Are fruit snacks vegan? Plus, 10 healthy brands to try

Whether you’re a kid or an adult, we can practically all agree that fruit snacks are delicious. They’re sweet, chewy, colorful, they come in fun shapes, and they’re generally travel-friendly. Honestly what’s not to love? But, some may contain animal products. Here’s how to find the best vegan fruit snacks.

Are fruit snacks vegan?

Fruit snacks are not always vegetarian. Gelatin, a tasteless, colorless food additive often used in gummies, is made from animal collagen. It is obtained by boiling ligaments and bones, usually from pigs or cows. However, some food manufacturers use pectin as a substitute for gelatin. It is a type of starch obtained from fruits or vegetables. It gives jams and jellies their wobbly texture and is often used as a thickening agent in candies and snacks like gum.

Other than gelatin, fruit foods are unlikely to contain animal-derived ingredients—not even red dyes like carmine, which is extracted from certain types of female scale insects. Most alternatives rely on fruit juice to add color. Some may contain carnauba wax, a common ingredient used in candy making that provides shape and texture. Don’t worry, it doesn’t come from bees. This vegetable wax is harvested from the leaves of various palm trees that are only native to Brazil. It is also called the “Queen of Wax” due to its multiple uses.

10 Vegan Fruit Snacks to Keep in Your Pantry

No matter your age, these vegan fruit snacks will be a welcome addition to your grocery store. Some are like gummy candy while others are more minimally processed, relying only on fruits and vegetables. Here are some of our top picks.

Annie’s

1 Annie’s Organic Rabbit Fruit Snacks

These chewy, bunny-shaped fruit treats are made from organic fruit juice and sweetened with rice syrup and cane sugar. Each pack is made with strawberry, raspberry and cherry flavored gummies—without artificial colors. Or, try the tropical blend, which includes orange, mango-peach and tropical punch to put the sun on your face.
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YumEarth

2 YumEarth Organic Vegan Fruit Snacks

Need an allergen-friendly fruit snack? YumEarth makes this organic meal without peanuts, tree nuts, gluten, and soy, instead using rice syrup, organic cane sugar, and fruit juice concentrate. Fruit shaped flavors in this pack include banana, strawberry, cherry and peach. It also comes in a tropical variety pack that contains a combination of mango, pineapple and rajmatz berry.
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singly

3 Exclusively organic fruit gummies

Made with whole, organic fruit; Vitamin C; And with no added sugar, only organic fruit gummies are a healthy alternative to sweet snacks. The brand uses minimal ingredients, letting the fruit’s natural flavors shine through in tropical options like mango and orange, mango and guava, and just mango. These bite-sized treats have a soft, chewy texture without any gelatin. Also, one pouch contains the equivalent of a single serving of fruit.
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Stretch Island

4 Stretchy island fruit leather

The advantage of getting this fruit leather variety pack is that you can try all the flavors: cherry, apple, strawberry, apricot, grape and raspberry. Each has a base made from apple puree in addition to real fruit juice. At 50 calories or less per serving, these make for a great pick-me-up whenever you’re feeling peckish, but not hungry enough for something a little more filling.
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the bear

5 Bear Fruit Rolls

Bear’s Fruit Rolls are like a healthy take on taupe candy. Instead of being made from corn syrup, they are made with real fruit that is slowly dried, then hand-rolled into the final product. Free from gluten and nuts, flavors include strawberry lemon, apple, mango and raspberry.
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Pure organic

6 Pure organic layered fruit bar

Each flavor in Pure Organic’s Layered Fruit Bar lineup is a combination of two complementary flavors. You have tart raspberry lemonade, fruity-floral strawberry banana and tangy pineapple passionfruit. And, these chewy vegan snacks are made from an apple puree base that’s rounded out with fruit concentrate. We like to have a variety of packs to choose from so we’re not stuck with just one flavor.
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kiss

7 Bite the chum fruit

These plant-based fruit snacks are made from fruit puree that’s baked to remove water content, then formed into bite-sized, chewy little triangles—no added sugar required. Flavors include mango, peach, apple, blackberry and strawberry, all of which can be sampled in a convenient variety pack. According to the brand, 15 percent of profits are donated to WildAid, an environmental nonprofit focused on wildlife protection and conservation efforts.
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You love fruit

8 You love fruit

Described as “peel and eat fruit,” this fruit snack comes in the form of tiny dots that you can snack on at your leisure to get your sugar fix. Instead of apples, these plant-based dots are made from the root of a mango, along with other fruits and vegetables, and contain no added sugars or waxes. Flavor options include kiwi with greens, cherry mango, apple cinnamon and mango coconut.
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Mutts

9 Nuts Fruit Snacks

This super-mainstream brand is free of gelatin—hooray! It is made from a mixture of corn syrup and real fruit juice concentrate. And, it comes in a variety of flavor combinations such as assorted fruits, berries and tropical fruits. We love that this is a vegetarian option that you can find at virtually any mainstream grocery store.
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Bob the snail

10 Bob Snail Fruit Roll Up

These sweet, chewy vegan fruit roll-ups are made with minimal ingredients and no added sugar. The strawberry-mango flavor is made with just strawberries and mango, the apple-blueberry is made with just apples and blueberries … you get the idea. Great for kids and adults alike, these fruit snacks are perfect for travel, work snacks, and school lunches.
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