Juice Beauty is all about using natural ingredients to get clinical results. They are the OG clean beauty brand, but just because it’s all about using plants as its core ingredients – doesn’t make it vegan. Here are its surprising cruelty-free and vegan policies.
Juice Beauty is cruelty-free. It doesn't conduct animal testing on its products nor distribute its cosmetics where animal testing is required by law. While Juice Beauty does offer a range of vegan cosmetics, it is not considered a vegan brand.
How often can you say your beauty product is farm fresh? Well – with Juice beauty, you’re halfway there!
California-born Karen Behnke founded Juice Beauty in 2005, intending to make effective cosmetics with natural and healthy ingredients. So, naturally, she bought a farm.
Juice Beauty is known for making incredible plant-based makeup and highly effective skincare. It’s always been about making a meaningful change through science, environmentalism, and skincare.
This brand gets a thumbs up from Cruelty Free Soul, and the rest of the world seems to agree, given the brand can now be bought internationally from several outlets like Sephora and Ulta.
But why would a brand that uses freshly farmed plant products still use animal-derived ingredients? And are they at least cruelty-free certified? Read on to see what we found.
Is Juice Beauty Cruelty-Free and Vegan?
Juice Beauty is 100% Cruelty-Free
It does not:
Juice Beauty has a solid cruelty-free message, and it shows. It is Leaping Bunny and PETA accredited (whoop whoop).
The brand is also privately owned with venture capital backing, so there’s no need to worry about a pesky parent company associated with animal testing.
This brings us to our next point:
Juice Beauty is Not Vegan
After getting Leaping Bunny certification, we’re a little disappointed that Juice Beauty isn’t vegan – especially since they’re so close!
But there is hope after all. The brand still has an extensive range of vegan products from which to choose. They’re also actively reformulating products using 100% vegan alternatives.
Of course, this takes a little time to get right because the stability and efficacy of each formula cannot change in the process.
You can see whether a product is vegan once you’re on its page. It will have a vegan sticker right at the bottom of the product images, along with its Leaping Bunny certification and other credentials.
The only animal-derived ingredients that Juice Beauty still uses are:
If you're interested in which products are vegan or finding vegan brand alternatives – keep reading or click on this link: Juice vegan products.
Animal Testing Policy and History
Juice Beauty has been committed to creating clean, cruelty-free cosmetics since it was founded. One of the best things about newer brands is that tracking this information is much easier.
Cruelty-Free Status in 2022
Here is a screenshot of Juice Beauty’s official statement regarding their cruelty-free policies and vegan products, taken from their website:
Certification
Juice Beauty is Leaping Bunny and PETA certified.
While you might know PETA very well – it surprisingly doesn’t hold the strictest cruelty-free regulations. It only requires a brand’s written consent that abides by the PETA code of conduct.
Certification from Leaping Bunny is ideal because it holds rigorous standards and does regular audits to ensure they are upheld.
Leaping Bunny certification proves that:
If you see a bunny stamp on the back of your product bottle – that's an excellent sign. But don't be fooled by the image itself. A lot of brands are using fake logos to mislead consumers.
Do your homework and see which products are genuinely cruelty-free first. This article will help you: Which Cruelty-Free Logos Can You Trust?
Is Juice Beauty Sold Where Animal Testing is Required By Law?
Juice Beauty does not distribute any of its products to China or any country requiring animal testing on cosmetics by law.
China has a shocking track record. It is the country with the most animal testing globally, with over 20 million animals used per year.
However, if you live in China or are concerned about its cruel beauty policies, there are a couple of loopholes.
Here’s how to find cruelty-free cosmetics in China: Are Cosmetics Made in China Cruelty-Free?
What Juice Beauty Products Are Vegan?
Juice Beauty only uses beeswax in its Lip Moisturizers, and honey in its Organic Facial Wash. So the brand is 100% vegetarian with an extensive range of vegan products.
Unfortunately, there is no vegan product page, but vegan products are marked on its website.
To make things a bit easier, we thought we’d save you the hassle of skimming through pages of products and share some of Juice Beauty’s best-selling vegan products to choose from:
You can visit its website for a complete list of Juice Beauty’s products, you can visit their website.
Vegan Alternatives to Juice Beauty
Overall, Juice Beauty is an excellent option for vegans as it provides a wide variety of products for you to use.
They are proud to have a clean track record and noteworthy transparency with its consumers. And we also think it’s pretty cool that such a big brand is actively working towards being 100% vegan.
If you will not support a brand that isn't entirely vegan or if Juice Beauty just isn’t accessible to you – do not fret. We have some alternatives you can try.
