The Real Reason Vegetarians Shouldn't Eat Campbell's Vegetable Soup

There's a laundry list of odd foods that you have to avoid if you're a strict vegetarian. Worcestershire sauce is a no-go since it's got anchovies as one of its main ingredients. Jello is made of gelatin, created from boiled animal skin, hooves, and bones (via Kitchen Treaty). Even some wines and beers are filtered with a substance called isinglass, which comes from the swim bladders of fish (via Mother Nature Network). And of course, that's just if you're vegetarian. If you're vegan, that's opening up another can of worms entirely (not that vegans eat worms), and you might feel like your entire life is spent reading food labels.

But if you're a vegetarian, there's another seemingly innocuous food that you're going to have to add to the list of ones to avoid: Campbell's vegetable soup.

Although Campbell's soup is a staple in many households in the winter months, and it's often considered to be quite a nostalgic food, vegetarians aren't going to like the fact that beef broth figures prominently in the recipe.

It's not even a minor ingredient that adds depth to a more prominent vegetable broth. Beef broth is actually the first ingredient in Campbell's vegetable soup. And, sorry vegetarians, it's not the only soup that Campbell's makes that is loaded with beef broth. Their version of French onion soup also lists beef broth as the first ingredient. 

Of course, it's not as if Campbell's is trying to hide the fact that there is an animal product in the soup. The ingredient is listed there in black and white on the label in capital letters "Old Fashioned Vegetable—MADE WITH BEEF STOCK." It's just that one might assume a vegetable soup, was, well, vegetarian-friendly.

But all is not lost if you've become a vegetarian since the last time you slurped down this yummy soup, and you're looking to give it another go. Campbell's also offers a vegetarian vegetable soup, which has water as its first ingredient.