Are Frosted Flakes Vegan? [All Flavors + Off Brands]

Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes are the third best-selling cereal in the United States—just behind Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios. Their recipe is pretty simple, consisting of mostly corn and sugar. But are Frosted Flakes completely vegan?

Frosted Flakes are generally considered vegan. However, they do contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray-area ingredients for vegans. The most strict vegans may avoid Frosted Flakes for this reason.

Below, I’ll cover all the concerns you might have about Frosted Flakes containing milk, gelatin, pork, or eggs. I’ll share my outlook on the sugar and vitamin D issues. I’ll also look at popular off-brands of Frosted Flakes. I actually found three brands that don’t contain vitamin D!

What Are Frosted Flakes Made Of?

Frosted Flakes are primarily made of milled corn, sugar, malt flavor, and salt. They also contain a mix of fortified vitamins and minerals.

Let’s break those ingredients down from a vegan perspective:

• Milled corn: Vegan. This is a grain, 100% plant-based, so no concerns from a vegan perspective.

• Sugar: Gray Area. Sugar is debated amongst vegans. Non-organic cane sugar is often filtered with animal bone char to make it whiter. Some vegans avoid it—others don’t. (Personally, I don’t worry about it.)

• Malt flavor: Vegan. Some people assume malt flavor comes from milk, due to the association with “malted milkshakes.” But malt is 100% vegan, and it comes from barley. I wrote more about this here.

• Salt. Vegan. Salt is just a mineral. No animal products here.

• Vitamins and Minerals. Gray Area. Most vitamins and minerals are fine. However, vitamin D3 is typically harvested from lanolin (from sheep’s wool). Most brands of frosted flakes contain vitamin D. Some vegans avoid it—some don’t. I wrote about why I don’t worry about it here.

As you can see, whether Frosted Flakes are vegan comes down to sugar and vitamin D. The most strict vegans consider it non-vegan for those reasons. But most vegans would say it’s close enough.

Personally, I am fine with eating Frosted Flakes as a vegan.

Do Frosted Flakes Have Dairy?

Frosted Flakes do not contain dairy or lactose. No flavors or brands of Frosted Flakes contain milk ingredients. The malt flavor is not made from dairy, and neither is the white color—it’s just from sugar.

Do Frosted Flakes Contain Gelatin?

Most Frosted Flakes do not contain gelatin. The only flavors that contain gelatin are those that contain marshmallows: Frosted Flakes With Marshmallows and Lucky Charms Frosted Flakes.

Do Frosted Flakes Have Pork in Them?

Most Frosted Flakes do not contain pork. However, flavors containing marshmallows do contain gelatin, which is often pork-based. These flavors are Frosted Flakes With Marshmallows and Lucky Charms Frosted Flakes.

Do Frosted Flakes Contain Eggs?

Frosted Flakes do not contain eggs. In fact, no flavors or brands of Frosted Flakes have egg ingredients whatsoever.

Vegan Flavors of Frosted Flakes

Nowadays, there isn’t just one basic flavor of Frosted Flakes to choose from. Kellogg’s makes a whole line of flavors. Let’s check whether each one is vegan.

Are Chocolate Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Kellogg’s Chocolate Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Chocolate Frosted Flakes.

The ingredients are not a drastic divergence from normal Frosted Flakes. As you can see, Chocolate Frosted Flakes do not have dairy or anything like that:

Kellogg’s Chocolate Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Milled corn, sugar, cocoa processed with alkali, palm kernel oil, contains 2% or less of malt flavor, salt, semisweet chocolate (sugar, chocolate, dextrose), natural flavor.Vitamins and Minerals: Iron (ferric phosphate), niacinamide, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamin B2 (riboflavin), vitamin B1 (thiamin hydrochloride), folic acid, vitamin D3, vitamin B12.” (source)

Are Cinnamon Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Kellogg’s Cinnamon Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Cinnamon Frosted Flakes.

