Unlike food items, things like soaps, handwashes, shampoos, cleaners, etc are not required to show a non-veg logo on their labels if they use animal ingredients. Hence a lot of brands get away with it. Even many vegetarians are unaware that many items they use daily contain animal ingredients.
How to identify?
Household items may contain animal derived ingredients like glycerin, cholesterol, beeswax, stearic acid, etc. Check PETA’s list of all animal derived ingredients.
One easy way to ensure that no animal derived ingredients are used is to look for the vegan AND cruelty-free logo on the packaging or on the official website of the product.
In India, some products are vegan and cruelty-free, but it is not mentioned on the packaging, Lookout for the vegetarian logo, then read the ingredient list OR verify the vegan and cruelty-free status on their official website.
You can also use zoobop.com. It is a great tool to find out if a brand is vegan and cruelty-free.
Soaps, Handwashes and Shampoos
Since we kill 80 billion land animals and more than a trillion marine life every year, ingredients like glycerin which are often derived from animals’ bodies are cheaply available to manufacturers.
Common Non-Vegan Brands in this category
- LUX: uses animal derived ingredients. Glycerin and stearic acid come from beef tallow and other animal sources. Milk is also used. Their soaps don’t even have the vegetarian mark. source: lux faqs
- Lifebuoy/Pears/Axe: They do not specify the source of their ingredients. These products do not even have the vegetarian logo. The parent brand Unilever tests on animals through suppliers. source: veganrabbit
- Dettol: Not cruelty-free and the ingredients are questionable. Dettol is a product of Reckitt Benckiser, which has a history of using animals for testing and is involved in child labor. source: dettol faqs, ethically engineered
- Clinic Plus / Dove / Tresamme / L’Oreal / Sunsilk: Can contain animal derived ingredients. Does not have vegan or vegetarian logos.
100% vegan and cruelty free brands:
- Vidhyanjali Ahimsa Soundarya: PETA certified Cruelty-free and Vegan brand. Started with a small setup at Bhopal with a focus on pure organic and handmade-finished products, promoting women’s employment. Our recommendations: Desi Neem Soap, Pure Mint Soap
- Plum Goodness: PETA certified Cruelty-free and Vegan brand. They have a wide range of products.
- MCaffeine: PETA certified Cruelty-free and Vegan brand. PETA certified for being animal test-free.
- Petalca: Their hair wash (shampoo) and hair oil are made from herbal ingredients except for a minimum amount of surfactant. They contain no artificial colors, thickeners or conditioners. Their hair wash can also be used for dogs – makes their fur clean and soft.
- Rustic Art: PETA certified Cruelty-free and Vegan brand. Instead of honey, they use Coconut Nectar which is the sweet sap of coconut trees and incredibly safe even for baby products. Beeswax is replaced with various other waxes like sunflower wax, candelilla wax, etc.
Cruelty free brands with vegan options in this category:
- Medimix: Affordable. All products of this brand are cruelty-free and most products are vegan. It is a vegetarian brand, so some products contain honey, milk, etc. Products that are vegan are mentioned as such on their official website. Our recommendations: Medimix Classic, Medimix Sandal
- Medimix handwash: Affordable. This is an easily available vegan handwash. Our recommendation: Neem tulsi handwash
- Mama Earth: PETA certified cruelty free and most products are vegan. Check the vegan logo before buying.
- Neev Soaps: All Neev products are made from vegetable oils and the purest essential oils. Check the ingredients before buying.
- Khadi Natural Soap: PETA certified cruelty-free brand with vegan options. Some products contain honey, so check the ingredients before buying.
- Wow Body wash: Most products are vegan. Check the vegan logo before buying.
- Soulflower: All their products are PETA approved cruelty-free. Their soaps are also preservative-free and their packaging is environmentally friendly. Some products may contain honey, so check the ingredients before buying.
Toothpastes
Common Vegan and Cruelty-free Toothpastes
Cleaners (Detergents, Dishwash, Floor Cleaners, Toilet Cleaners, etc)
Did you know? Most commercial detergents we use daily are toxic to aquatic life and are a major source of water pollution. We urge you to choose environment-friendly laundry detergents. Read more
Toilet cleaners like harpic are extremely toxic to humans as well as aquatic life with long-lasting effects. Read more
Common Non-Vegan Brands in this category
- Surf Excel/Wheel/Rin: The parent brand Unilever tests on animals and uses animal ingredients. Also, the ingredients are toxic to humans and other life. source: veganrabbit, zoobop
- Tide: Tests on animals. Some of their products contain animal-derived ingredients. source: PETA
- Harpic/Lyzol/Dettol: The parent brand Reckitt Benckiser tests on animals and the ingredients are highly toxic to aquatic life. source: zoobop, cruelty-free kitty, ethically engineered
- Domex: The parent brand Hindustan Unilever tests on animals and the ingredients are not earth-friendly. The ingredients pollute our water sources. source: zoobop
100% Vegan and Cruelty-free Brands
- Ojasya: Natural, non-toxic, and has Bio-Enzymes which are a powerful complex of ‘good’ bacteria and the enzymes they produce to ‘digest’ any wastes, soils, stains, and odors. They offer laundry detergent, floor cleaner, and an all-purpose cleaner
- Rustic Art: PETA certified Cruelty-free and Vegan brand. They offer a variety of laundry soap, liquid laundry, laundry for babies, dish wash concentrate, floor cleaner, multipurpose cleaner, toilet cleaner concentrate, etc.
- Olzin: Vegan and cruelty-free brand. They offer bathroom and toilet cleaner, bio detergent, glass cleaner, dish wash, etc. All their products are biodegradable.
- Happi Planet: Vegan and cruelty-free brand. Their packaging is sustainable and consumers have an option to return empty cartons for recycling. They offer floor cleaners, toilet cleaners, dishwashing liquid, laundry detergent, fabric conditioner, etc.
- Satopradhan: They offer bio enzyme-based cleaners including organic dishwashing liquid, floor cleaners, laundry liquid, multi-purpose cleaner, etc
- Herbal Strategi: PETA certified Cruelty-free and Vegan. Made with natural herbal ingredients, they offer liquid detergent for babies, natural laundry detergent, floor cleaners, toilet cleaner, dishwasher machine detergent, even air fresheners and insect repellants
- Born Good: Vegan, cruelty-free(approved by Leaping Bunny), eco-friendly brand with zero toxins. Their products are safe for everyone including pets. They list all their ingredients and from where they are derived. 1 liter of their detergent can wash 6-8kg of clothes ~25 times making it quite affordable. Born good offers detergents, wrinkle removers, stain removers, floor cleaners, toilet cleaners, surface cleaners, air fresheners, insect repellants, dishwash gel, etc. Available on amazon, flipkart and their official website.
Brands with vegan options:
- Sri Sri Tattva Ujjiyara Popular Detergent Bar
- Awenest Natural Laundry Liquid: Plant based, herbal, and eco-friendly. They offer Floor cleaners, dishwash, all-purpose cleaners, laundry, etc. Do check the packaging for vegan and cruelty-free logos.
- Bunnyhug: They have options for fabric stain remover, and liquid detergent that are vegan and cruelty-free.
Make bio enzymes at home
Bio enzymes are organic cleaners produced by fermenting peels of citrus fruits like oranges, sweet limes, pineapples, and lemons with jaggery and water. It comprises of good bacteria that produce enzymes to digest wastes, stains, soils, and malodors. It is the most cost-effective, zero-waste, and safest solution that can be used as floor cleaner, detergent, toilet cleaner, dishwasher, surface cleaner, etc. It is non-toxic, and does not pollute waters.