Here are some 100% vegan cosmetics that could give you all the benefits of Juice Beauty:
Is Juice Beauty Natural and Organic?
Juice Beauty prides itself on being organic, but they are not known as a natural. A lot of their brand ethos revolves around the concept of being ‘farm to face.’
They have an in-depth answer on the FAQ page explaining natural vs. organic and why being organic is so important to them.
Basically, the term "organic" is regulated by the USDA. It means an ingredient is free of synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, or non-organic substances.
Juice Beauty is certified as Organic by the USDA and chooses to use synthetic ingredients where it’s best for the formula and you, the consumer.
Clean vs. Natural Ingredients
The term "natural" is not regulated for cosmetics and skincare. In other words, it doesn't hold one specific meaning.
Usually, it means a product is free of certain more toxic synthetic ingredients, including parabens, phthalates, sulfates, and more. But people also interpret "natural" to mean ingredients of immediate plant origin.
Here's the thing: "natural" doesn't mean it's good for you. Take gluten, for example. It's a natural protein in wheat that certain people are highly allergic to. Even topical application can lead to terrible health issues.
All products use a certain amount of synthetic ingredients in their formulas. Juice Beauty is no exception – but it can choose to use better or clean synthetics.
If a synthetic ingredient is "clean," it is safe and non-toxic. Its purpose is to preserve the stability of a beauty formulation.
A few naturally-derived Juice Beauty uses to enhance its cosmetics include:
Does Juice Beauty Use Safe Ingredients?
According to Skin Safe, Juice Beauty has an 82- 91% allergen-free ranking across 82 products.
As a brand-driven by organic ingredients – you can only imagine how strict Juice Beauty is about the ingredients it uses.
The brand is free of parabens, propylene or butylene glycols, petroleum, sulfates, PEGs, TEA, DEA, phthalates, GMOs, silicones, pesticides, artificial dyes, and synthetic fragrances.
Reading the ingredient list is crucial because Juice Beauty is not 100% hypoallergenic or non-comedogenic, and they do not claim to be. But they have ranges of products suitable for your skin type.
The EU/UK Have Stricter Ingredient Regulations
As a conscientious shopper, you must read up on any brand's ingredient list before making a purchase – especially if you live in the United States.
This is because the FDA has only banned or restricted 11 harmful chemicals from cosmetics within the country. Europe and the UK, on the other hand, have banned 1,328!
Luckily, Juice Beauty is ahead of the game with its strict list of ingredient no-no’s. But for good measure, here are some chemicals to avoid in skincare and cosmetics:
Are Cruelty-Free Ingredients Safe?
If you’re worried about how safe it is to use cosmetics not tested on animals – please relax and take a sigh of relief.
There is no reason why cruelty-free products shouldn’t be as safe as anything tested on an animal.
Not only is it easy to test ingredients without using animals altogether, but there are so many pre-approved ingredients you can use to make cosmetics that there is no need.
If you’re interested, here’s more on the subject: Are Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Safe?
Is Juice Beauty Sustainable and Ethical?
We promise you it’s not greenwashing – Juice Beauty is a genuinely sustainable and ethical brand that we can commend on its global initiatives.
They are commendably transparent about their supply chain (which makes sense since their ingredients come from their own farm) and sustainability goals.
Since the brand launched, it’s been part of many social responsibility projects. Most notably, they’ve partnered with:
It's no secret that the world has a huge waste problem, and cosmetic brands only make it worse by using unsustainable packaging and harmful ingredients.
Once again, Juice Beauty rises to the challenge and actively works to solve the problem.
Some of the ways Juice Beauty is taking strong environmental accountability is by:
Final Thoughts
Juice Beauty started with environmentalism and clinical results at its core. It’s a well-developed cosmetics brand that takes various ethical factors into consideration.
The fact that they are cruelty-free is a step towards a more sustainable future in cosmetics. All we want to see is that final step the brand needs to take to be 100% vegan.
They’re so close – come on!
We appreciate that it has a transparent supply chain and is open to the public about its testing, purchasing, and distribution policies.
We’re obsessed with their farm and love that they put so much emphasis into creating organic products. It’s better for the environment and for your skin!
Since Juice Beauty is 99% vegan – it might not be the best choice for activists who go the extra mile. But if you love this brand, then reach out and tell them how eager you are to see them get that vegan seal too.
So please, don’t shut Juice Beauty down so quickly. This holistic brand is developing and listening to your needs, so keep following its movements.
It’s already a good step ahead of plant-based brands with no ethical or sustainable initiatives, so keep cheering the brand on!
