Frequently Asked Questions
Why do you add evaporated cane juice to your yogurts?
What are probiotic cultures? Do the WholeSoy yogurts contain probiotic cultures?
Why do you use natural flavors and colors? What do they consist of?
Why do you use #5 plastic yogurt cups and not #2?
Are all of the WholeSoy products made with organic soybeans?
Why do you use the soybean as the basis for all of your products?
Is it healthy to eat soybean products?
Is there any casein, gluten or whey in any of the WholeSoy products?
Have your products been tested by an independent lab for casein, whey and gluten?
What do I do if I suspect I or one of my children has an allergic reaction to one of your products?
What is the dietetic exchange of WholeSoy?
What are the phosphorous and potassium values in WholeSoy Yogurt?
How much probiotic cultures are in a WholeSoy yogurt?Why do you add evaporated cane juice to your yogurts?
We add organic evaporated cane juice to our yogurts because the cultures "feed" on sugar. Cow's milk contains lactose, or milk sugar, but there is very little natural sugar in soymilk. The live cultures that we use feed on the sugar and continue to multiply during production. Through this process, the more complex sugars are reduced to simple sugars.
What are probiotic cultures? Do the WholeSoy yogurts contain probiotic cultures?
Probiotic is a fancy way of describing those living cultures that, when consumed, are beneficial to the intestinal system. Living cultures found in yogurt increase the good bacteria in the digestive tract and are believed to help prevent a host of maladies including diarrhea, constipation, ulcers, infections, high cholesterol, food poisoning, irritable bowel syndrome and lactose intolerance.All of our yogurts contain the following four probiotics: L. Acidophilus, B. Bifidium, L. Bulgaricus and S. Thermophilus. In accordance with our commitment to vegan products, the cultures we use are all grown on a vegetable medium.
Why do you use natural flavors and colors? What do they consist of?
WholeSoy uses natural flavors and colors to ensure consistency of taste, appearance and texture from one batch to the next. The exact ingredients in the flavors are proprietary to the company that produces them, however, all flavors we use are free of animal products, gluten, whey, casein, peanuts, shellfish, tree nuts, eggs, and MSG. The natural colors that we use are Annatto (derived from the pulp around the seeds of a tropical tree, Bixa orellana); Purple Carrot, Purple Sweet Potato and Red Cabbage (common vegetables); and Turmeric (a spice).Why do you use #5 plastic yogurt cups and not #2?
In examining our packaging choices, we found that #5 plastic is much stronger and more lightweight than other plastics. We looked at the "life span" of plastic yogurt cups from manufacturing to disposal and found that #5 plastic requires the fewest resources to manufacture and transport. This examination takes into account both the manufacturing of the cups and how the weight of the plastic affects fuel economy during transportation.Some municipalities do recycle #5 and #2 plastics, but many recycling programs do not recycle any wide-mouthed plastic containers, including #2 yogurt cups. There are a couple options if your town or city does not recycle yogurt cups. Preserve collects #5 yogurt cups and turns the plastic into toothbrush handles. We are also happy to recycle your WholeSoy #5 plastic cups for you. Please thoroughly clean the cups and send them to us by surface mail. It is best to accumulate a number of cups before sending them to us as this reduces the resources used in the shipping process. We will recycle the cups for you and mail you the value of the postage in WholeSoy coupons. Please make sure to include your return address on your package.
Please mail your cups to:
WholeSoy & Co.
Attn: Recycling Program
353 Sacramento Street, Suite 1120
San Francisco, CA 94111
Are all of the WholeSoy products made with organic soybeans?
Yes! We purchase only certified organic soybeans from a Northwestern Texas farm. These beans are grown, handled and processed under strict organic standards and are also grown from GMO-free seeds.
Why do you use the soybean as the basis for all of your products?
