I’m not a vegan myself, but I have a lot of friends who are, and since I’m an ingredients geek I decided to make a list of ingredients that vegans should watch out for if you decide to branch away from certified vegan products. This list isn’t completely comprehensive, but I intend to keep adding to it!
| Ingredient | Related | Function | Found In | Comes From |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beeswax | Waxy hardening agent, moisturiser | Lip products, mascara, moisturiser, eye shadow | Beehives. Bees are (theoretically) not killed during the harvesting of beeswax. |
|
| Carmine | Cochineal, Carminic Acid | Red dye | Red lipstick, pink and red beauty products | Crushed cochineal beetles, which feed on red cactuses. This is the most vivid commonly available red pigment, vegan alternatives tend to be less intense. |
| Collagen | Moisturising protein | Moisturisers, lip plumpers | Animal tissue | |
| Gelatin | Thickener | Moisturisers, face masks | Animal skin and tendons | |
| Glycerin | Glycerol, Glycerides | Humectant moisturiser | Everywhere - moisturiser, soap, shampoo, make-up bases | Fats and oils from animals or plants - a by-product of soap making. Animal glycerin tends to be cheaper, plant glycerin is usually labelled "Glycerin (Vegetable)". Contact the company if in doubt. |
| Hyaluronic Acid | Sodium Hyaluronate | Humectant moisturiser, filler | Moisturisers, plumping injections | Can be plant or animal derived (from animal tissue) |
| Keratin | Strengthening protein for hair | Hair products, nail products | Ground hooves, horns, feathers, hair of animals. |
|
| Lactic Acid | Alpha hydroxy acid - chemical exfoliant and humectant | Chemical exfoliants, moisturisers | Can be derived from animal blood and tissue, or milk, or plants (e.g. beets). |
|
| Lanolin | Wool Fat, Wool Wax | Occlusive moisturiser | Moisturisers, make-up | Sheep oil glands |
| Pearl Essence | Pearlesence, Guanine | Shimmer | Shimmery cosmetics | Fish scales |
| Retinol | Retinyl Esters | Anti-ageing ingredient (derivative of Vitamin A) | Anti-ageing moisturisers | Mostly animal-derived - sources include liver, dairy and eggs |
| Squalene | Squalane | Emollient | Moisturisers | Shark liver, or plant oils (olive, palm) |
| Snail Secretion | Emollient and humectant | Moisturisers | Collected from snails - snails are usually not killed |
There’s some weird shit in beauty products! Snail secretion?? Gross.
Haha! I’m actually roadtesting a snail secretion product right now 🙂
This is great but just thought I would let you know that it’s not mobile friendly 🙂
Hey Alinta! Thanks for letting me know, I think I fixed it 🙂
Works on iPhone 6! I can scroll left-right to see the whole chart.
Thanks for creating this. I’m not vegan but I like to know my sources.
If they are plant derived, they are vegan though?
Usually yes!