Do you know the difference between ‘Organic’, ‘Natural’, ‘Cruelty-free’ and ‘Vegan’ product labels?

If you’re here, it’s because you want to make sure that your products are healthy, natural and free from animal ingredients or cruelty. But labels can be confusing!

Many products these days are labelled as ‘organic’, ‘vegan’, ‘natural’ and ‘cruelty-free’, but do these words really mean what you think they mean? Has a particular brand interpreted them the same way you would? What about all those ‘natural’ products that are anything but? Does ‘cruelty-free’ mean the product is vegan? You would hope so, (otherwise it’s likely not really ‘cruelty’ free after all!), but is this always the case?
What’s more, when it comes to cosmetics, there are several different certifications, they mean different things and various certifying bodies around the world demand different criteria to qualify for their stamp of approval, – some much less so than others. This effectively means that if a brand wants to use conscious-sounding buzz words to market to you, it may be that they don’t meet the toughest criteria for their desired certification, but that they meet a lower, similar one instead. So how on earth to know what you’re putting into your body and whether it really meets your criteria?

‘Organic’

‘Organic’ skincare – this word is everywhere these days. This label means that the product contains organically grown ingredients- that is, free from pesticides.  The general consensus around organically grown ingredients is that these products should be better for the skin, (and your whole body), than non-organic ones, because there should be far fewer or ideally, zero, ingredients that could be harmful.

It is the Soil Association that certify products as organic in the UK.  In the USA, agents certified by the SDA certify products as organic.  In Latin America the Inter-American Commission for Organic Agriculture (ICOA), comprised of 18 member countries, set the standards for organically farmed produce.

To qualify for the ‘Organic’ label, a product’s ingredients should not contain pesticides, herbicides, no GMO ingredients and the farming process should also have been free from the use of synthetic fertilisers.

The Soil Association of the UK state that a product carrying their logo is guaranteed to be free from;

• Animal testing
• GM ingredients
• Known controversial chemicals
• Parabens and phthalates
• Synthetic dyes, colours and fragrances
• Nanoparticles

According to them, it’s possible that products certified as organic (depending upon the product of course) may contain up to 60% more antioxidants than non-organic products. Along with these benefits, the ingredients are much more likely to be;

• sustainably sourced
• biodegradable
• have minimal packaging – and that is more often recycled and recyclable
• to be from companies with more transparent manufacturing processes and are more likely than other brands to have a positive attitude towards conserving our wonderful planet and its wildlife.

This all sounds great of course, but it doesn’t mean that products are cruelty-free or suitable for vegans.

‘Natural’

So, what about products labelled as ‘natural?’ Don’t be fooled!
A common misunderstanding is that ‘natural’ equals ‘organic’ –but this is NOT the case at all! Many, many ingredients could be classed as natural, – water, salt, herbs, berry extracts, etc, are certainly natural but they don’t have to have been grown according to organic principles.
The definition applied to the word ‘natural’ is much looser than that applied to the other labels and can be interpreted in a variety of ways. Not only that, but the use of the term ‘natural’ is not regulated at all in many countries. This means that thousands of brands simply use the word as a shady, but sadly effective, marketing tactic. In reality it means nothing at all!

Cosmetic and skincare companies can claim their product is natural even if it only contains a tiny percentage of a single natural ingredient.
Often, products labelled as ‘organic’ and ‘natural’ are not tested on animals. But outside of Europe and its legislation, this might only apply to the finished product and not necessarily the separate ingredients. Even if a product and its ingredients have not been tested on animals, this is no indicator of whether the product is completely free from any animal-derived ingredients. Lanolin, beeswax and honey, – common ingredients in cosmetics and skincare products – are all natural too, but they are not vegan.

‘Cruelty-free’

We’re all now familiar the world over with the famous bunny logo. But what does it really mean? Surely all items labelled ‘cruelty-free’ must be vegan products? That would be the case in an ideal world.
Unfortunately, if you think ‘cruelty free’ really means there was no cruelty involved in the making of the product, then you’re in a for another surprise. All ‘cruelty-free’ means is that the neither the finished product nor its ingredients were tested on animals. Many such labelled items do contain animal-derived ingredients, for example ‘cruelty-free’ lip gloss with beeswax, ‘cruelty-free lipstick containing carmine or lanolin, or other products that contain collagen or gelatine etc, – definitions of ‘cruelty-free’ that vegans clearly do not agree with!
The cruelty-free label has become very common as companies jump on the band wagon, seeking to appeal to an increasingly conscientious market. Again, the real meaning comes down to a given company’s interpretation and their marketing agenda. Whilst Cruelty-Free international does work hard to end animal testing around the globe, there are many ‘versions’ of its famous leaping bunny logo out there too, which are not approved by the organisation themselves.

‘Vegan’

Surely now this is THE label of labels? All products labelled vegan must by definition, also be cruelty-free? Unfortunately not. May huge brand names such as L’Oreal and Garnier have begun stamping some of their products with ‘100% vegan’ labels, even advertising the range on T.V. with their new ‘vegan credentials’ – however, these are not vegan companies, and have always tested their products on animals, (albeit not now in Europe, but in other countries such as China where it’s mandated by law) and they have never exactly been at the forefront of campaigning for lawful change. Testing products on non-human animals is clearly not cruelty free and definitely not vegan! All these companies mean by the ‘vegan’ label is that the product does not contain animal-derived ingredients. And the converse is true, -some products claiming to be vegan could also still have been tested on animals. What a headache!
Be aware also, that not all vegan-labelled products are natural – many, many synthetic substances go into the majority of our vegan skincare and cosmetics, (sometimes to replace animal-derived ingredients, sometimes as par for the course). Just because no non-human animals have been harmed doesn’t always mean that vegan labelled products will contain nothing synthetic or nothing that can cause irritation. We actually still do not know the long-term health effects of many substances in common use today.

If you’re health and environmentally conscious as well as vegan, then the best certifications to look for will be a combination of vegan and organic.
At Veganeur, our primary concern is that products are 100% vegan, and for us as vegans, that also means cruelty-free. We do however also care about those products being as kind to the environment, as kind to your skin and as kind to other people as possible, so we emphasise those brands who care about these factors too. Search our database, we’re sure you’ll find what you’re looking for.