Tesco

[sandra]

You generally find that the person in your local wholefood/organic store (& I don't mean Holland & Barrett) can give you clear concise and accurate information about which products are suitable for vegans. Its a valuable but endangered resource - go shop there.

I wish I could say that is my experience but I still have to be vigilant in health food shops.
Once I was nearly sold an item that contained gelatine and another time I was told that Lavera lipsticks were vegan. Luckily I didn't buy the lipsticks as I thought I'd come home and check first. It turns out only one of them is vegan and it's not even a very nice colour!
I tend to trust no one but myself when buying anything!

[Mr Flibble]

I remember reading the ingredients of the "vegan sushi" I bought in a health food shop once before eating it. Glad I did too

[sandra]

Yes, Mr Flibble, sadly I don't trust health food shops any more than I trust the supermarkets as far as ingredients are concerned!

[bryzee86]

You generally find that the person in your local wholefood/organic store (& I don't mean Holland & Barrett) can give you clear concise and accurate information about which products are suitable for vegans. Its a valuable but endangered resource - go shop there.

yours might be, but most are a bit crap - I rarely am told anything informative by wholefood shops - H&B or not.

I'd rather learn for myself.

[Elahiya]

i agree. i also haven´t made the best experiences at health food stores & co and i think you are the only person which can learn for hisself as apporpriately as it has to be. i like it to be informed and do my own research on anything.

[Marrers]

I find the staff are only informed if they happen to be vegan themselves - and then they tend only to know about products that interest them. (Sandra I'm tired of being told Lavera make-up is all vegan too.)

[BlackCats]

i agree. i also haven´t made the best experiences at health food stores & co and i think you are the only person which can learn for hisself as apporpriately as it has to be. i like it to be informed and do my own research on anything.

Exactly. When I have asked a health food shop assistant something they never know the answer or they just pick up whatever it is and read the ingredients which I could do myself. I have found that people never seem to realise that honey and beeswax are not vegan.

[Zero]

I have found that people never seem to realise that honey and beeswax are not vegan.

Yes....

I concur.

[Elahiya]

once i was looking for a herbal remedy when i had a stomach ache and went to a health food store. i had no idea what would be suitable, so i asked. i told the salesperson i´m looking for something vegan. the first tablets he showed me contained honey. great. so much to what the salespersons actually know as long as they´re not concerned by themselves.

[jonnie falafel]

Like I said, I don't mean H & B! And to whom would you address your questions at TESCO I wonder?

[BlackCats]

Like I said, I don't mean H & B! And to whom would you address your questions at TESCO I wonder?

When I said my local health food shop I wasn't talking about H&B. I have one near me that is an independent shop and *shock horror* the staff are as clueless about veganism as the staff at H&B or Tesco. I think the point people were making is that they haven't had their vegan queries answered successfully at health food shops and they prefer to do the research themselves.

[bryzee86]

Like I said, I don't mean H & B! And to whom would you address your questions at TESCO I wonder?

you can write to Tel himself, and get a personal reply.

I know I have.

[sandra]

Like I said, I don't mean H & B! And to whom would you address your questions at TESCO I wonder?

I don't mean H & B either Jonnie

Plus, I often email or phone Tesco and always get very prompt helpful answers.

[Marrers]

When I said my local health food shop I wasn't talking about H&B. I have one near me that is an independent shop and *shock horror* the staff are as clueless about veganism as the staff at H&B or Tesco. I think the point people were making is that they haven't had their vegan queries answered successfully at health food shops and they prefer to do the research themselves.

Indeed.

[jonnie falafel]

Yes that's true.... advice regarding the pills & potions side is patchy and inconsistent in health food shops.... all the research shows it. All the research also shows that the vast majority of these nostrums are ineffective & even the professor of Alternative Medicine at Exeter agrees - see Trick or Treatment by Edzard Ernst.

There are also loads of 'health food' stores that indulge in faddiness & hyperbolic marketing. Goji berries are this weeks thing Acai Berries next & the current fad is cherries. GM modified purple tomatoes were touted on this mornings news as superfoods. Poppycock. I suppose I ought to have said go to proper food where the folks have an interest in food and a passion for food and they'll likely be able to tell you the provenance of most things they sell, which cheeses have veggie rennet (for your vegetarian friends of course!). Try asking the aisle police at TESCO or the apparatchik on the deli counter.

[cobweb]

^ i wouldn't be in the least bit interested in which cheeses contained animal rennet as all dairy cheese is the product of murder and rape anyway.

[sandra]

I suppose I ought to have said go to proper food where the folks have an interest in food and a passion for food and they'll likely be able to tell you the provenance of most things they sell, which cheeses have veggie rennet (for your vegetarian friends of course!). Try asking the aisle police at TESCO or the apparatchik on the deli counter.

Hi Jonnie, I don't quite understand what you mean by 'go to proper food'.............do you mean food sold in health food shops. If so, the staff in my health food stores don't know a great deal about their food either, and as they sell dairy/honey products I wouldn't be getting 100% vegan advice to boot!

