This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.
Is Vaseline Cruelty-Free?
☠️ Vaseline is NOT cruelty-free in 2023. Vaseline allows its products to be tested on animals when required by law.
Vaseline’s Animal Testing Policy
When asking, does Vaseline test on animals? We must look beyond to ensure none of Vaseline’s ingredients or suppliers test on animals. And they don’t sell in any country or under conditions that may require animal testing by law.
To assess whether brands are cruelty-free, I always start with the company’s official animal testing policy on their website.
However, I couldn’t find Vaseline’s official animal testing policy anywhere on its website.
So I reached out to Vaseline to ask for more information about their animal testing policy. More specifically, I wanted to know if they commission or allow others to test their products/ingredients on animals, including when selling in countries that require animal testing (like in mainland China).
And Vaseline responded by saying:
“Thank you for contacting Vaseline. We appreciate the opportunity to assist you.
We do not test our products on animals and are committed to ending animal testing. Unilever has complied with the EU animal testing bans for cosmetics since 2004 and supports calls for similar bans to be introduced globally. To learn more about our position and our work on non-animal approaches, please see our website: www.unilever.com/sustainable-living/what-matters-to-you/developing-alternative-approaches-to-animal-testing.html.”
Based on their response, it turns out that Vaseline is owned by Unilever. And Vaseline has the same animal testing policy as Unilever.
And on Unilever’s corporate website, Unilever’s official animal testing statement states:
“Occasionally, across Unilever’s broader portfolio of brands, ingredients that we use still have to be tested by suppliers by law, to comply with regulatory requirements in some markets; and some government authorities test certain products on animals as part of their regulations.”
Both Unilever and Vaseline state they don’t test their products on animals, but they do allow their ingredient suppliers or government authorities to test on animals where required by law.
Truly cruelty-free brands will never allow their products or ingredients to be tested on animals. Cruelty-free companies have a policy where if the law requires them to test on animals then they will refuse to sell their products under those conditions.
For example, some imported cosmetics sold in stores in mainland China are required by Chinese laws to be tested on animals upon registration. Therefore, truly cruelty-free brands have chosen not to sell in China in order to remain committed to their no animal testing policy.
Unfortunately, Unilever and Vaseline state they will allow their products and ingredients to be tested on animals if the law requires it. For those reasons, Vaseline is NOT cruelty-free.
Cruelty-Free Policies
At ethical elephant, we always assess a company’s cruelty-free policy using our Cruelty-Free Checklist. This ensures no animal testing was performed by the brand itself, its suppliers, and by any third parties, including when required by law.
See below for our complete cruelty-free checklist. Since Vaseline allows its products to be tested on animals when required by law, we cannot classify the brand as being cruelty-free.
Is Vaseline Certified Cruelty-Free?
Vaseline is not certified cruelty-free by any third-party cruelty-free certifications like Leaping Bunny or PETA.
Since Vaseline is not certified cruelty-free by a third party, no one is substantiating or auditing Vaseline’s cruelty-free commitments and claims.
Is Vaseline Owned By A Non-Cruelty-Free Parent Company?
Yes. Vaseline is owned by Unilever, a parent corporation that still engages in animal testing in 2023.
Some cruelty-free consumers may choose to purchase and support cruelty-free brands owned by animal-tested parent corporations as they hope it will convince the parent company to become cruelty-free.
But in this case, Vaseline is NOT cruelty-free, and neither is its parent corporation, Unilever.
Does Vaseline Test on Animals?
To wrap up, Vaseline allows its products to be tested on animals when required by law, like when selling in China. Therefore, we would NOT consider Vaseline to be a cruelty-free brand.
Currently, Vaseline is on our List of Brands to Avoid – Animal Tested.
Is Vaseline Vegan?
❌ Vaseline is NOT vegan. Vaseline does not claim or market itself to offer any vegan-friendly options. And since Vaseline engages in animal testing in some capacity, we wouldn’t consider any Vaseline products vegan anyways.
In order for products to be considered vegan by ethical elephant’s standards, the products and their ingredients must not be tested on animals anywhere in the world. Also, they must not contain any animal-derived ingredients or by-products.
Cruelty-Free Alternatives to Vaseline
Looking for a cruelty-free alternative to Vaseline? Try Alba Botanica’s Un-Petroleum Multi-Purpose Jelly or Live Clean’s Non-Petroleum Jelly.
