A Vegetarian's Guide to Buying Cleaning Products

When people talk about vegan living, household cleaning products are often the category most easily overlooked — few think to ask whether laundry detergent or toilet cleaner might involve animal testing or animal-derived ingredients. But in fact, many cleaning products are still tested on animals during development, and some formulas include surfactants derived from animal fat.

The Issues at Play in Cleaning Products

Cleaning products raise two main considerations. The first is whether the finished product or its raw materials were tested on animals — a question complicated by regulatory requirements in some markets. The second is whether the formula uses animal-derived glycerin, fatty acids, or similar ingredients, which are relatively common in traditional soap-based cleaning products.

Practical Buying Advice

A few things to try if you want your everyday cleaning product choices to better reflect vegan values:

• Check the packaging for a clear cruelty-free or vegan label
• Look into a brand's overall animal-testing policy, not just the status of a single product
• Plant-based surfactants (such as those derived from coconut oil) are a common vegan-friendly choice
• Concentrated, refillable cleaning products also help cut down on packaging waste, in keeping with sustainability

Cleaning products may never touch your mouth, but the choices you make about them are just as much a test of how fully vegan values get carried through.