Did Tastykake Quietly Remove Dairy From Tastykrisps?

If you’ve ever written off Tastykake Tastykrisps (or their entire line of products) as not being vegan friendly, you weren’t wrong, until possibly now.

Someone took a closer look at its current packaging and noticed they didn’t contain nonfat milk which had previously been an ingredient. They sent me pix of the 12 count box they bought from Giant supermarket and indeed, there was no longer dairy listed.

So what may be going on? I’ll try and break it down.

Based on the current packaging (see photo above):

✅ No dairy ingredients are listed

There is no nonfat milk, whey, milk powder, butterfat, or lactose in the actual ingredient list.

⚠️ Allergen statement remains

The package still states that the product is manufactured in a facility that also processes milk and eggs, which refers to potential cross-contact, not ingredients.

This distinction is important:

• Cross-contact warnings are for allergy safety
• They do not indicate dairy is used in the product itself

Are they vegan now?

Ingredient-wise, the current package appears to be dairy-free.

However, there are a few important caveats:

• The product is not certified vegan.
• Ingredients like mono- and diglycerides can be plant or animal-derived (though typically plant-based in U.S. snack foods).
• Older product could still be in shelves, so label checking is essential.

Because of this, it’s most accurate to describe current Tastykrisps as vegan friendly or dairy-free based on the package shown, but not officially vegan-certified.

All signs point to this being a quiet recipe change, not a brand-new product.

Here’s why:

• The product name, branding, and format are unchanged.
• There was no announcement, press release, or “new recipe” callout on the packaging.
• Older versions clearly contained dairy.
• Large legacy brands frequently adjust recipes without public notice.

Retailer websites and ingredient databases often lag behind real-world packaging, which explains why conflicting information is still circulating online. At the time of publishing, nearly every major website and retailer listing still shows Tastykrisps as containing nonfat milk, reflecting the older formulation. However, this package recently found at Giant Food shows no dairy ingredients listed at all, only a facility cross-contact warning. This discrepancy strongly suggests that online databases have not yet been updated to reflect a quiet recipe change, which is common with legacy brands like Tastykake. As always, the ingredient label on the package itself is the most reliable source.

Why do brands do this?

This kind of change is more common than many shoppers realize. Brands may remove milk ingredients to:

• simplify sourcing
• reduce allergen complexity
• cut costs
• improve shelf stability

Unless a company is actively targeting vegan consumers, these changes are often made quietly.

I always suggest:

1. Check the ingredient list on your specific package.
2. Look for milk in the allergen or ingredient section.
3. Don’t rely solely on old blog posts or retailer web searches or listings.

If milk is not listed in the ingredients, the product is dairy-free by label standards.

Tastykrisps were not always dairy-free, which explains the confusion.

But based on current packaging, it appears that milk has been removed from the recipe quietly and without fanfare.

This is a great reminder that:

• Ingredients change
• Old “not vegan” lists can become outdated
• Reading the label still matters most

If you want official confirmation, reaching out to the brand directly is the best next step which I will be doing.

Disclaimer

Ingredient information is based on current packaging shown in this post. Always verify labels yourself, as recipes and formulations can change.

Looking for a Tastykake Kandycake copycat recipe? Click here!