Twizzlers occupy a unique place in American history: In 1969, when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, he told mission control, “I could go for some Twizzlers right now.” Today these sweet, chewy twists on traditional licorice appear on grocery and convenience store shelves across the nation.
Candies with a toothy texture often contain gelatin, a byproduct of the beef and pork industries. But lucky for vegans, Twizzlers do not contain gelatin or other animal products. The Hershey Company, however, only lists specific varieties as vegan-friendly.
Find out more in our vegan guide to Twizzlers.
Why All Twizzlers Are Most Likely Vegan
No variety of Twizzlers contains animal products like meat, eggs, dairy, or bee products common in many confections. Very strict vegans, however, cite other ingredients—such as certain sugars—as infringing on the definition of veganism. There is no way to verify the source of any of these vegan-questionable ingredients on a nutrition label.Because of this, it’s safe to assume that all Twizzlers meet vegan standards.
Here are some ingredients you may be interested in learning more about.
Sugar
Sugar comes from either sugar beets or sugar cane. Unrefined sugar cane is secondarily processed with animal bone char to help whiten the sugar crystals. Over half of sugar production in the U.S. comes from beet sugar, transforming into table sugar in a single process.
According to Twizzlers’ parent company, Hershey, Twizzlers sources from both foreign and domestic sugar cane and sugar beet farms. Unfortunately, nutrition labels do not disclose the sourcing of sugar.
Lethicin
Lethicin is a water-loving fat that can come from animal and non-animal sources. In processed foods like Twizzlers, it’s safe to assume the lecithin comes from plant-based soy, a common food additive.
Carnauba Wax
A hard, plant-based wax typical in food, carnauba wax comes from palm trees grown in open fields in Brazil. Carnauba wax extraction causes deforestation, problems for local species, and challenging conditions for workers.
Did You Know?
Twizzlers also contain the conflict crop palm oil. The most consumed and produced vegetable oil globally, palm oil is associated with rainforest deforestation and habitat destruction. Many vegans who chose the lifestyle for ecological reasons also abstain from palm oil products.
Vegan Twizzlers Flavors
The following Twizzlers’ products are explicitly listed as vegan. They include more traditional flavors as well as Twizzler’s signature plays on licorice shape and texture.
- Strawberry
- Pull-n-Peel Cherry
- Bites Cherry
- Cherry
- Nibs Cherry
- Licorice
- Chocolate
Likely Vegan Twizzlers Flavors
The remaining varieties of Twizzlers don’t contain any non-vegan ingredients and are likely vegan. Nonetheless, they are not listed as vegan on the Twizzlers website.
- Mystery Flavor
- Orange Cream Pop
- Rainbow
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Cherry Twizzlers vegan?
Yes. Twizzlers' website lists Cherry, Nibs Cherry, and Bites Cherry as vegan-friendly.
Do Twizzlers have gelatin?
Fortunately, no. Not a single variety of Twizzlers contains gelatin.
Are Rainbow Twizzlers vegan?
Most likely. Rainbow Twizzlers don’t contain any obvious non-vegan ingredients, but Twizzlers does not place them on their vegan-friendly list.
Are Strawberry Twizzlers vegan?
Yes! The original flavor is completely vegan-friendly.
