What is the difference between vegan cosmetics and non-animal cosmetics?

Sustainable beauty

Using animal-friendly products is much easier than it seems.

Alba TarragoBarcelona

The beauty industry has been causing animal abuse due to the use of both rabbits and mice and monkeys to test cosmetic products and know their possible results. Fortunately, more and more firms are dissociating themselves from these traditional procedures and are committed to production free of animal suffering.

That's why labels like 'organic', 'vegano', 'ecological' or 'cruelty free' frequently appear on makeup packs and facial care products. But which of these characteristics is truly respectful of animals?

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Vegan is not synonymous with 'cruelty free'

In order for any cosmetic product to be considered 'vegan', it must not contain any ingredients of animal origin, or derived from them, such as lactic acids or honey. A slightly less demanding category is that of 'vegetarian', which assumes that the product cannot contain any part of the animal, but it does contain ingredients produced by them.

On the other hand, a cosmetic classified as' cruel free', that is, free of animal abuse, depends on other factors. For this purpose, both the final product and all the ingredients it contains cannot have been tested on animals. But the responsibility lies not only with the brand that markets the cosmetic, but also with third companies hired only to carry out part of the production. If any of these uses animals to test their ingredients, then they cannot receive the label 'cruelty free'.

It is also possible that the firm that commercializes the product may not test on animals, but that it is part of a larger company with other brands that do. And, if we go even further, it would be convenient to pay attention to the market for the sale of its products. For example, cosmetics sold in China are legally required to be tested on animals. Thus, any brand that in Europe claims to be 'cruel free' loses that category by entering the Chinese market for sale.

While obtaining ingredients from animals does not have to lead to suffering for animals, the fact of testing them is considered an act of cruelty according to organizations such as PETA (Persons for ethical Treatment of animals). The truth is that this procedure has become totally unnecessary. Today it is not only possible to have new mechanisms that allow us to know the effects of an ingredient-such as replicas of animal tissue-but there is also a large list of ingredients catalogued as "safe" that have already been tested. Still, many firms tend to try these ingredients again, either out of ignorance or because they test the final product.

Animal friendly cosmetic marks

At first glance, it may seem difficult to find out if a brand is free of animal cruelty and what ingredients it uses to produce its products. But thanks to initiatives such as Cruelty Free Kitty, it is already possible to have lists of brands that test on animals as well as those that are 'cruel free' or 'vegans'. Both on this website, created by an animal rights activist, and through PETA or Leaping Bunny, it is possible to search directly for a cosmetics company and to know its position on it.

The Body Shop has become one of the most dedicated firms in this struggle, along with Lush, who actively denounce animal experimentation. The Body Shop firm has collected a total of eight million signatures this year in 2018 to bring this issue to debate at the United Nations. Although the testing of animals for cosmetic purposes in the European Union has been banned since 2013, there are still countries such as the United States or Canada that continue to allow these procedures. In addition to these two British firms, there are many more companies that dispense with animal abuse and which it is possible to continue buying without remorse of conscience.

Among them is the Italian Kiko, although not all of its products are 100% 'vegans'. NYX, one of the top brands for its value for money, is also considered 'cruel free' thanks to certificates such as those of PETA. Two of the low cost lines that are also free of animal suffering are essence and Catrice, which are part of Cosnova. Within the more professional field of makeup, there are also firms-such as Kat Von D or Urban decay-who are betting on an untested cosmetics on animals.