If you decided on going cruelty-free in your beauty care products, great! However, you may be clueless about where to begin. Some brands can be a bit hazy about their labeling, and you wouldn’t exactly know if they are indeed cruelty-free. However, investing time for as little as five minutes on research can help you discover if a brand has harmed animals in their production. Some manufacturers such as Jennifer Bradley cruelty-free makeup are straightforward about their process. But for other brands that you may encounter, the following are some things to look for:
Cruelty-free badges
It is typical for some companies to use bunny logos, and you probably find this to be omnipresent nowadays. Not every company finds it necessary to announce that they are cruelty-free on their packaging. Some of them opt out of the cruelty-free logo. With brands such as Jennifer Bradley cruelty-free makeup, you will have an easier time since they explicitly state it. But with a few others, it is important to research their stance on animal testing.
The following are some typical cruelty-free logos:
- Leaping Bunny
Leaping Bunny is one of the largest cruelty-free organizations globally, with hundreds of companies bearing their logo. They are pretty straightforward with their standards. To get a Leaping Bunny certification, companies must affirm that their ingredients aren’t tested on animals or derived from animals. Additionally, Leaping Bunny doesn’t certify companies who sell in countries where animal testing is mandated by law. Leaping Bunny also requires companies to get re-accreditation to keep their cruelty free status.
- Peta
Peta is known worldwide. It is one of the largest animal rights movements in the world. Their cruelty-free logo is easily recognizable, and they have certified thousands of brands. To get a Peta cruelty-free logo, a company must answer a short questionnaire and sign a statement of assurance that verifies that they do not conduct or commission animal testing. Their ingredients and formulations should be cruelty-free now and in the future.
- Choose Cruelty-free
This organization is nonprofit and based in Australia. It has the strictest criteria among the three. Because of this, they have only certified fewer than 300 brands. Their requirements are similar to Leaping Bunny taken a step further. When a brand operates under a large company, it is considered a subsidiary of that parent company. Urban decay is an example of this and is owned by a larger company, L’Oreal.
Both Leaping Bunny and Peta do not require a brand’s parent company to conform to cruelty-free standards. However, Choose Cruelty-free requires it.
Look for animal-derived ingredients
There are probably dozens of derived animal ingredients to watch out for in beauty product labels. The following are some of the most common ones:
- Beeswax
Beeswax is often utilized as a balm for the face area. It is otherwise known as Cera Alba, so make sure to watch out for this labeling. Another crucial thing is that synthetic beeswax isn’t clear because it typically contains lanolin, an animal-derived ingredient. It may also contain trace amounts of real beeswax.
- Carmine
Carmine can be pretty gross. A majority of red blushes, eyeshadows, and lipstick tints get their color from Carmine. The process of obtaining Carmine involves crushing and boiling beetles to extract the components that make them red.
- Lanolin
This is a widely used skin care ingredient that comes from sheep sebum. The sebum components help keep sheep’s wool hydrated. It is a waxy, fatty, and greasy substance, so the beauty industry typically uses it as a moisturizing agent.
- Shellac
Similar to Carmine, shellac comes from bugs. It is utilized in lacquers for nail and hair products.
You want to be beautiful without the guilt. Fortunately, going cruelty-free is easy because the worldwide movements for animal rights have gained traction in recent years. Many brands have transformed how they formulate their products, and you must know what to look for.
Author Bio: Ellen Hollington is a freelance writer who offers ghostwriting, copywriting, and blogging services. She works closely with B2C and B2B businesses providing digital marketing content that gains social media attention and increases their search engine visibility.
