With a growing number of Australians adopting a vegan lifestyle, Vegan Australia launched a vegan certification program in January 2019. Vegan Australia was formed in 2012 and incorporated in 2014 as a registered non-profit charity. It aims to campaign nationally for veganism and to support and coordinate the activities of other vegan groups.

In promoting their vegan certification program, the organisation pointed out that reading an ingredients list is not always a guarantee that a product contains no animal products. Vegan Australia said that some common food ingredients, like glycerine, can be of either animal or vegetable origin. They also pointed out that, by law, some ingredients do not have to be listed on the label if the product contains only a small amount.

” If an item has a Vegan Australia Certified logo, you can be assured that all ingredients have been checked, even if they do not appear on the label,” they said. As is common with other certification programs, organisations pay a fee for the right to use the logo.

The first product to obtain vegan certification was the Cruelty Free Pantry Seitan Steaks with Herb Gravy, made in Sydney by The Cruelty Free Shop, Australia’s vegan supermarket chain. Certification has since been granted to a wide range of food products, beverages, beauty products, homewares, menu items at food outlets and even dog treats.

According to the Vegan Australia website:

When you see a product with the Vegan Australia Certified logo, you can be sure it meets the high standards for vegan products set by Vegan Australia: free from animal products, not tested on animals and no animal products used in the production process. If the product has been made in a facility that also handles animal products, then the manufacturer will have taken all reasonable steps to avoid cross-contamination.