As you can see, the ingredients are along the same lines as other Frosted Flakes flavors:

Kellogg’s Cinnamon Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Milled corn, sugar, malt flavor, contains 2% or less of salt, cinnamon, natural flavor. vitamins and minerals: iron (ferric phosphate), niacinamide, vitamin b6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamin b2 (riboflavin), vitamin b1 (thiamin hydrochloride), folic acid, vitamin d3, vitamin b12.” (source)

Are Honey Nut Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Kellogg’s Honey Nut Frosted Flakes are not typically considered vegan. They contain honey, sugar, and vitamin D, all of which have ties to animal products. However, some vegans are okay with these “minor” ingredients and are okay with Honey Nut Frosted Flakes.

Besides the honey, the ingredients are similar to other Frosted Flakes flavors:

Kellogg’s Honey Nut Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Milled corn, sugar, honey, malt flavor, contains 2% or less of molasses, salt, natural flavor. Vitamins and Minerals: Iron (ferric phosphate), niacinamide, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamin B2 (riboflavin), vitamin B1 (thiamin hydrochloride), folic acid, vitamin D3, vitamin B12.” (source)

Are Frosted Flakes With Marshmallows Vegan?

Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes With Marshmallows are not considered vegan. They contain gelatin, which is derived from animal skins, joints, and the like. They also contain refined sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients that some vegans avoid.

Besides the marshmallows, the ingredients are similar to other Frosted Flakes flavors:

Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes With Marshmallows Ingredients: “Milled corn, sugar, contains 2% or less of malt flavor, corn syrup, modified corn starch, dextrose, salt, gelatin, natural flavor.Vitamins and Minerals: Iron (ferric phosphate), niacinamide, vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamin B2 (riboflavin), vitamin B1 (thiamin hydrochloride), folic acid, vitamin D3, vitamin B12.” (source)

Are Lucky Charms Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Lucky Charms Frosted Flakes are not considered vegan. They contain gelatin, which is derived from animal skins, joints, and the like. They also contain processed sugar, which is a gray area ingredient that some vegans avoid.

Besides the marshmallows, the ingredients are similar to other Frosted Flakes flavors:

Lucky Charms Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Whole Grain Corn, Sugar, Corn Meal, Corn Syrup, Corn Starch, Contains 2% or less of: Salt, Dextrose, Malt Syrup, Refiner’s Syrup, Gelatin, Baking Soda, Natural and Artificial Flavor, Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 1, Yellow 6. Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols) Added to Preserve Freshness. Vitamins and Minerals: Calcium Carbonate, Iron and Zinc (mineral nutrients), A B Vitamin (niacinamide), Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), Vitamin B2 (riboflavin), A B Vitamin (folic acid).” (source)

Vegan Brands of Frosted Flakes

There are tons of brands that make frosted flakes besides just Kellogg’s. Let’s take a look at each one from a vegan perspective.

Take note that I found three brands without vitamin D:

• Millville Frosted Flakes (Aldi)
• Kroger Frosted Flakes
• Sainsbury’s Frosted Flakes

Are Trader Joe’s Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Trader Joe’s Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Trader Joe’s Frosted Flakes.

No real surprises in the ingredients, as you can see:

Trader Joe’s Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Corn, sugar, glucose syrup (wheat and corn), barley malt extract, salt, mono-and diglycerides of fatty acids, ascorbic acid (vitamin c), nicotinamide (vitamin b3), pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin b6), riboflavin (vitamin b2), thiamine mononitrate (vitamin b1), retinyl acetate (vitamin a), folic acid, cyanocobalamin (vitamin b12), cholecalciferol (vitamin d).” (source)

Are Aldi Frosted Flakes Vegan?

There are multiple brands of frosted flakes you might find in Aldi. Two we’ll cover in this post are Millville and Harvest Morn. Harvest Morn has its own section below, so let’s cover Millville here.

Millville Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar, which is gray area ingredient for many vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Millville Frosted Flakes.

