A Guide to The Best Vegan Gummy Bears
Gummy bears?! I know what you’re thinking. Grow up! Gummy bears are for kids. Well, I and many others respectively disagree with those naysayers.
Gummy bears are great for all ages. They’re delicious, fun, and some new varieties even include CBD (see, not just for kids).
Just because we’re adults and vegan, doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy a bag of gummy bears every now and then. So, without any further delay. Here are the best on the market and why you should treat yourself to them.
The Top 12 Vegan Gummy Bears
Vegan gummy bears have recently become a popular snack. No one really knows why. Maybe it’s just a trend or vegans are just excited to be able to eat candy again? Either way, I’m not complaining.
1. Nupharma Pure Hemp Gummies
100% organic, gluten-free, GMO-free, cruelty-free, and tasty AF! These special gummies are infused with hemp oil claims to ease your stress and anxieties. And they do!
Nupharma gummies also help you get a good night’s sleep and improve your general mood. They won’t work miracles, but they will certainly help.
Each gummy packs 15mg of hemp oil extract. This is enough to invoke feelings of calm and part your brain of some stress.
2. Annie's Organic Bunny Fruit Snack
Not bears, but gummy bunnies. Don’t be speciesist now, all animals can take the shape of gummies if they want to.
Annie’s is probably one of the tastiest gummy bears I’ve tried. No, they won’t make you fall asleep better or reduce stress, but they will make you happy.
Each gummy also includes 100% of your daily vitamin C. That’s seriously cool because vitamin C is absolutely vital for the human body and one of the miracle nutrients.
3. Luehders Gummi's
All the way from Germany, these vegan gummies are some of the tastiest out there. This is the red berries version I think is one of the best.
These gummy bears are free from gelato, artificial colors, and flavors. Soft in texture, juicy in taste, and guaranteed to satisfy any big kid after some candy relief.
I also like that Luehders uses sustainable palm oil in its ingredients and the real extract juice from pomegranate, apple, elderberry, and blackberry.
4. Organi CBD Gummies
While most vegan gummy bears are about tasty flavors and fun, these gummies from Organi seek to help your health. Each gummy comes with 10mg of CBD, which helps to relax your mind and body.
They’re actually formulated for pain relief. These gummies may help you a lot if you have had a recent accident or suffer from pain-related illnesses.
Organi CBD gummies are also delicious. They’re made with natural flavors, and the texture is nice and smooth. Don’t worry, CBD is non-psychoactive, so you won’t be getting “high,” just slightly more relaxed.
5. Surf Sweets Organic Fruity Bears
Be careful when buying these gummy bears from Surf Sweets. They have three types, and the regular version includes gelatin, which is not vegan.
But, these vegan-friendly organic fruity bears are fantastic. You can also choose the sour edition, which is also vegan!
Flavors include cherry, grapefruit, grape, lemon, strawberry, and orange. The gummies are also free from dairy, nuts, soy, and gluten.
6. The Organic Gummy Factory Organic Gummy Cubs
One of the best-rated vegan gummy bear products out there. The Organic Gummy Factory Gummy Cubs are tasty. You can choose from mixed berry or peach flavors.
I also love the resealable bags, which make keeping them stored easier. Gummies tend to go weird when left out in the natural air. Although, I highly doubt you will be able to refrain from eating the entire bag in one go.
I also love the company in general. They seem to be kind-hearted and on a mission to do some good in the world. A portion of the money from each sale of their gummy bears goes to charity.
Trader Joe’s is also in on the vegan gummy bear revolution. This time, not bears but a variety of marine animals!
The ingredients are 100% natural and taste great. The texture is nice and chewy and won’t disappoint any gummy bears fans. Unless you dislike the use of any other animal but bears for gummies. But that’s your business.
Those lucky enough to have a Trader Joes near their home should jump in the car now and go buy a bag.
8. Seitenbacher Strawberry Alligators
Ok, I know, it’s getting ridiculous. On this list of gummy bears, there are hardly any bears. But it’s not the animal shape that counts, it’s the taste and quality, right?
These gummies from Seitanbacher are alligators that taste like strawberries! Made with real fruit juice and natural ingredients, you can’t go wrong.
Setenbacher is also well-experienced when it comes to making gummies. They’ve been in the business for a long time, so you can trust the quality.
9. SmartSweets Sour Blast Buddies
If you like sour sweets, then you’re in for a treat! These are seriously sour and will have you pulling all sorts of crazy faces as you put them down.
You may be happy to know they’re relatively low in sugar for a candy product. I’m not saying they’re healthy or nutritious, but if you compare to others, you could say they’re “healthier.”
The secret to their sweetness is stevia. This natural sweet plant is thousands of times sweeter than your regular sugar.
10.Vegan AF Sunday Scaries
Yay! More CBD infused gummy bears! This time from the Sunday Scaries brand. Not just packed full of calm-inducing CBD but also Vitamin D3 and B12. We all know how important they’re for vegans.
The main purpose of Vegan AF gummies is to assist those with anxiety. Made using high-quality organic hemp and lab-tested for quality.
If you’re looking to calm the mind, reduce feelings of anxiety, relieve work pressure, and increase your focus, these gummies from Sunday Scaries should help you.
