Monday 2 March 2015

Beauty Products - Cruelty Free, Palm Oil Free, Vegan

For those who wish to shop in an ethical way but don't know where to start or what to avoid and what to buy check out Choose Cruelty Free also their Palm Oil List has links to other sites that provide information as well as a list of alternative names for palm oil and its derivatives so that you can check labels and ingredients. (That link is no longer there but I found this https://choosecrueltyfree.org.au/palm-oil/ ) I really do not want to put a link to any lists that I've seen that are pertaining to palm oil free because when I look at multiple sites and lists they either contradict each other which can be very confusing or some brands use it in some products and not in others, or some palm oil free brands, products or parent companies I have read else where are not cruelty free. Then there are other sites where they list other ethical concerns including the incorporation of nano technology. It can all become overly daunting! Also I see companies or products that are listed as being okay but when I go to the supermarket and read the labels it no longer appears to be the case. There is also the debate between boycotting or using sustainable palm oil. Since reading further I've decided to boycott palm oil altogether since sustainable palm oil is only traced back to the drop off location and not back to the plantation and they still clear forest for new sustainable plantations. I've now seen appearing on lists non deforrestation palm oil. I need to look into what's going on with that.
Here is the Cruelty Free Vegan List
I'd also like to highlight the Tasmanian based cosmetic brand Cherry Brown. I'm not personally recommending it as I haven't tried their products but it is something I am thinking about doing as it ticks all the lists of being cruelty free and palm oil free as well as vegan. It is also why it will be quite difficult for me to do beauty features for the magazine because a lot of beauty companies or parent companies are not cruelty free and then the ones that are cruelty free there are less that are palm oil free. For example Australis is cruelty free but does use palm oil. I haven't researched if the palm oil they use is sustainable or certified etc so I am not sure about that. In the future I'd like to create a line of skin care and cosmetic beauty products that tick all my boxes. I'd also like to write a book about ingredients. Then I also run into further complications - do the models also have to reflect similar beliefs, values and lifestyle choices?
On Cherry Brown's About page there are some interesting FAQs:
"What do Cherry Brown products contain?
Cherry Brown products contain only the purest ingredients, including seed and nut oils and waxes and natural mineral colours.  There are no petroleum derived ingredients in any of our products.  Full ingredients lists are available on the individual  product pages."
"Why are there no bright red lipsticks available?
This is probably the most common question of all!  Bright red lipstick is generally made using synthetic dyes (which are not good for us) or carmine (extracted from crushed beetles).  The reds available using natural minerals tend towards a more natural red, moving towards a more orange or blue red."
Also on the lipsticks page it mentions "Our lipsticks are free from: Animal testing, petroleum products, palm oil in any of its forms, animal ingredients, chemical additives, preservatives, synthetic dyes and colours, micronised ingredients, nanoparticles."


I haven't totally figured out this blogger thing. Every time I copy and paste it changes the background instead of the original transparent.