Notably, Millville Frosted Flakes do not contain the vitamin D that is common in most brands of Frosted Flakes.

Millville Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Milled Corn, Sugar, Contains 2% Or Less Of: Corn Syrup, Salt, Barley Malt Extract, Wheat Starch. Vitamins And Minerals: Ferric Orthophosphate (source Of Iron), Niacinamide (vitamin B3), Zinc Oxide (source Of Zinc), Thiamin Mononitrate (vitamin B1), Calcium Pantothenate (a B-vitamin), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (vitamin B6), Folic Acid.” (source)

Are Kroger Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Kroger Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar, which is gray area ingredient for many vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Kroger Frosted Flakes.

Notably, Kroger Frosted Flakes do not contain the vitamin D that is common in most brands of Frosted Flakes.

Kroger Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Milled Corn, Sugar, Contains 2% or Less of: Corn Syrup, Salt, Barley Malt Extract, Wheat Starch. Vitamins and Minerals: Ferric Orthophosphate (Source of Iron), Niacinamide (Vitamin B3), Zinc Oxide (Source of Zinc), Thiamin Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Calcium Pantothenate (A B-vitamin), Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Folic Acid.” (source)

Are Tesco Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Tesco Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Tesco Frosted Flakes.

Again, no real surprises in the ingredients:

Tesco Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Maize, Sugar, Dextrose, Salt, Barley Malt Extract, Iron, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Vitamin B6, Riboflavin, Thiamin, Folic Acid, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12.” (source)

Are Sainsbury’s Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Sainsbury’s Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar, which is a gray area ingredient for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Sainsbury’s Frosted Flakes.

Notably, Sainsbury’s Frosted Flakes do not contain the vitamin D that is common in most brands of Frosted Flakes.

Sainsbury’s Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Maize (71%), Sugar, Salt, Barley Malt Extract, Niacin, Vitamin E, Ferric Diphosphate, Pantothenic Acid, Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Thiamin, Folic Acid, Vitamin B12.” (source)

Are Asda Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Asda Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Asda Frosted Flakes.

No real surprises in the ingredients:

Asda Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Maize, Sugar, Salt, Malted Barley Extract, Vitamin and Mineral Mix [Iron, Niacin (B3), Pantothenic Acid (B5), Vitamin B6, Riboflavin (B2), Thiamin (B1), Folic Acid (B9), Vitamin D, Vitamin B12].” (source)

Are Harvest Morn Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Harvest Morn Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Harvest Morn Frosted Flakes.

No real surprises in the ingredients, as you can see:

Harvest Morn Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Maize, Sugar, Dextrose, Salt, Barley Malt Extract, Iron, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Vitamin B6, Riboflavin, Thiamin, Folic Acid, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12.” (source)

Are Morrisons Frosted Flakes Vegan?

Morrisons Frosted Flakes are typically considered vegan. However, they contain sugar and vitamin D, which are gray area ingredients for vegans. Therefore, some vegans prefer to avoid Morrisons Frosted Flakes.

No surprises in the ingredients, yet again:

Morrisons Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Maize, Sugar, Salt, Barley Malt Extract, Iron, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid (B5), Vitamin B6, Riboflavin (B2), Thiamin (B1), Folic Acid, Vitamin D, Vitamin B12.” (source)

Are Annie’s Frosted Oat Flakes Vegan?

Annie’s Frosted Oat Flakes are vegan. The cane sugar is organic, so we know it was not filtered with bone char. Additionally, it does not contain fortified vitamin D, as many brands of frosted flakes do.

As you can see, these flakes are quite a bit different from your typical frosted flakes:

Annie’s Frosted Flakes Ingredients: “Whole Grain Oats* Whole Grain Wheat*, Cane Sugar*, Tapioca Syrup*, Sea Salt, Natural Flavor*. Mixed Tocopherols (Vitamin E) To Protect Flavor. *Organic Ingredients.” (source)

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