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If you are reading this article, there is a good chance that you are a vegan. I know, finding purely vegan food options to align with your daily lifestyle is a lot of work. Especially movie theatre snacks!
Let’s take Cinemark, for example. Cinemark is a popular American movie theatre chain and has uncountable visitors on a daily basis. A significant portion of those people are vegan and also interested in watching a movie with delicious snacks and drinks. But the main question is – is Cinemark popcorn vegan?
Is Cinemark Popcorn Vegan?
To simply answer your question, Cinemark popcorn is not purely vegan. Cinemark themselves acknowledged that their popcorn salt and other flavorings could contain dairy.
Even if you want them to pop a fresh batch of corn without additional salt or other flavorings, it will still be contaminated with trace amounts of salt from the previous batches of popcorn!
While the popcorn kernels and oil used are vegan-friendly, the butter flavoring and salt contain dairy products, making them unsuitable for vegans. Refined sugar is also part of the process, and it contains animal bone char.
Therefore, if you follow a strict vegan diet, it is important to be aware of these ingredients when considering Cinemark popcorn as a snack option.
What Are The Ingredients Used In Cinemark Popcorn?
The buttery goodness of Cinemark popcorn mainly comes from the butter-flavored popcorn oil. This oil is basically canola oil with an artificial butter flavor.
Flavacol or its equivalent is also used, which is a seasoning consisting of fine salt along with artificial flavorings. The yellow hue of the popcorn may come from edible yellow dyes. Highly refined soy oil is also used in a lot of places to add affordable extra flavors. Lastly, refined sugar is used to add a hint of sweetness to certain flavored popcorn.
Are There Any Other Vegan Snack Options At Cinemark? [7]
Apart from popcorn, Cinemark also offers a variety of other plant-based options for some delicious snacking. For example:
- Pretzels (without cheese dip)
- Fruit cups
- Hummus
- Veggie trays
- Sour Patch Kids candy
- Twizzlers candy
- Skittles candy
These options are perfect for those following a vegan lifestyle or seeking healthier snack alternatives.
However, it is always a good idea to double-check with the theatre staff or contact Cinemark directly to confirm the ingredients and preparation methods used for their snacks. You may skip it if you are not a strict vegan and only trying to be healthy, but pure vegans or people with specific dietary needs or preferences must go through the process before consuming anything at movie theatres.
Is Cinemark’s Popcorn Gluten-Free?
Yes, Cinemark’s popcorn is considered gluten-free! Celiac Sprue Association lists popcorn as a gluten-free snack. The Canola Oil used to pop the corn is gluten-free, but people with Celiac Disease may experience a laxative effect.
Is Cinemark Popcorn Cruelty Free?
Even though Cinemark popcorn is not vegan for the butter, salt, and refined sugar they use, the popcorn is cruelty-free!
The popcorn is never tested on animals during its manufacturing and development process. The ingredients used are also cruelty-free, which is a great initiative from the company to make the world a better place for animals.
Does Cinemark Have Any Vegan Options For Drinks?
Cinemark theaters do offer some vegan-friendly drink options. You can consider fountain drinks like Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Sprite, etc., which are vegan. Moreover, you can request for non-dairy milk alternatives to make a customized smoothie or a shake!
While the menus don’t explicitly list “vegan” drinks, the fountain sodas, some juices, and bottled waters appear to be suitable vegan drink choices at Cinemark theaters. Nonetheless, it is best to double check ingredients for any smoothies, shakes or specialty drinks if you need a vegan option.
Does Cinemark Use Real Butter On Popcorn?
Popular movie theater chains like Cinemark and AMC use artificial butter flavoring for their popcorn. However, they do offer real butter topping (or anhydrous butter) as well if customers separately ask for it.
Recent changes due to a butter supplier issue have led to variations in the type of butter used. Some Cinemark locations have switched to different brands of butter or even oil-based alternatives, instead of using real butter.
This change has caused dissatisfaction among some customers who have noticed differences in the smell and taste of the popcorn due to the altered butter or oil used.
How Many Calories Are In Cinemark’s Popcorn With Butter?
Cinemark’s popcorn with butter varies in calorie content depending on the serving size. Here are some examples:
In general, the calorie content of Cinemark’s butter popcorn depends on the serving size. Let’s break it down to make it simpler for you:
- A Cinemark Theater Popcorn Tub including butter, 3 cups, contains about 137 calories.
- A Cinemark Theater Popcorn Tub including butter, 1 bag, has about 200 calories.
- A Cinemark Theater Medium Popcorn including butter in a bag contains about 470 calories.
These differences in calorie counts are based on different portions or serving sizes of Cinemark’s popcorn with butter.
What Other Movie Theater Snacks Are Vegan?
If you are looking for some other vegan options, AMC and Regal can be some great alternatives.
The popcorn made in these theaters contain coconut oil which is a great vegan-friendly option. Besides, soft pretzels, Sour Patch Kids, Twizzlers, and Swedish Fish are also available for vegan snacking.
Some theaters offer additional vegan-friendly snacks like soda, slushies, vegan cookies, edamame, Starbucks beverages, and even dairy-free pizza options from popular chains.
Conclusion
To sum up, although Cinemark has a nice selection of snacks, their popcorn is not vegan because it contains butter flavoring with dairy and might have cross-contamination with non-vegan ingredients like salt.
But don’t worry, they do offer vegan-friendly alternatives like pretzels, fruit cups, and some candies. If you are particular about your diet, it is best to double-check with the staff or reach out to Cinemark directly to make sure.
And if you are after a totally vegan movie snack experience, you might want to try other theaters that use coconut oil for popcorn, or just bring your own vegan snacks from home.
