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The flavour enhancer E635 is a combination of E627 (disodium guanylate) and E631 (disodium inosinate) and is in Fantastic Noodles (Chicken).

If I am correct, the flavour enhancer 627 is isolated from sardines and/or yeast extract and 631 can be prepared from meat extract and/or dried sardines. If 635 is made out of 627 and 631, is it considered vegetarian as 627 and 631 contain sardines and/or meat extract?

If not, does this make the noodles non-vegetarian?

rackandboneman
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Rian Webster
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  • What is your question? At first I thought you wanted to know how these additives are produced. But it seems that you know it and are asking us if their production method makes them "vegetarian". That would be unanswerable, because there are as many definitions of "vegetarian" as there are people who eat vegetarian. – rumtscho Feb 10 '17 at 14:33
  • Let us [continue this discussion in chat](http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/53461/discussion-between-rumtscho-and-niall). – rumtscho Feb 11 '17 at 14:52
  • @Niall I am not looking forward to a long discussion with you either, I tried to move the whole thing into chat (as the system suggested) because this thread has no place here. I didn't notice the comments don't go away automatically. I am now removing them from here, you can come into the chatroom or not as you wish. – rumtscho Feb 11 '17 at 15:00

2 Answers2

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E627 can be produced from seaweed, and 631 may be produced from tapioca starch.

Thus, both may be properly vegan. Or not. What does it make the food? With all honesty, it makes food don't know category. You can't assert it's vegan, and you can't be sure it isn't. If you are going to feed your vegan friends, buy ingredients with guaranteed vegan origin. If you don't know, be sensible to inform your friends you don't know.

If you are vegan yourself, only you can tell if you are willing to risk eating non-vegan ingredients when source wasn't stated explicitly.

Mołot
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In addition to the production method you describe, there are biotechnical ways to manufacture these, some of them vegetarian/vegan, some not.

If they are made by the described method from fish, they are definitely unsuitable to be called a vegetarian food, and the same applies to any food these have been intentionally added to.

If made from fish only, they and the food containing them could still perfectly be called a pescetarian food.

If the food isn't labelled as suitable/unsuitable for vegetarians, only the manufacturer can tell you who makes the additives they use, and how they are made. Unless somebody asked them already and put the answer online. Some manufacturers will refuse to disclose what they source, OR will refer you to the manufacturer of their additives, OR will tell you they are using product XY now but will not guarantee that they will not use another product manufactured in a different way in the future.

rackandboneman
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