[Marrers]

I'm totally confused about what point you are making jonnie falafel. Are you saying go to health food shops but not most health food shops, only certain ones are good (lol - get ready to travel the country folks) or that you can only rely on them to give proper advice / vegan advice on 'proper food' whatever that is? By proper food do you mean nuts and seeds and pulses and vegetables? I think I can work out which of those are vegan for myself.

[green woman]

jonnie falafel - according to your profile your occupation is a grocer. Just out of interest what range of produce do you sell?

Try asking the aisle police at TESCO or the apparatchik on the deli counter.

The thing about supermarkets is they exist because the vast majority of people want them too. People want the nostalgia of the local independent trader but want the convenience of being able to get everything under one roof. People work unsociable hours and want to shop at 10 o'clock at night. The majority gets what the majority wants.

And people who work for supermarkets stacking shelves or on the checkout or on the deli counter aren't apparatchiks as they have no bureaucratic or political powers and I very much doubt whether they're blindly devoted to the supermarket cause, they're just poor old workers who do their job as best they can. If the pay's better somewhere else they'll soon be off.

I go to a couple of local independent health food shops and as lovely as the people are who work in them they know little about the vegan products in the shops. I've been assured that products are vegan when they've proved not to be.

[RossClement]

I'm a bit confused about the central topic of this thread. But being too lazy to search out what has and hasn't been said about Tescos products, will post here so that if this is a needless duplication, it's only a duplicated post, not a whole thread.

I was pleased to see that Tescos have labelled their nutburgers as vegan again. But I wonder if they've changed the recipe as the last time we tried them, they seemed a bit dry. I may have overdone the "no added fat" baking technique a bit.

Also labelled as vegan were some vegan "turkey twizzlers" or something like that. (Looks in freezer) "Meat-free chicken style dippers". They're OK, I suppose, but nothing to write home about. But my son likes them, so we get them.

They had a meat-free "chicken breast" type product. They were rather expensive. We tried some, but I don't like them at all.

While it's encouraging to see Tescos having more vegan labelled products, I'm concerned about them bringing in vegan labelled products of poor quality such as the "chicken breasts". I'm concerned that if they don't sell (wouldn't surprise me) that they'll conclude that there's no market for vegan products.

[Pearl]

Shouldnt we be pleased that the supermarkets are making more of an effort to label things vegan and make cleaning products etc. a bit more environmentally friendly? We have a fantastic health food shop but its a bit of a trek out. I work shifts and sometimes finish at 9.30 at night and my nearest supermarket is two minutes from work and about the same from home.

[sandra]

I'm concerned that if they don't sell (wouldn't surprise me) that they'll conclude that there's no market for vegan products.

That has always been my attitude towards this. If we buy 'vegan' produce from supermarkets and other companies it will show a market for them. If we boycott them and refuse to encourage their efforts to cater for vegans they will just stop doing it. That just gets us nowhere!

[RossClement]

Tescos veggie mince is now labelled vegan. I bought some, but I haven't eaten it yet.

[cobweb]

Tescos veggie mince is now labelled vegan. I bought some, but I haven't eaten it yet.

and is much nicer than the Realeat one

[RossClement]

Shepard's pie for dinner tomorrow night then so that I can try it out!

[Cumin]

and is much nicer than the Realeat one

Is that possible?

How is it nicer? I'm intrigued....

[cobweb]

Is that possible?

How is it nicer? I'm intrigued....

it's hard to explain (and i thought they would be the same product actually!) but somehow the Tesco one is more 'uniform' in size/shape, and more 'meaty'

[RossClement]

I like the Tesco's mince. But my partner hated it.

[RossClement]

Tescos are doing a "chilli and rice" chilled frozen meal which is marked vegan. It's OK, and at £1.99, not as expensive as some chilled meals. It includes veggiemince, and is an attempt at a vegan "chilli con carne". I do prefer freshly cooked rice to the rice that comes with ready meals though.

[Mr Flibble]

THey sold that in my tescos near work over 6 months ago. It was always almost on it's date stamp, and they stopped selling it as I think I was the only person who bought it. Lots of peppers and not a lot else if I remember correcetly.

[RossClement]

THey sold that in my tescos near work over 6 months ago. It was always almost on it's date stamp, and they stopped selling it as I think I was the only person who bought it. Lots of peppers and not a lot else if I remember correcetly.

I wish I had a decent recipe for Chilli. How hard can it be?

[Gorilla]

^ it's not hard at all! there are recipes on this board. personally i don't use a recipe, just saute an onion, add a tin of chopped tomatoes, some kidney beans, veggie mince and any other veg i feel like chucking in, add chilli powder, plenty of garlic, a bit of yeast extract and cook!

[Mr Flibble]

Ask Cumin, he makes the best vegan chilli i've had

[Cumin]

Thanks Mr F..


