fishy b33r
Life
Well, after receiving a lot of shit about it, I did a little research to see if draught b33r is actually filtered using fishmeal. According to the UK based Vegan Society, As a general rule traditional, cask-conditioned beers ('real ales') are fined using isinglass
, and Lagers are generally chill-filtered but a few (eg Stella Artois) do involve the use of isinglass
. Isinglass is a gelatin made from the air bladders of sturgeon and other fishes.
So I feel mostly vindicated.
In other news, stuff like M&Ms and JellyBellys are out because they are made from shellac. Unfortunately, hundreds of thousands of Lac insects die to produce a kilo of the stuff.
And what the hell is up with the Rundle Inn closing down? Where am I going to get falafel rolls from at three in the morning after a night out on the town?
Comments
I think the insect thing might be taking it a bit far ... anyway since when were you a vegan?
Posted by: Tansy on July 22, 2004 12:59 PM
The lac insect is also used in used in varnishes and polishes. Are we to boycot stained wood now too?
Posted by: jess on July 24, 2004 11:06 AM
Meh?
I wonder what the primary use of shellac is these days? Consider that most houses are filled with laminated furniture from Ikea (opening soon in Adelaide!!) vs the world-wide market of M&Ms and the ubiquitous need of supermarket empires to make their low grade, chemically-ripended apples somehow appealing to the consumer. I would speculate that stained wood furniture would be at the low end of the list of shellac consumers. Especially given that staining furniture is generally a one-shot process, as is coating baked products for display and making dental moulds.
So I would suggest that it would be a good thing if we tried to consume less food-based shellac products.
Random fact: from the figures quoted in the page above, 859,290,900,000 bugs died to supply the United States with shellac in 1995-1996.
Posted by: Mike on July 24, 2004 02:22 PM
Does food based products include items like antiboitics and some pain killers that are also coated in shellac? Isn't the term confectioners glaze also shellac, which rules out like, almost every sweet?
Is the Lac insect endangered? Why are they killing it if the process of creating Shellac is done by the insect itself much like the creation of honey?
I'm all a bit confused about this.. :/
Posted by: jess on July 24, 2004 09:09 PM
Isn't confectionery is consumed in vastly more quantities than pain killers and antibiotics (god I hope that is the case for antibiotics)?
Lacs aren't endangered, no. But neither are cows, sheep and chickens, which I don't eat and I try to avoid buying by-products of those industries as well.
Have a read of the article; the insects are killed as part of the process of harvesting the shellac because the substance itself is a secretion that sticks to insect as (ironically) a protective coating. I don't think you need to kill a bee to get to its honey.
Posted by: Mike on July 25, 2004 12:49 AM
ok :)
Although, I think I take more pills than I eat lollies. That could also have a lot to do with the fact I'm intorelant to glucose.
I made some more lamingtons today.
Posted by: jess on July 25, 2004 09:13 AM
Jess, I sure hope they were Shellac-free lamingtons!!!! So does that mean that lacs melt in the mouth and not in the hand? Sorry ;)
Posted by: Tansy on July 25, 2004 10:35 AM
Hmph. Like I got any of them anyway.
Posted by: Mike on July 26, 2004 01:32 AM
There are 30 still remaining. We should do sushi this week. I have hour lunch breaks again. Miracle.
Posted by: jess on July 26, 2004 02:28 PM
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