Avoiding making unsubstantiated claims around Vegan Textiles, Clothing and Footwear
The increase in growth in global demand for vegan materials and products, including textiles, clothing, and footwear, means that manufacturers, brands, and retailers really need to avoid the risks of making unsubstantiated claims around vegan materials and finished products.
The vegan fashion market was valued at USD $336.9 billion in 2019 with revenue forecasted to reach $1095.6 billion in 2027.[1] Footwear accounted for a 40% share of this market, supported by a growing trend for materials developed specifically as alternatives to leather; a market expected to be worth USD $90 billion by 2025.[2]. With such significant anticipated growth, the demand for vegan products and vegan alternative materials will be sustained.
For a product to adhere to ‘vegan’ principles, there is some agreement that it must not contain any materials which have been derived from, or tested on, animals. In practice, there are multiple materials that contain, or may contain, animal derivatives, and for there to be an assurance that a product is truly ‘vegan’, strict control of the supply chain is required.
Taking the example of vegan footwear, adhesives such as glue are a frequently encountered obstacle, as retailers are not always able to guarantee that they contain zero animal by-products. Assuring customers that a product is ‘vegan’ offers additional support to mitigate the fact that there is often little visibility within product supply-chains.
Are your products truly vegan?
Did you know that not all chemicals can be considered vegan and that raw materials used in the manufacture of chemicals are often animal derived? To avoid the risk of making unsubstantiated claims around vegan materials or products, a robust system of chemical management within the supply chain is required to establish whether any animal products or by-products have been used.
Vegan Verification Programme
Vegan Verification is an innovative programme within the Eurofins | Chem-MAP family that verifies products, materials, and chemicals as vegan. This multi-faceted approach comprises of supply chain support, microscopy, FTIR and DNA analysis; testing both the chemicals used in the manufacture of materials, and the finished materials themselves to establish whether any animal products or by-products have been used.
Eurofins | Chem-MAP helps brands, retailers, and manufacturers to test, verify and certify materials and chemicals. Chem-MAP also provides the opportunity to build vegan chemical management systems which will influence manufacturers and suppliers further upstream in the supply chain.
In addition, the Eurofins Chem-MAP Vegan Verification Programme has recently been registered under The Vegan Society Trademark for the apparel and footwear sector and with US based company BeVeg. BeVeg is an ISO/IEC 17065 accredited certification standard.
[1] Vegan Women’s Fashion Market Size Report, 2020-2027 (grandviewresearch.com)
[2] Worldwide | The Vegan Society
Contact a Eurofins | Chem-MAP consultant today to talk about testing, verification, and certification of vegan chemicals on +44 (0)1604 679999 or email [email protected]
26 May 2021