The Body Shop receives landmark Vegan Society certification

The Body Shop has become the first global beauty brand to receive 100 percent vegan certification from The Vegan Society.

The British beauty retailer said the landmark certification covers all ranges, including skincare, bodycare, haircare, make-up, and fragrance lines, achieving an ambitious target it set in 2021 when 60 percent of its products already carried The Vegan Society trademark.

The Vegan Society represents the global gold standard in vegan certification across multiple industries, and the certification process is “extremely thorough,” with a meticulous assessment of every supplier and manufacturer of raw materials within the product catalogue, explained the retailer. This meant over 4,000 ingredients had to be validated for over 1,000 products to carry the stamp.

Ian Bickley, chief executive officer at The Body Shop, said in a statement: "We know that vegan beauty matters to millions of people around the world, and we've worked tirelessly to achieve this huge milestone.

“We were the first beauty company to fight against animal testing in cosmetics. We were the first major global beauty brand to use cruelty-free musk in our fragrances. We have now achieved another global first."

The Body Shop becomes first global beauty brand to receive 100 percent vegan certification as all product ranges

It comes as the vegan cosmetics industry is predicted to grow with a 6.31 percent compound annual growth rate between 2023-28 and reach 24 billion US dollars by 2028, according to Research and Markets, Global Vegan Cosmetics Market Outlook, 2028 report in May 2023.

While more than 1 in 10 young people in the UK have stated that ‘vegan’ is an important factor in their health and beauty purchase decisions, The Body Shop adds that it is responding to “growing consumer demands”.

Chantelle Adkins, director of business development at The Vegan Society, added: "We are extending a massive congratulations to The Body Shop for achieving 100 percent of their product formulations being vegan and certified with The Vegan Society's Vegan Trademark.

“This has been a massive project for them and showcases their commitment and dedication to vegan beauty. We hope that this significant step sets a global standard for other beauty brands to follow and inspires further change to reduce animal use and exploitation across the industry."