Tostitos is a brand that belongs to Frito-Lay, an American subsidiary of PepsiCo.
According to what I’ve seen on the Tostitos website, there are no mentions of the word “vegan” anywhere but based on the nature of their products, you’re bound to find something.
They are known for producing tortilla chips and a wide range of accompanying dips.
Amidst 17 variations of chips and 14 variations of dips— there is a mix of vegan and non-vegan choices, which we’ll examine closely in this blog post.
So, without further ado, let’s start by looking at which tostitos chips are vegan.
Which Tostitos Chips Are Vegan?
The core ingredients in Tostitos’ tortilla chips are corn, vegetable oil, and salt.
However, there are some variations of chips that contain animal ingredients, among them ingredients such as sour cream, buttermilk, whey protein concentrate, and other derivatives.
Here is a table with the vegan status on Tostitos’ tortilla chips:
| Flavor: | Status: | Non-vegan ingredients: |
|---|---|---|
| Scoops | Vegan | N/A |
| Multigrain Scoops | Vegan | N/A |
| Baked Scoops | Vegan | N/A |
| Original Restaurant Style | Vegan | N/A |
| Lightly Salted | Vegan | N/A |
| Hint of Lime | Not Vegan | Sour Cream, Whey |
| Hint of Jalapeño | Not Vegan | Sour Cream, Whey |
| Roasted Red Pepper | Not Vegan | Sour Cream, Skim Milk, Whey Protein Isolate, Milk Protein Concentrate, Lactose, And Buttermilk |
| Black Bean & Garlic | Vegan | N/A |
| Organic Blue Corn | Vegan | N/A |
| Cantina Thin & Crispy | Vegan | N/A |
| Cantina Traditional | Vegan | N/A |
| Strips | Vegan | N/A |
| Bite Size | Vegan | N/A |
| Crispy Rounds | Vegan | N/A |
| Sabritas Salsa Verde | Not Vegan | Whey |
| Sabritas Salsa Ranchera | Not Vegan | Natural Flavors contain milk |
Most of the tortilla chips contain ingredients that most strict vegans consider to be questionable.
These may or may not be vegan based on different factors, but the usual suspects remain the same: refined sugar, natural flavors, artificial flavors, and artificial colors.
Which Tostitos Dips Are Vegan?
Akin to the tortilla chips, you can also find vegan and non-vegan variations among the dips.
Here is a table with both, as well as associated non-vegan ingredients:
| Flavor: | Status: | Non-vegan ingredients: |
|---|---|---|
| Chunky Salsa (Medium) | Vegan | N/A |
| Chunky Salsa (Mild) | Vegan | N/A |
| Restaurant Style Salsa (Medium) | Vegan | N/A |
| Splash of Lime Flavored Chunky Salsa | Vegan | N/A |
| Roasted Garlic Chunky Salsa (Medium) | Vegan | N/A |
| Chunky Habanero Salsa (Hot) | Vegan | N/A |
| Organic Chunky Medium Salsa | Vegan | N/A |
| Avocado Salsa | Not Vegan | Whey Protein Concentrate |
| Salsa Con Queso (Medium) | Not Vegan | Nonfat Milk, Monterey Jack Cheese |
| Smooth and Cheesy Dip | Not Vegan | Monterey Jack Cheese, Buttermilk, Cheddar Cheese, Whey Protein |
| Queso Blanco Dip (Medium) | Not Vegan | Monterey Jack Cheese, Cheddar Cheese, Whey, Buttermilk, Milk Protein Concentrate |
| Southwest Cheese & Corn Dip | Not Vegan | Monterey Jack Cheese, Butter, Milk Protein Concentrate |
| Fiesta Bean & Cheese Dip | Not Vegan | Nonfat Milk, Monterey Jack Cheese, Cheddar Cheese |
| Cream Spinach Dip | Not Vegan | Whey Protein Concentrate |
Among the vegan options, you’re also able to find “questionable” ingredients that may not be in alignment with the preferences of stricter vegans.
Some questionable ingredients present in dips are refined sugar and natural flavors.
What do you mean by Questionable Ingredients?
Questionable ingredients are basically any and every ingredient that may be associated with animal suffering, and which stricter vegans stand heavily against.
These ingredients are usually:
Refined sugar: There is no mistake that sugar is a plant-based ingredient. However, certain sugar companies in the United States use a decolorizing and deashing agent called bone char, which is essentially obtained by carbonizing the bone of cattle. Feel free to learn more about it here.
Natural flavors: The term “natural flavors” is used to describe any plant or animal-based ingredient that can be used in foods. In other words, “natural flavors” can be a non-vegan ingredient, but companies are not required to reveal its source.
For example, if you check the Salsa Ranchera variety, the “natural flavor” actually contains milk. That information is available on that specific product’s page. Learn more about it here.
Artificial Ingredients: Before artificial ingredients are deemed safe to be used in products, they first need to be tested. Unfortunately, those tests are typically conducted on animals, which is obviously something most people in the vegan community are against.
Take artificial colors, for instance. Artificial colors are periodically tested because of their seemingly unending ‘potential’ health problems. Here are two tests conducted in 2017 and 2018.
These aren’t the only “shady” ingredients that pop up on labels from time to time, but these happen to be the most common in products that don’t promote themselves as being vegan.
Summary: Not All Tostitos Chips & Dips Are Vegan.
Not all Tostitos products are vegan, but there are plenty of Tostitos’ chips and dips that are suitable for vegans, especially the unflavored chips and the salsa dips.
To summarize everything, here’s a list of the vegan tortilla chips:
- Scoops
- Multigrain Scoops
- Baked Scoops
- Original Restaurant Style
- Lightly Salted
- Black Bean & Garlic
- Organic Blue Corn
- Cantina Thin & Crispy
- Cantina Traditional
- Strips
- Bite-Size
- Crispy Rounds
And here is a list with every vegan dip:
- Chunky Salsa (Medium)
- Chunky Salsa (Mild)
- Restaurant Style Salsa (Medium)
- Splash of Lime Flavored Chunky Salsa
- Roasted Garlic Chunky Salsa (Medium)
- Chunky Habanero Salsa (Hot)
- Organic Chunky Medium Salsa
Keep in mind that some of these vegan products contain some of the “questionable” ingredients we’ve covered earlier. So, if you’re a stricter vegan, some of these options may be off-limits.
FAQs
Are Tostitos gluten-free?
Fortunately, Frito Lay has published a list of gluten-free products, which include the following Tostitos products:
- TOSTITOS® Baked Scoops!® Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Bite Size Rounds Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Cantina Thin & Crispy Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Cantina Traditional Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Crispy Rounds Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Lightly Salted Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Original Restaurant Style Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Reduced Fat Crispy Rounds Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Scoops!® Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Simply Organic Blue Corn Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Simply Organic Yellow Corn Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Strips Tortilla Chips
- TOSTITOS® Thick & Hearty Rounds Tortilla Chips
However, keep in mind that this list only applies to products sold in the United States and that recipes may change from country to country, and thus the Tostitos may not be gluten-free elsewhere.
