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Ingredient dictionary

Sourdough on a food label: allergens, diets and other names

Sourdough is a kind of dough. Some kinds of sourdough carry an allergen (gluten). Whether it is vegan depends on how it was made. Open Food Facts finds it in 7,132 products, most often in bread.

By Bravoora teamUpdated 13 October 2026Sources checked 13 October 20264 sourcesHow we check

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Does sourdough contain an allergen?

It depends on the kind. Some kinds of sourdough carry an allergen: wheat sourdough, rye sourdough and whole rye sourdough contain gluten. A label must name the allergen, so check which kind it says.

Is sourdough vegan?

It depends on the make. Some kinds of sourdough are made with an animal product and a label rarely says which, so a vegan profile gets Heads up. It is vegetarian.

VeganHeads upSome kinds are made with an animal product, and a label rarely says which.

VegetarianFits youNot meat or fish.

Coeliac or gluten-freeHeads upSome kinds contain gluten, for example wheat sourdough.

A pack can differ from the usual recipe: the app reads the label in your hand.

What other names does sourdough have on a label?

In English sourdough can also read “sour dough”, “sourdough starter” or “sour dough starter”. On European labels it is “levain” in French, “Sauerteig” in German and “Masa madre” in Spanish. The other 10 languages are listed below.

In Englishsour doughsourdough startersour dough starter

French: levain, levain naturel
German: Sauerteig
Spanish: Masa madre
Dutch: zuurdesem, zuurdeeg
Portuguese: massa lêveda, massa fermentada
Polish: Zakwas chlebowy, zakwas
Swedish: surdeg
Danish: surdej
Norwegian: surdeig
Finnish: taikinajuuri, taikinanjuuri
Czech: Kvásek
Hungarian: Kovász
Croatian: kiselo tijesto

Which foods contain sourdough?

Open Food Facts lists sourdough or a more specific kind of it in the ingredients of 7,132 products, most often bread, pastries and pizzas, pies and quiches. Most of them are sold in France, Germany and Switzerland.

Bread3,335
Pastries1,116
Pizzas, pies and quiches527
Sandwiches374
Savoury snacks142
Biscuits and cakes92

Products with it, by country of sale: France 3,614 · Germany 1,352 · Switzerland 380 · United States 347.

Counted on 13 October 2026 from the Open Food Facts product database, which volunteers fill from real packs: it shows where sourdough turns up, not how much of the market it is.

What kind of ingredient is sourdough?

Sourdough is a kind of dough.

Kinds of sourdoughWheat sourdough Rye sourdough Natural sourdough Dehydrated sourdoughDevitalised sourdoughRice sourdoughSpelt sourdoughInactive sourdoughScalding and sourdough

Bravoora reads this ingredient for everyone you shop for: an allergy or intolerance, a vegan or vegetarian diet, a calorie or protein goal, and the labels on supplements and skincare too. Build a profile · For dietitians, doctors and trainers

Sources

An allergen is stated only when two of three checks agree: the Open Food Facts record, Bravoora’s label checker, and the ingredient’s own name or family (oat flour is oats, a cheese is milk). Every name where they disagree waits for a person to review it.

Contains information from Open Food Facts, which is made available here under the Open Database License (ODbL). Read the licence · Download this dictionary’s data · How we check

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