Cruelty Free Certifications – what do all these bunnies mean?
Unfortunately, there’s no concrete definition for ‘cruelty-free’. So it’s really helpful to have certifications that set a standard for brands who want to be cruelty-free. In this post we’ll be going through the different certifications, which all certify slightly different versions of ‘cruelty-free’.
For a little run down on what cruelty-free means and why it’s so complicated, this video will be really helpful:
Why are certifications so important?
An increasing number of shoppers are concerned about whether or not their products are being tested on animals. This means that being cruelty-free is not just an ethical choice for companies, it’s now a profitable choice. Because of this more companies are self-declaring that they’re cruelty-free without any third party assurances or accreditations. This is why certifications are important – they verify these claims.
Leaping Bunny
Leaping Bunny by Cruelty Free International is typically considered the gold standard. It is the only internationally recognised symbol that guarantees that no new animal tests were used in the development of any product displaying it. Companies with the leaping bunny logo open themselves to independent audits and renew their commitments each year. This certification evaluates cruelty-free at a company level.
PETA
Beauty Without Bunnies by PETA is another leading cruelty-free certification. Their Beauty Without Bunnies programme requires brands to submit a statement confirming that they’re cruelty-free. It’s a little more lax than the Leaping Bunny certification – brands aren’t subjected to independent audits (which are an effective way of verifying cruelty-free claims).
They can be pretty helpful with their bunny logos, there’s one version (the one below) which let’s you know that a product is both vegan and cruelty free, and a second version which just says ‘cruelty free’.
Additionally, PETA has a different approach to brands selling in China: some products are able to bypass pre-market animal testing, but there’s still a slim chance of post-market animal testing. PETA, unlike many cruelty-free shoppers and other certifications, think this risk is so minimal that brands can be cruelty-free whilst selling some products in China. This is why you can see their certification on brands like Herbal Essences, Dove and Aussie. I personally wouldn’t consider this to be cruelty-free, so if I see the PETA logo on a brand that surprises me, I do an extra google to see if there’s more to the story.
PETA also evaluates cruelty-free at a company level.
Choose Cruelty Free
Choose Cruelty-Free is an Australian based certification, so it’s less commonly seen here in the UK. Their certification is very similar to Leaping Bunny but also requires the parent company to be cruelty-free and for the brand to have been cruelty-free for at least 5 years.
Vegan Trademark
Vegan Trademark is a logo which assures the consumer that the product is vegan. So what does this mean when you see it on a beauty product? It means that the product is made without animal derived ingredients (ie vegan) and that the product is cruelty-free. This does not necessarily mean that the brand is cruelty-free.
For example, early 2020 the Vegan Trademark was awarded to a Colgate toothpaste as the product was vegan and cruelty-free, despite Colgate not being cruelty-free.
Are certifications essential?
Beyond all this, cruelty-free certifications aren’t the be all, end all. For example, Lush – a company famed for its animal-rights – is not certified cruelty-free. Instead they have thorough in-house policies and exercise transparency. Additionally, plenty of small businesses with core vegan ethics aren’t able to afford the cost of a cruelty-free certification so early in their journey.
Lately, I’ve tried to exercise more transparency when talking about brands being cruelty-free on Instagram. So I’ve started to mention if brands have any certifications. However, I got a very good question through this morning: ‘You keep promoting products that say that they’re cruelty free but not certified so if they’re not certified how do you know that they’re cruelty free?’
When I share a brand and say that they’re ‘cruelty free (not certified)’ it just means that the brand has answered cruelty-free questions (do you test on animals, do your suppliers test, do you sell in China, etc) and the responses indicate that they’re cruelty-free. However, they have no certifications to back these claims up. Hope that clears things up a little bit!