Many of you have been closely following and investigating the emerging Campbell’s Tomato Soup and V8 controversy that I last wrote about here. Thanks to all of you who shared my articles across Facebook, Twitter, and other avenues! With your help, the information about possible animal ingredients in seemingly vegan Campbell’s products spread like wildfire, eventually triggering a response from Campbell’s and an unconvincing (in my opinion, at least) declaration from them that these two products are, in fact, free of animal products, though they remain oddly wishy-washy about whether they are vegan. See this great article from the International Business Times for more information, as well as influential blog Food Babe’s continued investigation into the matter.
I don’t know about you guys, but I’m still incredibly uneasy with Campbell’s response. Even if they issue a formal statement and provide evidence that V8 and Tomato Soup are vegan, I’m not sure if I can trust their brand anymore. In my book, it would have actually been a better outcome even if they had definitively acknowledged the presence of animal derivatives in these products. At least that way we’d feel like we actually had all the facts and could move on. As is, however, we’re all stuck in limbo and unsure if we can or should trust the company.
Readers, do you believe Campbell’s claims? What do you make of their flip-flopping? Should we give up on the company, or should we continue to rally for more transparency?
(JUST ABOUT) VEGAN 