Why Aren’t Figs Considered Vegan?
Sorry if this ruins figs for you.
Like those of dumplings and sandwiches, the definition of veganism isn’t set in stone. Some practitioners eschew honey and sugars refined with animal-bone char, since both involve products derived from animals. Others avoid Italian aperitifs like Campari dyed with carminic acid, which is derived from crushed beetles. And then there are figs, which in and of themselves are obviously not animals, but are technically in part derived from them. Botanically, figs aren’t fruits; they’re flowers that bloom internally, and like many flowers, they’re pollinated and propagated by insects. Specifically, fig wasps, one unique species per each of the 8,000 or so species of fig. In the last days of her life, the … Continue Reading