natural flavors in candies are typically from plant sources. Those natural flavors from animal-origin will be highlighted if known.
Colors
Some food colors are controversial in the vegan community. This is because food colors are often tested on animals. In this article we assume all food colors are vegan, unless the color itself is from an animal or insect origin (e.g. Carmine).
Dum Dums Lollipops
Dum Dums Ingredients
Sugar, Corn Syrup, Citric Acid, Malic Acid, Salt, Artificial Flavor, Color Added, (Includes: Red 40, Yellow 6, Yellow 5, Blue 1). [Source]
Are Dum Dums Vegan?
Based on the ingredients listed in Dum Dums, it is safe to say that Dum Dums are vegan! The only ingredients listed in Dum Dums that may give vegans some concern are the controversial ingredients mentioned earlier. Additionally, Dum Dums has a important allergen statements posted on their website. It reads:
All Dum Dums products packaged by Spangler Candy Company DO NOT contain peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, wheat, or gluten. They are manufactured on dedicated equipment.
Look for the “Manufactured by Spangler Candy Company” statement on the back of Dum Dums packaging to be sure your product was packaged by Spangler.
Peta has also confirmed Dum Dums to be vegan-friendly in multiple articles on their website.
Are Non-Original Dum Dums Vegan?
In addition to the Original Dum Dums, there are also a variety of other colors, flavors, and shapes of lollipops that the Dum Dums brand makes. Lucky for us, all of the ingredients in the other products are exactly the same as the Original Dum Dums ingredients minus the salt. Therefore, all the varieties of lollipops made by the Dum Dums brand are vegan-friendly. This includes the following varieties:
- Color Party
- Limited Edition
- Heart Pops
- Bunny Pops
Additional Dum Dums FAQs
Are Dum Dums Gluten Free?
According to the Dum Dums Allergen Info website, all Dum Dums products are packaged by Spangler Candy Company and DO NOT contain wheat or gluten. They are manufactured on dedicated equipment to be sure. Therefore, Dum Dums are gluten-free!
Are Dum Dums Kosher?
According to the Dum Dums Kosher Info website, all Dum Dums products are packaged by Spangler Candy Company and are OU Kosher certified. Therefore, Dum Dums are Kosher! To be sure your Dum Dums product is Kosher, look for the OU symbol on the front of the package next to the net weight statement.
Are Dum Dums Dairy Free?
According to the Dum Dums Allergen Info website, all Dum Dums products are packaged by Spangler Candy Company and DO NOT contain milk. They are manufactured on dedicated equipment to be sure. Therefore, Dum Dums are dairy-free!
Are Dum Dums Peanut Free?
According to the Dum Dums Allergen Info website, all Dum Dums products are packaged by Spangler Candy Company and DO NOT contain peanuts or tree nuts. They are manufactured on dedicated equipment to be sure. Therefore, Dum Dums are peanut free!
Summary
Based on our analysis, Dum Dums are a great allergen free candy. They are free of peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, wheat, and gluten. They are also vegan-friendly!
If you liked this article, you can read about other vegan snack options here.
