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Can vegans eat products made on equipment that also makes dairy products? - Laura

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Dear Laura,

Very few vegan companies have the money to buy dedicated machines with which to produce their vegan products. So they share equipment with other companies to cut down on costs. The machines are thoroughly cleaned and sterilized in between products, but because there are people out there who are allergic to even trace amounts of dairy products (or nuts, or wheat, or soy, etc) the companies must put that information on their packaging. For all intents and purposes, the products are vegan.

I know of one company who used to make their products on shared equipment and eventually made enough money to be able to purchase dedicated machinery. If we vegans had eschewed their products they never would have had enough sales to buy their equipment. So I say support these companies now so that they will be around for a long time.

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