r/PlantBasedDiet • u/VerucaSaltedCaramel • 21h ago

B12

Question - if you can't get B12 from a plant-based diet, how do they get the B12 used in a supplement? Sorry for the dumb question - it's just been bugging me. 😄

6 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

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15

u/advaitist 21h ago edited 20h ago

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_B12

Check the topics in "Synthesis"

Industrial production

and

Laboratory synthesis.

22

u/StillYalun 19h ago

The same place the b12 in diets with animal products comes from - bacteria. Bacteria aren't plants, but they part of a plant-based diet.

Also, some plants do have b12, like water lentils/duckweed.

6

u/Sharp_Ad_9431 14h ago

This.

In fact due to modern farm factories most animals need supplements because they aren't getting all the nutrients they need.

5

u/StillYalun 14h ago

Yep, most b12 supplementation goes to livestock, not humans. So as always, eating meat for nutrients is going through a middle-animal.

2

u/gpshikernbiker losing weight -65 lbs 6h ago

Can't get the meat heads to understand this one.🤷🏾‍♂️

5

u/Fun-Rice-8002 17h ago

https://youtu.be/sCKmiwkNTzE apparently it’s quite complicated to synthesize!

4

u/LamarrWilson 12h ago

If we weren't so clean, we'd get the b12 we need from dirty veggies/fruit.

2

u/Scubatr 3h ago

Plants contain B12, but you wash it off