11. Nommy Bears
Not really a treat or snack but more of a multivitamin. Just two a day should help your body get a healthy dose of nutrients that can be important on a vegan diet.
Many flavors are chosen, and they all taste excellent with a smooth and chewy texture. Just don’t get carried away, you only need two a day. This is not a snack!
Each gummy will provide you 11 essential vitamins, and they’re also made with 100% natural ingredients.
12. Squish's Vegan Sparkling Bears
Love gummy bears? Love prosecco? Then you will love these prosecco gummy bears from Squish. This is an artisan candy company that creates slightly alternative flavors of candy.
Prosecco is an Italian fizzy wine for those not in the know. If you haven’t ever tried prosecco, I highly recommend you do. It’s much tastier than champagne.
If you head to the Squish store, you will find a whole range of excellent vegan candy goods.
Why Not Just Eat Popular Brand Gummy Bears?
Gelatin
Your popular brands of gummy bears are a big no go for vegans. Why? Because the vast majority are made from gelatin. What’s that?
“Gelatin is a mixture of peptides and proteins produced by partial hydrolysis of collagen extracted from the skin, bones, and connective tissues of animals such as domesticated cattle, chicken, pigs, and fish.” (Wikipedia)
So, as you can see, it is definitely not vegan-friendly. In fact, the whole gelatin process and industry is quite disgusting and not something you want to be funded or consuming.
Companies like Haribo unfortunately still use gelatin for almost all their products, including their gummy bears. This means vegans have, for a long time, been without gummy sweets.
But now, the new vega revolution is upon us, and we have plenty of options, as you can see above. Gelatin is in no way an essential ingredient for candy. It is simply another way for farmers and food companies to increase their profits even further from their animals.
Carmine
Carmine is a bright red dye that is commonly used for candy and cosmetics. It’s not vegan because it comes from beetles. Yes, you read that, right! Beetles!
Carmin is produced by drying, crushing, and then boiling the bodies of cochineal beetles. The result of which is a bright red dye perfect for red sweets and things like lipstick.
As a vegan, you obviously want to avoid this product. While bugs may not be as cute and friendly as cows or pigs, they’re still living creatures worthy of respect.
Be careful, carmine is not always listed by its name. You may also see it listed in the ingredients as cochineal extract, crimson lake, natural red 4, and E120.
Carmine is another unnecessary ingredient. The best red dyes are produced from fruits like strawberries and vegetables like beetroot. Beetles are just cheaper.
Read our article: TOP-7 Best Vegan Creatine Supplementation
Shellac
Another beetle-derived ingredient you will want to skip as a vegan. Shellac is made from the secretions (!) of the lac beetle.
Not only is it pretty gross to eat the secretions of another animal, how shellac is produced is also unethical.
The bugs actually create the secretions to protect their young larvae. When people then scrape the flakes of resin out from the tree, they kill many of the bugs in the process.
Shellac is used in a variety of ways, including candy. Why? It is used as a” confectioner’s glaze.” This creates a hard and shiny surface for the candy. Yuk!
Beeswax
Beeswax is used for a variety of candy products as a rinse aid. Most often, it is the smooth and shiny candies that include beeswax. It is used much, similar to shellac above.
Beeswax, also known as E901, is an issue for vegans because it is harvested from beehives. Beeswax is produced by hard-working bees to strengthen the hive walls, where they store honey and pollen.
Beeswax isn’t easy for the bees to produce. It takes a long time of hard work and time. To produce just one kilo of beeswax, they would need to consume over one kilo of honey. Can you imagine working that hard only for your final product to be taken away from you?
The implications of bee farming are complicated and full of misinformation. The truth is, it really depends on where the honey and beeswax comes from. In some factories, they will kill many bills and even artificially inseminate the queen bee.
In some organic bee farms, they have managed to reduce the harm, but there is still the issue of exploiting the bees, and they’re hard work. As vegans, we don’t support any creature’s exploitation, no matter how “ethical” the farming may seem.
The biggest issue with beeswax is that it’s easy to replicate with materials that are not harmful to bees. Carnauba wax, from the leaves of Carnauba palm, is a simple, far less damaging alternative.
Refined Sugar
What! Sugar!? Before you get carried away and too worried. Only some refined sugar is considered not vegan. Mainly, refined sugar that uses bone char as a decolorizing filter. This allows sugar cane to get its extremely white color.
Bone char is made from the bones of slaughtered farm animals. It is once again, a completely unnecessary ingredient that can be substituted with sugar cane, coconut sugar, or beets sugar.
Bone char is an industry that uses enormous amounts of carbon emissions as they ship bones from the USA to foreign countries for processing. Those companies then send bone char back to the USA for use in lots of different products.
Make life simple and buy any alternative to this refined sugar.
Final Gummy Thoughts
Vegan gummy bears are excellent snacks for anyone who wants to relive their childhood without animal-derived ingredients. Some vegan gummy bears are infused with CBD oil to help with anxiety and aid with good sleep. Some come in the form of useful multivitamins.
If you’re after a great-tasting treat for all the family, go grab one of the vegan gummy bear products listed in this article and enjoy it! We, vegans, have been without quality gummy bears for years!
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