The ultimate guide to cruelty-free and vegan baby products

An increasing amount of people in the UK are choosing to become vegan and shun animal or dairy products. And while it would be extremely unusual for a baby lotion to contain bacon oil or a lamb chop, there are some animal-derived ingredients used in baby bath and skincare products.

It’s also becoming more and more common for consumers to demand cruelty-free products. But what actually constitutes cruelty-free and vegan? And if you want to avoid animal testing and animal products, which brands should you buy from and which should you avoid?

What are vegan baby products?

A vegan baby product has no products or byproducts from animals. This includes lanolin, beeswax, goat's milk, lactose, honey and carmine (a red colouring made from insects). If you want to be 100% certain that a product is vegan, look for those that are registered with The Vegan Society. They actually invented the word ‘vegan’ in 1944 so it’s safe to say they know what they’re doing. All registered products are also cruelty-free. Just look for the logo where the V is the base of a sunflower.

What are cruelty-free baby products?

Cruelty-free refers to animal testing but there is no set definition of what it actually means. A company could claim to be against animal testing but that doesn’t mean there is no animal cruelty at any point. The finished product may not be tested on animals, but some of the ingredients may have been. It’s also possible that a third party has been involved in animal testing.

In the UK it’s illegal to carry out animal testing on cosmetics, cosmetic ingredients or finished household products. Ingredients for household products can still be tested. Cosmetics tested on animals in other countries also cannot be sold in the UK.

But if a product is also sold in mainland China, animal testing is required by law there on all cosmetics. You might also want to check if there is a parent company that tests on animals or sells in mainland China.

If you want to be completely sure that a product is cruelty-free, look for ones with a certification logo. The two main ones are the Leaping Bunny Logo from Cruelty-Free International and PETA’s Beauty Without Bunnies logo.

A list of baby brands and their vegan and cruelty-free status

Every baby brand featured on this site that sells bath and skincare, nipple cream, baby wipes, nappies and baby laundry detergent has been checked to see if they are vegan or cruelty-free. The ethics of any parent company has also been investigated and whether the product is sold in mainland China. Here is the complete list in alphabetical order.

CF = Cruelty-free

V = Vegan

Where a company is described as not being cruelty-free, this information has come from PETA.

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ALDI MAMIA

CF: Leaping Bunny certified.

V: The baby shampoo and baby wipes are vegan.

ASDA LITTLE ANGELS

CF: Yes

V: The baby lotion, baby powder, conditioning shampoo, detangle spray, baby oil, Protective petroleum jelly, liquid talc, citrus hair and body wash, bubble bath and wash and bubble bath pineapple are all vegan.

AVEENO BABY

CF: Sold in China and owned by Johnson and Johnson who are not cruelty-free.

V: Some of their products appear to be vegan but they are not labelled as such.

BABY BARE BUBBLES

CF: Yes

V: Yes

BAMBINO MIO

CF: Yes

V: Yes

BLOOM AND BLOSSOM

CF: Beauty without Bunnies certified

V: All vegan apart from Wonder Worker and Lip Service

BOLLICINE

CF: Yes

V: Yes

BOOTS (OWN BRAND)

CF: Yes. They don’t sell in China, don’t animals test any products or ingredients and don’t use a third party to do this. But their parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance is not cruelty-free.

V: No.

BURT’S BEES

CF: Leaping Bunny certified. But owned by Clorox which is not cruelty-free.

V: As you’d expect from the name, many of their products contain honey and royal jelly. They do not call their products any of their products vegan as the ones that contain no animal products or byproducts are ‘produced on shared lines.’

CHILDS FARM

CF: Leaping Bunny certified.

V: All have been approved by The Vegan Society apart from the strawberry and mint conditioner and grapefruit and tea tree hair detangler, which contain honey.

COCOBELLE BABY

CF: Yes. And the coconuts are ethically sourced. Always check this as some coconuts are harvested by monkey slaves.

V: Yes

CO-OP (OWN BRAND)

CF: Leaping Bunny certified.

V: No

E45

CF: It’s made by the company Reckitt Benckiser which allows animal testing where required by law (e.g. China.)

V: No

EARTH FRIENDLY BABY

CF: Yes. The website states that none of their products or ingredients are tested on animals on their behalf. The parent company is Lansinoh, which is sold in China.

V: Yes and registered with the Vegan Society

EARTH MAMA ORGANIC

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: No, but they do sell a vegan nipple butter

ECO BY NATY

CF: Yes

V: Yes

GOOD BUBBLE

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: Yes

HUGGIES

CF: Owned by Kimberley Clark, which is not cruelty-free.

V: They do not list any of their products as vegan.

