What Lindt Chocolate Is Vegan?
Important Note: When you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Content, pricing, offers and availability are subject to change at any time - more info.
Many non-vegans are under the impression that vegans don’t like conventional foods, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. There’s a reason why vegans often look for substitutes and alternatives to the real thing.
A perfect example of this is chocolate. Like many people, vegans love a good chocolate bar, too. This brings us to today’s discussion. Most vegans know that there are chocolate brands out there that cater to the vegan lifestyle.
But one brand in particular is getting a lot of attention from vegans, and that is Lindt. The famous chocolate maker produces some of the tastiest chocolates around, so it makes sense that vegans want to know if Lindt offers any vegan-friendly chocolates.
That’s exactly what we plan to share with you today. So read to learn more about Lindt and whether they produce vegan chocolates.
What Is Lindt Chocolate?
Get ready for a mouthful. Lindt is the shortened version of the company’s actual name, Chocoladefabriken Lindt & Sprüngli AG. A Swiss company, Lindt has been around nearly 200 years and is famous for creating some of the finest chocolates on the planet, from chocolate bars to truffles and more.
Since its inception in 1845, Lindt has gone to acquire many other notable chocolate companies, such as Hofbauer Österreich, Ghirardelli, and Russell Stover. With 12 factories and more than 410 chocolate shops around the world, Lindt continues to control a sizable portion of the chocolate industry.
With so much rich history behind it, we are hopeful that Lindt offers vegan-friendly chocolates. Let’s take a closer look at some of the various chocolates that Lindt produces. We’ll examine each of their ingredients to determine if any are vegan.
Dark Chocolate 100% Cocoa Excellence Bar
Ingredients:
- Cocoa powder (processed with alkali)
- Cocoa butter
- Chocolate
As a 100% cocoa bar, this dark chocolate product is void of any other additives or ingredients. As such, it is perfectly vegan in every way.
Dark Chocolate 99% Cocoa Excellence Bar
Ingredients:
- Fat-reduced cocoa powder
- Dry cocoa solids
- Demerara sugar
- Cocoa butter
- Cocoa solids
- Cocoa mass
Considering the amount of cocoa in this chocolate, it’s not surprising to learn that it’s vegan. Generally, whenever there is more cocoa, the chocolate doesn’t taste as sweet. But it also means that there’s a good chance it is vegan, and that is the case here.
Dark Chocolate 95% Cocoa Excellence Bar
Ingredients:
- Cocoa powder (processed with alkali)
- Cocoa butter
- Chocolate
- Sugar
Some may find this dark chocolate bar to be rather bitter. Lindt did add some sugar to help improve the taste over the previous dark chocolate entries, however. And like the other two, the Dark Chocolate 95% Cocoa Excellence Bar is vegan.
Dark Chocolate 90% Cocoa Excellence Bar
Ingredients:
- Low-fat cocoa powder
- Cocoa butter
- Cocoa mass
- Vanilla
- Sugar
Lindt added both vanilla and more sugar to its Dark Chocolate 90% Cocoa Excellence Bar to give it a more pleasing taste. And once again, the ingredients prove that this dark chocolate bar is vegan-friendly.
Lindt also makes vegan-friendly Dark Chocolate 85%, 78%, and 70% Cocoa Excellence Bars. But we’ll skip them for the sake of time and move on to some other Lindt offerings.
Dark Chocolate No Sugar Added Lindt Bar
Ingredients:
- Soy lecithin (emulsifier)
- Artificial flavor
- Cocoa powder
- Cocoa butter
- Chocolate
- Maltitol
- Milk
As you can see from the ingredients, the addition of milk places the Dark Chocolate No Sugar Added Lindt Bar squarely in non-vegan territory.
Hazelnut Les Grandes Dark Chocolate Bar
Ingredients:
- Anhydrous milk fat
- Cocoa butter
- Soya lecithin
- Cocoa mass
- Flavorings
- Hazelnuts
- Sugar
The addition of anhydrous milk fat disqualifies Lindt’s Hazelnut Les Grandes Dark Chocolate Bar from being vegan-friendly. Of course, milk products are typical in dark chocolate that has a lower cocoa content.
Roasted Hazelnut Excellence Dark Chocolate Bar
Ingredients:
- Artificial flavor
- Cocoa butter
- Soya lecithin
- Chocolate
- Hazelnuts
- Milkfat
- Sugar
Lindt’s Roasted Hazelnut Excellence Dark Chocolate Bar is virtually identical to the Hazelnut Les Grandes Dark Chocolate Bar. The only difference is the addition of roasted hazelnuts. As such, this dark chocolate bar is non-vegan.
A Touch of Sea Salt Excellence Bar (Dark Chocolate)
Ingredients:
- Artificial flavor
- Cocoa butter
- Soya lecithin
- Chocolate
- Sea salt
- Milkfat
- Sugar
Lindt added milkfat to its Dark Chocolate Touch of Sea Salt Excellence Bar to help give it a creamier texture. Thus, the addition of a milk ingredient makes this one non-vegan, as well.
Blackberry with Acai Dark Bar (Chocolate Excellence)
Ingredients:
- Natural and artificial flavors
- Blackberry pieces
- Cocoa butter
- Soya lecithin
- Acai powder
- Chocolate
- Milkfat
- Sugar
It’s nice to see some plant-based ingredients, but the addition of milkfat unfortunately disqualifies the Blackberry with Acai Excellence Bar from being vegan-friendly.
Dark Chocolate 70% Cocoa Madagascar Excellence Bar
Ingredients:
- Cocoa butter
- Cocoa mass
- Vanilla
- Sugar
We’re back on track with the Dark Chocolate 70% Cocoa Madagascar Excellence Bar. There are no milk-based ingredients — or other non-vegan ingredients — to keep this bar from being vegan.
Dark Chocolate 75% Cocoa Ecuador Excellence Bar
Ingredients:
- Natural flavor
- Cocoa butter
- Cocoa mass
- Soy lecithin
- Sugar
You get a bit more cocoa in this Ecuador Bar compared to the Madagascar Bar. And since there are no animal products in the ingredients, it’s purely vegan.
So, Is Lindt Chocolate Vegan?
Yes, but only a select few Lindt Chocolates are vegan. There were a few more chocolate bars that we omitted solely to save time. But they, too, contained milk-based ingredients that made them non-vegan.
To ensure that you avoid Lindt’s non-vegan offerings, always check the ingredients before you buy. It’s interesting to note that Lindt (and other chocolate companies) generally add only a small amount of milk product to their chocolates to give them a creamier texture.
And because it’s such a minuscule amount, we wonder why they don’t replace the milk with a plant-based alternative in more varieties. As it stands, though, you can get vegan-friendly chocolates from Lindt, limited as they may be.
Is Lindt Chocolate a Good Choice for Vegans?
Lindt is a company that produces high-quality chocolates. Even though they offer only a small selection of vegan products, it’s nice to see that vegans can enjoy their fine chocolates, too. As such, we’re pleased to add Lindt to our list of vegan-friendly companies.
For more vegan news and insights, click on over to our info page.
