Is Gourmet style sardine fillets in mustard & dill sauce, mustard & dill sauce Vegan?

The Ingredient Breakdown

When analyzing a product like Gourmet style sardine fillets in mustard & dill sauce, the first step is to separate the fish from the sauce. Since sardines are fish, the fillets themselves are obviously not vegan. However, the question usually refers to the mustard & dill sauce specifically. Looking at the ingredients list: Herring, water, mustard, soybean oil, modified cornstarch, salt, sugar, acetic acid, tumeric (color), dill, xanthan gum, spices, extractives of tumeric (color) and annatto (color).

The primary non-vegan flag here is hidden in the sugar. In many food processing industries, particularly in North America, white sugar is processed using bone char—charred animal bones—to filter and bleach the sugar crystals. While the sugar itself contains no bone particles, the processing method renders it non-vegan. Unless the manufacturer explicitly states that their sugar is organic, unrefined, or specifically vegan-certified, it remains a gray area.

Fortunately, the sauce avoids other common non-vegan culprits. There is no milk, cream, egg, or gelatin listed. The thickening agents, modified cornstarch and xanthan gum, are derived from plant fermentation and are perfectly vegan. The colors used, tumeric and annatto, are plant-derived pigments. Therefore, the only significant hurdle for a strict vegan is the ambiguity surrounding the sugar.

Nutritional Value

From a nutritional standpoint, the sauce contributes a modest amount of calories and fat to the overall product. The base liquid is water, keeping the calorie density relatively low. The fat content comes primarily from soybean oil, which provides unsaturated fats but adds to the total caloric load. The sugar content, while a vegan concern, also adds a small amount of carbohydrates.

For those monitoring their sodium intake, the presence of salt indicates a standard sodium level typical for canned fish products. The inclusion of acetic acid (vinegar) not only adds tang but acts as a natural preservative. If you are following a low-carb or ketogenic diet, the trace amounts of sugar and cornstarch might be negligible, but for a strict whole-food plant-based diet, the processing of the sugar remains the main nutritional drawback.