For years, there has been a long-held misconception that vegan and plant-based skincare are synonymous. But, we’re here to set the record straight. These two are NOT the same. While vegan skincare and plant-based skincare do share similar qualities, there are quite some differences between them. Read along as we explore both vegan and plant-based skincare and what sets them apart from one another.
Animal By-Products
Want to know the most obvious — and arguably the most important — difference between vegan and plant-based skincare? Take a look at their ingredient lists! Vegan skincare is completely free of any animal by-products. Even popular skincare ingredients that are often animal-derived like probiotics, glycerin, and lecithin are 100% vegan. With plant-based skincare, that’s not the case. Even though the name implies that all ingredients are plant-derived, it can still contain animal by-products like dairy. There are no firm guidelines for plant-based skincare, whereas vegan skincare has a much stricter definition.
Here at glowoasis, we are a vegan skincare brand. Every one of our ingredients, whether it’s natural or bio-tech, is 100% vegan. We’re registered with The Vegan Society and certified by PETA. You’ll see we’ve made an ethical commitment to our consumers and ourselves to NEVER include any animal by-products in our formulas. Instead, we promise you’ll only get vegan skincare that’s clean and effective with us.
Environmental Impact
Throughout our #GlowVegan campaign and My Skin Chooses Compassion campaign, we discussed the benefits that both vegan and cruelty-free skincare have on the planet. We talked about how they’re generally very eco-friendly. They also offer sustainability and decrease greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation rates. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for plant-based skincare. This type of skincare may give off that impression, but that’s often due to greenwashing.
For those that don’t know, greenwashing is the term coined for a product that claims to be organic, natural, and even environmentally conscious as a way of increasing sales. Consumers are led to believe the product is “green”. This can happen through means like the wording in the product description or even the images on the packaging. With plant-based skincare, in particular, many times the plant-derived ingredients are the ones brought to the forefront and heavily marketed. But, as we’ve explained earlier, the rest of the ingredients can be anything but “green.” Remember, just because a skincare brand is plant-based does NOT mean it’s organic, clean, or good for the environment. To learn more about greenwashing, read our blog post here.
Vegan and plant-based skincare may be commonly thought of as the same, but we now know that’s not true. They have clear distinctions that make them each unique in their own way.
To shop our vegan skincare, powered by healthy vegan probiotics, click here!