Vanicream is not cruelty free because their products may be tested on animals.
Vanicream products are vegan as they don’t contain any animal-derived ingredients. However, please note that since third parties may test Vanicream products on animals and are therefore not cruelty free, I wouldn’t consider them vegan-friendly.
To learn more about this brand and find out why they’re not cruelty free, keep on reading!
And if you’re looking for new cruelty free products to add to your skincare routine, make sure to check out the last section of this post where you’ll find some of the best Vanicream cruelty free alternatives.
Let’s dive right in!
Is Vanicream cruelty free? Are Vanicream products tested on animals?
Vanicream is NOT cruelty free.
The closest thing to an animal testing policy that Vanicream has is this:
Animal Testing
Source: Vanicream
Pharmaceutical Specialties Inc. does not test our products on animals.
So, they’ve stated that they don’t test on animals, but they don’t mention anything about third parties testing their products on animals.
In order to be cruelty free, brands:
- Must not test their finished products or ingredients on animals
- Must make sure that their suppliers don’t test on animals
- Must not commission third parties to test their products on animals
- Must not sell their products in stores in mainland China, or other countries where animal testing is still required by law
I researched but couldn’t find more details about the points above, so I reached out to Vanicream and asked them the following questions:
I’d like to know whether Vanicream is cruelty free and vegan, so I’d appreciate it if you could help me by clarifying the following questions:
1. Do you test your finished products or ingredients on animals?
2. Do you ensure that your suppliers don’t test on animals?
3. Do you commission third parties to test your products or ingredients on animals?
4. Do you, your supplies or any third parties test your products or ingredients on animals where no animal testing alternatives are available, when required by law or in other exceptional situations?
5. Are your products sold in stores in mainland China, or in any country where animal testing is required by law?
6. Do you use animal-derived ingredients in any of your products?
source: my email to Vanicream
This is their response (I’ve bolded the most important parts):
Thank you for taking the time to reach out to us with your questions. We do want to inform you, that we actually have not, nor will we ever, test on animals or use animal-derived ingredients. All our products go through extensive testing as well as we collect all documentation to ensure this to be true. The founders of this company have felt very strongly about this since day one, and that will never change—we take great pride in being cruelty free. We have had some other customers bring up the idea of getting certified with Leaping Bunny as well as of recent, and this is a request we have passed along to management.
All of our sourced ingredients are selected based upon the ingredient manufacturers answering questions for us in regards to whether or not that specific ingredient has been tested on animals or is sourced from animals. We do not sell in China, and any countries outside the U.S that want to sell our products do sign a contract from us in which we state that we strongly discourage any 3rd party animal testing on our finished products.
source: Vanicream’s email response
Let’s analyze their response step by step!
- Vanicream itself doesn’t test on animals
- None of their products contain any animal-derived ingredients, making them vegan
- They might be looking to get Leaping Bunny certified (Leaping Bunny has the strictest standards, so I wonder whether this is really the case)
- they require all suppliers to answer questions about the ingredients – whether they’re tested on animals and whether they are sourced from animals. However, they do not disclose whether they reject suppliers that test on animals, they just state that they ask them.
- They don’t sell in China
- They strongly discourage third parties testing Vanicream products on animals, but they don’t stop/prevent them from doing so. Therefore, Vanicream products may be tested on animals by third parties.
This means that Vanicream is not cruelty free.
Keep on reading for more information!
Is Vanicream sold in China?
Vanicream is not sold in mainland China where animal testing is still required.
As mentioned above, I reached out to Vanicream and they confirmed that they don’t sell in China. You can see the full response above.
Why can’t cruelty free brands sell in mainland China?
Animal testing is still happening for products sold in physical stores in mainland China.
Pre-market animal testing is required for all special-use imported products, and non-routine post-market testing on animals may also be done in cases of customer complaints.
However, please keep in mind that this doesn’t apply to products sold in stores at the airports, or in Hong Kong.
Also, products can be sold online and shipped to mainland China without being tested on animals.
Is Vanicream owned by a parent brand? If yes, is it cruelty free?
Vanicream is owned by Pharmaceutical Specialties, Inc. which is not a cruelty free company.
Is Vanicream vegan?
Vanicream products are vegan.
I reached out to them and explicitly asked them whether any animal-derived ingredients are used within Vanicream products. In their response, they confirmed that no such ingredients are used.
However, please note that since third parties may test Vanicream products on animals and are therefore not cruelty free, I wouldn’t consider them vegan-friendly.
Cruelty free alternatives to Vanicream
Vanicream is a skincare brand, well-known for their moisturizers and cleansers.
There are so many skincare brands that are cruelty free! That’s why, in my opinion, there’s really no excuse for supporting brands that test on animals.
Some of the best cruelty free alternatives to Vanicream are:
If you want to discover more cruelty free skincare brands, check out my post on The 7 Best Cruelty Free Skin Care Brands in 2021 That Are Also 100% Vegan and Sustainable.
Now it’s your turn!
What are your favorite cruelty free skincare brands?
Let me know in the comments below!