A question for Vegans?

Question

I understand that there are many levels of Vegan from just not eating meat to no animal products(eggs, Dairy, etc) I have a real question though. What about Honey? I'm not a Vegan and I'm not trying to be rude I really just want to know. Thank You.

enslaved? My bees come and go as they like. I did have a person yell at me once for working my bees on weekends, as though I could tell them to take a day off. LOL

Answer 1

Vegans do not eat honey because it is an animal product. They don't wear wool, they don't wear silk, they don't wear leather, they don't eat honey, they really try to not use anything made from any animal product as far as is practical and don't want animals to be used for anything - typically the motivation is animal rights.

This is the general definition of vegan:
"The word "veganism" denotes a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude — as far as is possible and practical — all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals."


There are different extremes, to be sure, but ALL vegans do not eat meat NOR milk nor eggs. Vegetarians "just" don't eat meat and "strict vegetarians" don't eat meat or dairy or eggs. As a strict vegetarian I can tell you that it is often easier to just say "vegan" than it is to say "I'm a strict vegetarian who doesn't eat dairy or eggs and is against most commercial honey production , but still consumes some honey once in a while, but tries to stick to local honey from a beekeeper I trust."
There are valid (I think) reasons for vegans to be against eating honey. Large scale commercial honey operations are not very kind to their bees, as a rule. You allude to being a beekeeper, but there is a big difference between small scale beekeepers and large scale bee farmers.
Here's some information to help you understand where people who are against honey are coming from:
http://www.vegetus.org/honey/honey.htm

To be clear, honey is really NOT a vegan food and anything made with honey or beeswax is NOT vegan. Everyone has their own rules they live by, though, and some people don't do as good a job of sticking to the definition as others.

Answer 2

There are not many levels of vegan. Some *vegetarians* cut out just meat, but eat eggs and/or dairy. Some *vegetarians* are stricter. Veganism, though, by its very definition, excludes any and all animal-sourced products or ingredients (and not only from the diet - vegans don't wear or use products from animals, either.) Honey is a tougher argument for non-vegans to relate to because most people just find it harder to relate to insects than to mammals. But honey is an animal derived product (obviously) and is therefore not vegan. Bees create honey to sustain themselves through the winter and we simply don't have the right to take it and use it for ourselves. Bees die in the process. If you were snowed in for the winter and a swarm of bees flew in and raided your pantry, taking with them all the stores you'd set aside for winter, wouldn't you have a little problem with that?

Answer 3

Well, in order to harvest honey, some beekeepers employ cruel methods, such as setting fires and smoking the bees out of the hive, etc; they are sometimes killed or injured in the process. I am not sure about my own feelings about honey; there are people who keep bees in my family and I have never seen them abuse or mistreat the bees. I have always preferred the taste of agave nectar to honey, though, so I tend to use agave either way. However, certain products that I have liked for many years contain honey but are otherwise vegan, I purchase them since I like them and since there aren't easily accessible honey-free versions (like graham crackers, the vegan versions sell online for twice as much or more as the ones with honey in the store).

Answer 4

Vegans do not eat honey. It's vegetarianism that there are the "levels" of, and veganism is the strictest one, eschewing all animal products and anything that results from animal exploitation. Vegans believe that using honey and other bee products is exploiting the animals for reasons that have already been explained above: the honey--a.k.a. bee puke--is food for the bees during the wintertime. It is not for humans to use.

There are substitutes for honey in recipes, such as agave nectar, brown rice syrup, and even maple syrup.

Answer 5

Personally, I am slowly transitioning to vegan. I am almost there, but the one thing non-vegan that I do eat (for now) is honey. I think it's kind of rude to take away their work, but MAN those bees are like the Clysdale beer horses. Luxery.

Answer 6

i am not vegan but i know somehting about it, i have some vegan friends & they don't eat honey. i think it's because the bees are enslaved to make honey that we then steal from them. but bees are insects so i don't know if all vegans feel that way. i guess it depends upon your view of bees if you'll eat honey or not.

Answer 7

It's very simple. If I have any other option, I do not deprive any animal of their flesh, skin, honey, milk, eggs, fur, pearls, dignity, or freedom. Whether or not honey production is actually cruel is a matter of some debate, and I do not presume to know. What I do know is how easy it is to avoid this type of exploitation, so why keep participating in it? Giving up milk can have practical difficulties, but how much do you really need honey?

Answer 8

I'm not vegan but I'm vegetarian.
a true vegan won't eat honey because it is an animal product which we then steal.
watch bee movie featuring Jerry Seinfeld

Answer 9

Honey comes from bees, an animal, although really there an insect therefore a strict vegan can't eat them because honey is an animal product.

Answer 10

i eat honey, but that's just me. some vegans don't though because they don't support any product derived from an animal in any way. so it just depends on the person and what they believe. personally, i don't think that taking honey from a bee causes any type of animal cruelty... but, again, that's just me.