The vegan philosophy that prioritizes ethics by not consuming anything that comes from animals (meat) including its derivatives (milk, eggs, and honey) is considered ideal in maintaining the sustainability of the ecosystem. Reducing the consumption of animal products is not only beneficial for human health, but also the planet.
The campaign for sustainability issues has also not escaped the attention of the beauty industry. Evidently, more and more cosmetic labels are competing to produce makeup and skincare by adopting the concept of 'back to nature' or 'eco-friendly' which only focuses on the use of plant elements.
Do you know?
XCellR8 is the world's first laboratory to research the ins and outs of veganism while implementing animal-free experimentation.
The proliferation of practical vegan cosmetics has attracted the interest of Muslim consumers, who are indeed the most potential target market. The production process that does not include animal compounds as raw materials, additives or auxiliary materials at least reduces concerns about the possibility of the product being contaminated with impurities or involving the exploitation of animals that are forbidden in religion or animals that are not slaughtered according to sharia. And as a Muslim, it is only natural to always prioritize halalness, including in choosing the care products that you will use. The reason is, the skin is the largest organ and anything that is absorbed through the skin is 'consumed' indirectly by the body so that what is applied to the surface of the skin must also meet halal standards. However, is it true that all vegan products are halal even without an official halal stamp from a competent authorized institution?
Important to Remember!
According to Islamic teachings, whatever is permissible for the body to consume is permissible to apply to the skin. Whatever is forbidden for the body to consume is forbidden to apply to the skin.
Based on plants known to be rich in vitamins and essential fatty acids, and without the use of synthetic chemical compounds, vegan cosmetics ensure stable results with the best quality, both in terms of color and texture. Vegan products also tend to exclude parabens and ingredients such as sodium lauryl sulfate, formaldehyde, hydroquinone, and mineral oil which are considered dangerous and potentially carcinogenic by many green-beauty and clean living advocates. Sometimes this term can be interpreted as gluten-free and synthetic fragrance-free; or certified organic. Although not always.
A series of advantages that are owned are not enough for vegan products to be considered halal. Halal is more than just quality. Products must adhere to ethics in order to be recognized as halal. In fact, although in essence they do not include animal elements, vegan-certified products are sometimes still tested on animals, which practically makes them not cruelty-free.
Alcohol is also still possible to be used as a primary or complementary composition. Meanwhile, the use of alcohol in the cosmetics industry is a matter of syubhat (between the degrees of halal and haram, its status is not or is not yet clear). A handful of fatwas do allow the use of alcohol as long as it does not come from the fermentation industry or khamr factory. But doesn't Islam teach us to leave doubtful things? And the concept of halal does not recognize the entry of haram ingredients at any level (zero tolerance). It would be wiser if you choose a product that is free of alcohol content.
Halal certification certainly proves the credibility of the vegan products being marketed and provides a guarantee that everything from the composition to the production and manufacturing regulations is in accordance with Islamic law.
However, what if you live in a non-Muslim country where it is difficult to find products with the halal logo, whether it is because of the scarcity of national certification bodies; complicated procedures and a large budget in obtaining a halal stamp so that many business people are reluctant to register their products; to political reasons related to Islamophobia and brand owners do not want to risk their business losing money due to accusations of bias?
To assess the legitimacy of the halal status of vegan products, at least, it can be done by carefully reading the composition table before deciding to buy. But if scientific vocabulary will give you a headache, considering that all the compositions have thousands of technical names and patents, a simpler way: always pay attention to the 'vegan' and 'cruelty-free' labels on the packaging. Also check whether the product has the Leaping Bunny symbol or PETA Cruelty Free and Vegan, which is a global certification standard free of animal experiments in all phases of the production process.
So, are you confident enough to put the 'halal' status based on personal claims?