On a different note, has anyone verified whether the current Tesco V.spring rolls and V.Samosas (chilled) are vegan? They are marked veggie, and have so suspect looking ingredients but....

[beanstew]

^ it's not hard at all! there are recipes on this board. personally i don't use a recipe, just saute an onion, add a tin of chopped tomatoes, some kidney beans, veggie mince and any other veg i feel like chucking in, add chilli powder, plenty of garlic, a bit of yeast extract and cook!

That's pretty much how I do my chillis too. I like them super hot so add plenty of chopped finger, birds eye or scotch bonnet (if I can find them) chilli peppers. For the veggies I often use celery, courgette and sweetcorn and plenty of chestnut mushrooms. So yummy. I made a load last night so have plenty for tonight too, it's even better after sitting for 24h.

[bryzee86]

That's pretty much how I do my chillis too. I like them super hot so add plenty of chopped finger, birds eye or scotch bonnet (if I can find them) chilli peppers. For the veggies I often use celery, courgette and sweetcorn and plenty of chestnut mushrooms. So yummy. I made a load last night so have plenty for tonight too, it's even better after sitting for 24h.

you like crazy hot food beany!

[Cumin]

On a different note, has anyone verified whether the current Tesco 4 V.spring rolls and Tesco 4 V.Samosas (both chilled) are vegan? They are marked veggie, and have so suspect looking ingredients but....

I just got an answer myself from Tesco. They are both totally vegan.

I pointed out that it was a bit frustrating when they label some vegan things vegan and some other vegetarian, and they will pass the feedback on.

[beanstew]

Cool, thanks Cumin. I love Spring Rolls.

[RossClement]

I just got an answer myself from Tesco. They are both totally vegan.

I pointed out that it was a bit frustrating when they label some vegan things vegan and some other vegetarian, and they will pass the feedback on.

Who did you contact to find out the vegan status of these products? Email?

[Cumin]

Who did you contact to find out the vegan status of these products? Email?

I rang customer services 0800 505555 and asked. Of course, I had to get over the first 3 obvious answers before I convinced them it was worth checking.
1. "It doesn't say vegan on the packet, so it probably isn't"
2. "There is only so much room on the label, so we can't help you.."
3. "I don't have any more information, or a vegan list, so I don't know.."

So I pressed the lady to go and ask, which she duly did and called me back.

[fennerj]

Hi there
I have recently become a vegan (was a vegetarian for 39 yrs). Have just purchased the 'animal free shopper' guide form the vegan society. Can anyone tell me why tesco is not listed under the supermarket section?
Thanks

[sandra]

Hi Fennerj, I don't know about the most recent animal shopper guide but my copy is the 7th edition and Tesco is listed in it.

My shopping criteria is...........if a product isn't tested on animals and doesn't contain any animal ingredients then I will buy it........as it's vegan!

I'm sure there are others on the forum who will be able to give you better advice as to why Tesco isn't listed in your copy.

[bryzee86]

Hi there
I have recently become a vegan (was a vegetarian for 39 yrs). Have just purchased the 'animal free shopper' guide form the vegan society. Can anyone tell me why tesco is not listed under the supermarket section?
Thanks

they "don't have a list" anymore.

slackers

[Zero]

^ Indeed - the vegan society requested a list of their vegan products several times before the publication of the new animal free shopper but received no response

[fennerj]

Thanks for the replies. That explains It!
Jo

[sandra]

Tesco's Bubble and Squeak is vegan and delicious!

It's the large round one and not the individual bubble and squeak cakes (they aren't vegan, I think they have milk in them) but the large one sold in the chilled cabinets is vegan!

[ajg67]

I stopped shopping at Tesco when they started selling live turtles in china. As far as I know they are still doing this and are now selling foie gras in Hungary.
Peta have a set up a link to email the Tesco CEO to urge him to stop selling foie gras if anyone is interested here is the the link

http://action.peta.org.uk/ea-campaig...mpaign.id=2396

[cobweb]

^ i know, it's horrible what they do, but if i want to buy vegan foods beyond the basics i have little choice but to shop in Tesco here. It'd be nice to manage without any of the supermarkets.

[sandra]

I stopped shopping at Tesco when they started selling live turtles in china.

That is horrific, and if the Tesco I shop at started selling live turtles I would not want to shop there. However, I also hate having to buy soya milk that is right beside the containers of cow's milk, or having to pass by freezers that contain the different body parts of animals. Was their suffering any less than the poor turtles?..........in some ways it might have been far worse.

There is NOWHERE I can shop that doesn't involve animal cruelty. Even my health food shop has dairy and bee products on sale. I don't like this situation but until the world changes I have to sadly live with it or starve!

If there was a completely vegan place I could go to shop then that's where I'd go...............as there isn't, it would be hypocritical of me to say 'I'll not shop in that supermarket because..............etc' when in reality they are ALL as bad as each other.

[cobweb]

i agree, Sandra, i get a bit annoyed about people who go on about whaling, etc (for instance) but think that cows/pigs/sheep don't have feelings.