The soybean is the most valuable source of protein and oil on our planet. It contains 40% protein and 20% oil. The United States produces over 55% of the world's production of soybeans, but uses less than 6% of them directly as food. Over 90% of the soybeans grown in the United States are pressed for soy oil and the protein is fed to animals.It is inefficient to use soy as an indirect food source for humans. It takes sixteen pounds of vegetable protein to get one pound of beef protein, ten pounds of vegetable protein to get a pound of dairy protein and six pounds of vegetable protein to get a pound of egg protein. It simply makes more sense to convert soy protein directly into human food rather than going through the uneconomical and environmentally harmful process of animal protein production. In addition, the need for water to produce soy protein is one tenth that needed to produce beef or dairy protein.
Is it healthy to eat soybean products?
Many scientific studies validate the belief that it is healthy to eat soy products. On October 26, 1999, after extensive evaluation of scientific research on the health benefits of soy protein, the Food and Drug Administration of the United States published the final rule authorizing a health claim that reads: "25 grams of soy protein a day, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease." Products that contain at least 6.25 grams of soy protein per serving and are low in fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol will be eligible to carry the claim. One 6 oz serving of WholeSoy yogurt provides 6.25 grams of soy protein.
Is there any casein, gluten or whey in any of the WholeSoy products?
No. All of our products are gluten, casein, and whey free.
Have your products been tested by an independent lab for casein, whey and gluten?
Yes. We regularly test our products for casein, whey and gluten (also egg and peanuts) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Food Allergy Research & Resource Program (FARRP).
What do I do if I suspect I or one of my children has an allergic reaction to one of your products?
Save the product in question and call or email our office. We will arrange to have the product sent, at our expense, to FARRP (see above) for testing.
What does Kosher Pareve mean?
Kosher certification insures that all the products, ingredients, and manufacturing processes that we use, from grinding the soybeans to the filling of the product, follow the standards of Jewish dietary laws. Pareve means that the product contains no animal or dairy ingredients and that it is produced and kept separate from dairy products. WholeSoy products are certified Kosher Pareve by the Orthodox Rabbinical Council of San Francisco and our production facilities are regularly inspected by Rabbi Traub. This supervision is another way to insure that WholeSoy products are dairy free.
What is the dietetic exchange of WholeSoy?
The dietetic food exchange system groups foods together that are nutritionally alike. The 6 groups are starch/bread, meat and meat substitutes, vegetables, fruit, milk, and fat. Dietitians have also developed a group known as combination foods. This last group covers foods that may fall into more than one group, like WholeSoy yogurt.The exchange listed below is based on average values and may not be exact. When using these foods in a diabetic/dietetic meal plan, it is most important to check with your own doctor or to consult with a Registered Dietitian.
| WholeSoy Yogurt Diabetic Exchange: |
1 Skim Milk + 1 Starch |
What are the phosphorous and potassium values in WholeSoy Yogurt?
The Phosphorous values for the 6 oz containers are: Apricot-Mango (0 mg), Blueberry (.79 mg), Cherry (.94 mg), Lemon (1.15 mg), Mixed Berry (.21 mg), Peach (.79 mg), Plain (0 mg), Raspberry (1.02 mg), Strawberry (5.89 mg), Strawberry-Banana (.4 mg), Vanilla (0 mg).The Potassium K values for the 6 oz containers are: Apricot-Mango (228.3 mg), Blueberry (202.9 mg), Cherry (212.7 mg), Lemon (209.6 mg), Mixed Berry (291.4 mg), Peach (209.6 mg), Plain (197.4 mg), Raspberry (203.4 mg), Strawberry (208.1 mg), Strawberry-Banana (268.7 mg), and Vanilla (197.4 mg).
How much probiotic cultures are in a WholeSoy yogurt?
Probiotics are measured in CFUs (Colony Forming Units). In a typical 6 oz serving of WholeSoy yogurt there are billions of probiotic CFUs! As with any cultured product, the quantity of viable probiotic cultures will slowly begin to decrease as the product ages. WholeSoy yogurts will still have hundreds of millions of probiotic CFUs even by the end of their shelf life.
