It's an animal product, plain and simple. To base ethics on whether the product is in the critical path for profitability doesn't seem much different from vegan chicken eaters.

Nope. If you eat it I don’t think you can really be a vegetarian. You cannot launder food until it becomes vegetarian. If an animal was killed off for you to consume a product, it is not vegetarian and consuming one won’t make you vegetarian. To me it’s no different than “vegetarians” who still indulge in bacon because it happens to be really tasty.

It is not too late though to give up gelatin based gummy bears and eat ethically the rest of your life.

Or we can choose to reply as sanctimonious radicals. I'm experienced at working that angle too.

If someone only wants to be vegetarian when it’s convenient, they should just say that.