Vegan essential oils and aroma ingredients for World Vegan Month

November is World Vegan Month and in 2019 the event also marks the 75th anniversary of the foundation of The Vegan Society.

Veganism is a hot topic. According to Google statistics cited by The Vegan Society, searches for veganism increased by a factor of seven in the five years from 2014-19.

Interest hit a high at the end of 2018 – perhaps spurred by last year’s World Vegan Month – and in the UK there are now four times as many Google searches for veganism as there are for vegetarianism.

With all of this in mind, it’s a good time to consider vegan essential oils and vegan aroma ingredients that you can include in your retail products.

Are essential oils vegan?

In practice many aroma ingredients are naturally vegan, particularly essential oils that are derived entirely from plant sources with no animals involved.

However, consumers increasingly want to see proof of this, and it’s also worth noting that there are certified vegan essential oils and aroma chemicals.

At Zanos we supply Payan Bertrand vegan essential oils and other certified vegan aroma ingredients, and the company keeps adding to the list of vegan fragrance ingredients that are available. Aside from fragrance applications, these essential oils are often used as flavourings for food manufacturers. These include cassia, cognac oil white, dill seed, elderflower, flouve creation (hay), juniperberry, seaweed and violet.

Adapting to the requests of customers, our specialists in pine resin extractions, DRT (Dérivés Résiniques et Terpéniques), now certify their products as vegan compliant. Their popular fragrance ingredients include Geraniol, Fixamber and Sanderol among others.

DRT vegan fragrance chemicals

The certified DRT vegan fragrance chemicals are an important reminder that aroma ingredients don’t have to be natural in order to be vegan.

On the full list of vegan aroma chemicals from DRT are:

• Sandalwood fragrances including Dersantol, Florsantol, Matsunol and Sanderol RH
• Citrusy-scented Dihydromyrcenol
• Floral, citronella-accented Geraniols
• Not forgetting Aquamate, Cyclozonal, Fixamber, Linalol Oxide, Nerol 90, Nopyle Acetate, Terpenyle Acetate and Trivertal

These have broad applications – sandalwoods are popular in incense, perfumes, soaps and cosmetics, while Dihydromyrcenol and Geraniols are found throughout household and body care products, as well as perfumes.

A growing trend

Veganism is a trend that is not going away. At the start of 2019 we looked in detail at the available Payan Bertrand vegan aroma ingredients at that time and we continue to monitor vegan trends.

We also identified veganism – which at the start of the year was boosted by the Veganuary initiative which encouraged people to go animal-free for a month – as part of a wider trend towards natural ingredients and products.

The greater level of interest in veganism than vegetarianism highlights its broader nature – veganism is not just about what you eat, but also about what you wear and the products you use.

Because of this, it is likely to remain a significant trend into 2020 and beyond, especially at a time when many long-term environmental targets and deadlines are coming to a head as we move into the new decade.

Zanos supplies fragrance and flavour manufacturers in the UK and Europe. We are happy to help you find what you are looking for. Email webenquiries@zanos.co.uk
or speak to our Sales Specialists on 01565 755899.