JACKSON REECE KINDER BY NATURE

CF: Yes, their website states that ‘Kinder by Nature are against animal testing’.

V: Yes, all their products are vegan.

JOHNSON’S BABY

CF: The website states ‘We do NOT conduct animal testing on any of our cosmetic products except in the rare situation where governments or laws require it.’ They are sold in China. Owned by Johnson and Johnson, who are not cruelty-free.

V: None of their products are described as vegan although many are free from animal products and byproducts.

KIT + KIN

CF: Beauty without Bunnies certified

V: Certified vegan

KOKOSO

CF: The website states ‘We never test our products on animals.’ The coconuts are ethically sourced.

V: All vegan apart from the Baby-Soft Balm Stick, which contains beeswax.

LITTLE BUTTERFLY

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: Yes and certified by the Vegan Society

LANSINOH

CF: It is not tested on animals in the UK but Lansinoh is sold in China.

V: No, it’s made from lanolin.

MAMA BAMBOO

CF: Yes

V: Yes and registered with the Vegan Society

MAMA MIO

CF: Beauty Without Bunnies certified

V: Yes

MARKS & SPENCER LITTLE SMILES

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: Yes

MEDELA

CF: Waiting for confirmation

V: No, the nipple cream is made from lanolin

METANIUM

CF: Yes.

V: Yes

MORRISON’S NUTMEG

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: All the baby bath time products are vegan. The nappy change cream contains lanolin.

MUM & YOU

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: The following products are certified by the Vegan Society: biodegradable baby wipes, Newborn hair & body wash, Hair & body wash 6+ months, Mum’s Touch massage oils, Baby bath oil, Bathtime Bubbles, Bright Eyes Gel, Get up & Glow body scrub

MY EXPERT MIDWIFE

CF: Yes

V: All vegan except No Harm Nipple Balm, No Harm Bum balm and Fantastic Skin Elastic.

MY LITTLE COCO

CF: Yes

V: Yes

NAPISAN

CF: Owned by Reckitt Benckiser which allows animal testing where required by law (e.g. China.)

V: It is not labelled as vegan but does not appear to contain any animal products or byproducts.

NIMBLE

CF: Yes

V: Yes

ORGANIC BABIES BY GREEN PEOPLE

CF: Beauty Without Bunnies certified

V: The baby wash and shampoos and body lotion are vegan.

PAMPERS

CF: Owned by Proctor and Gamble, which sells products in mainland China.

V: They do not claim that any Pampers products are vegan.

PURA

CF: The website states ‘We do not test any of our wipes on animals’.

V: The baby wipes are certified vegan.

SAINSBURY’S LITTLE ONES

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: They do not use the word vegan to describe any of the products.

SUDOCREM

CF: The finished product has not been tested on animals but they can’t guarantee that the ingredients have not been tested on animals.

V: No, it contains lanolin and beeswax

SUPERDRUG MY LITTLE STAR

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: On their website, only the baby oil is labelled as vegan.

VITAL BABY

CF: Yes

V: The baby Aquaint sanitising water is vegan

WAITROSE (OWN BRAND)

CF: Leaping Bunny certified

V: The Waitrose Mini baby wipes are vegan

WATERWIPES

CF: Yes

V: Yes

WELEDA BABY

CF: Yes. They are certified by NATRUE. No products or ingredients are tested on animals and they don’t sell cosmetic items in China. Weleda sells toothpaste and bars of soap in China as they are exempt from animal testing laws.

V: The Calendula baby oil, bath, cream bath, shampoo and body wash are all vegan.

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What are the best vegan and cruelty-free baby products to buy?

Here are some of the best products from the very best vegan and cruelty-free baby brands.

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GOOD BUBBLE GRUFFALO HAIR & BODY WASH

With 98% naturally derived ingredients, this hypoallergenic hair and body wash has been dermatologically tested and is suitable for newborns. It is free from parabens and sulphates. Vegan, Leaping Bunny certified and made in the U.K.

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CHILDS FARM BABY MOISTURISER

Leaping Bunny certified and approved by the Vegan Society. This cream is dermatologist tested and suitable for eczema-prone skin.

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kit + kin nappies

Beauty Without Bunnies and vegan-certified nappies from an ethical brand. For every 10 customers that buy a nappy subscription, they buy and protect one acre of tropical rainforest through the World Land Trust.

Anything that comes into contact with a baby’s skin is sustainable plant-based material and around 75% is biodegradable. They use 100% sustainable packaging.

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Mum and you baby wipes

Leaping Bunny and Vegan Society certified wipes that are 98% water, plastic-free, 100% biodegradable and suitable for newborns.

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Mama Mio Nipple Balm

Beauty Without Bunnies certified and vegan nipple balm made with shea butter and coconut oil.

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