How can you tell if something contains lard?

if you're in The US the label should say if there is lard. It can be also called animal fat.

Also, there are other ingredients that are made from dead animals like Gelatin.

You can find the complete list online!

Lard Ingredients

The most common food where lard is listed in the ingredients list is refried beans, and it is contained in the refried beans at almost all ethnic Mexican restaurants. Many "Mexican American" restaurants such as Baja Fresh use vegetable oil in their beans rather than lard. If it's not posted on their wall, chances are you will receive a different answer each time you ask, so you often can't rely on what the restaurant employees say.

You already know that if you can't find it on the food label, you can sometimes find it online. If not on the company's website then you can email or call the company to ask.

The bottom line is, if there's no label, don't eat it. If you can't get an answer from the company's website or the company, don't eat it. Make your own or take your chances.

It would say "lard" on the ingredients list. For example, the ingredients of Ortega Re fried Beans are: Cooked Pinto Beans, Water, Lard, Salt, Distilled Vinegar, Onion Powder, Spices, Garlic Powder.

A lot of companies substitute hydrogenated vegetable oil or palm oil for lard.

Generally products with lard will have a high fat content. Because you didn't put any examples, it's hard to be more specific. Use frozen or fresh, as apposed to canned, and look at the percentage of fat. Many processed foods have over 20% in the "daily amount" section, and the portion sizes are often ridiculously small so you have to multiply the portion percentage by the number of portions that actually make up a real portion. In addition, watch the sodium. Processed foods always have way too much.

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/index....

Avoid dollar stores, they sell the cheap canned stuff like nobody's business. Lard is melted pigs- it's usually cheap.

Avoid MExican food. Sorry but it's often chock full.

If you aren't sure of labelling, and know that the USA does NOT require full information on labels = you can sell lard infused pinto beans, and simply put "pinto beans" on the label and still be legal.

Crusts and pies-go with scratch making or buy from certified veg company, check the website, labels and google it- type in "lard in Amy's pies?"

Stuff like that, you'll get real people telling you yes or no- often on YA....looks like you've done this.

Ingredients don't have to be labelled- not all of them. I cannot see why any company like Amy's, Barbara's would have lard in them, but not all companies are committed in that way.

If there is lard in it, the ingredients will say so, otherwise in a pie crust it will be marked "vegetable shortening" If it's marked "shortening" it is most likely lard. "Tenderflake" is also made with lard

I like fruits over vegetables because I feel that fruits just feel "fresher" somehow.

It can a vegetable when you buy it and a fruit when you eat it.