Vegan Certification

Vegan Certification for Food, Supplements and Cosmetics

Independent verification that your product contains no animal-derived ingredients and is not tested on animals by or for your company, through a remote document review.

Every ingredient checked for animal origin, including carriers and processing aids
Supplier declarations read by a person
Free quote, scoped to your products

Get a quote scoped to your products

Certification: Vegan

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PhoneWe call only about this request. Include your country code if you are outside the US.

What do you make?

The quote is free and carries no obligation. Nothing is payable until you approve it in writing.

We use your details to prepare and send your quote, and to measure our advertising. Privacy notice

Does your retailer require a specific vegan trademark by name? Then that requirement decides. See who this is for

500+ facilities certified by our team across its programs since 2016

What a vegan certificate does for your product

Vegan certification answers the question buyers ask after they read your label: who verified it?

A claim your buyer can check

A self-declared “vegan” flag costs nothing and proves nothing. A numbered certificate lets a buyer check who verified the claim and see the certificate's current status.

Traces the inputs your label never shows

Animal-derived inputs arrive as colors, carriers, coatings, clarifying agents and vitamin sources, often two or three steps up the supply chain. The review traces them through signed declarations from the party that actually knows.

Gaps get named, not punished

If a document is missing, the reviewer names it, you send it, and the review resumes. Gaps pause the clock; they do not end the review.

One mark across your categories

The vegan mark covers food, beverage, supplements and cosmetics.

How the vegan review is controlled

Signed declarations, not label reading

The review runs on signed supplier declarations for every ingredient with possible animal origin, read by a reviewer against the requirements for the mark.

Requirements set out before you start

The requirements for this mark are set out on this page, so you see what the review will ask for before you send a document.

A named contact, a committee decision

A named contact at V-Cert handles your file end to end. The certification decision is made by a certification committee.

A certificate anyone can check

Every certificate carries its own number and a QR code. Your buyer can check it on the V-Cert verification portal with no account, and the check returns the certificate's current status.

Plain about accreditation

V-Cert is an independent certification body and is not ISO/IEC 17065 accredited. What each mark requires and the rules for granting, suspending and withdrawing certificates are published, and every certificate is verifiable by QR code.

NDA on request

We sign an NDA on request, before you send documents.

Track record — clients certified by our team across its programs since 2016

Vegan certification requirements

What the reviewer checks before a certificate is issued.

No ingredients, additives, carriers or processing aids of animal origin
No testing of the finished product or its ingredients on animals, by or for the company, within scope
Signed supplier declarations for every ingredient with possible animal origin
Cross-contact controls documented where lines share animal-derived inputs
Mark used only on certified products — never as a company-wide claim

Core documents to prepare

A complete ingredient list per product
Ingredient specifications
Supplier declarations for any input with possible animal origin
Documented cross-contact controls, where lines share animal-derived inputs
Documented policies on animal testing for the finished product and its ingredients

Your reviewer confirms the full list for your scope.

Where animal-derived ingredients hide

Carmine (E120) in red and pink shades
Gelatin in capsules, gummies, glazes and clarified juices
Casein and whey in flavor carriers and protein blends
Isinglass as a clarifying agent in juice and beverage processing
Vitamin D3 from lanolin in fortified foods and supplements
Shellac and beeswax in glazes and coatings

The vegan certification process

Request and approve your quote
Tell us what you make. No documents at this stage. Your quote comes back scoped to your products, with its payment terms, and nothing is payable until you approve it in writing.
Send your documents
Once you approve the quote, you send the file: formulations, supplier declarations and the evidence listed in the requirements above.
Desk review
A reviewer reads every document against the requirements for the mark. Gaps pause the clock, they do not end the review — you get the name of the missing document, not a rejection.
Decision and certificate
The certification decision is made by a certification committee. A pass issues your certificate and the mark artwork in four formats. A shortfall is written up with exactly what is missing, and your file stays open.
Verify and renew
Your certificate carries its own number and a QR code that anyone can check, with no account. Certificates run for 12 months and are renewed annually.

Typical timeline: digital certificate within 7 business days of a complete application and documentation, for standard scopes. If your scope needs physical verification, it gets its own written timeline up front. Business days are Monday to Friday.

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Adding another mark to the same review

Every vegan product is vegetarian by definition, non-GMO shares most of the same origin paperwork, and cosmetics files can add Cruelty-Free to the same review. Marks reviewed together are quoted as one annual fee. Mention it under the optional details in the form.

VegetarianNon-GMOCruelty-Free

Is V-Cert vegan certification right for you?

V-Cert may be a fit if…

You make food or beverages and are launching or relabeling vegan products
You make supplements and are replacing gelatin, lanolin or fish-derived inputs
You make cosmetics and want vegan and cruelty-free in one review
You sell private-label cosmetics and can put the manufacturer's documentation in the file

V-Cert is not the right fit if…

Your retail program requires a specific vegan trademark by name
Your contract requires an on-site audit scheme
You need an allergen or “free-from” guarantee. The vegan mark verifies ingredient origin through documents; it is not an allergen claim
You are looking for a vegan logo to download or a list of vegan products. V-Cert certifies products for manufacturers and brands

Not sure which side you are on? Add a line under the optional details in the form. A V-Cert certificate does not guarantee acceptance by any retailer. If your buyer requires a specific program by name, or an on-site audit scheme, we tell you before you pay anything.

Questions about vegan certification

How is V-Cert different from the Vegan Society trademark or V-Label?

They are separate programs with separate owners, and we claim no equivalence to either. If a retailer requires a specific trademark by name, that requirement decides. Send it to us and we will answer plainly. A V-Cert certificate does not guarantee acceptance by any retailer.

Is vegan the same as cruelty-free?

No. The vegan mark verifies ingredient origin, and it also requires that the product and its ingredients are not tested on animals by or for your company, within the certificate's scope. The Cruelty-Free mark goes further on testing: supplier declarations for the ingredient grades you buy and a dated cut-off policy. A product can meet one and not the other, for example a cruelty-free formula that contains beeswax. One review can verify both marks.

What documents do we need for vegan certification?

A complete ingredient list per product, ingredient specifications, and supplier declarations for any input with possible animal origin. Your reviewer confirms the full list for your scope.

Does vegan certification cover cosmetics and supplements?

Yes. The vegan mark covers food, beverage, supplements and cosmetics. Cosmetics files can add the Cruelty-Free mark in the same review.

Is this a plant-based certification?

The certificate states “vegan”, not “plant-based”. The vegan mark verifies that a product contains no animal-derived ingredients and is not tested on animals by or for the company. If that is the claim you want to make, this is the certification for it.

Does the V-Cert vegan mark replace India's FSSAI vegan logo?

No. In India a food may only be sold as vegan with FSSAI's approval and its vegan logo. A third-party mark adds independent verification on top of FSSAI compliance; it never replaces it.

Can private-label cosmetics be certified?

Yes, with the manufacturer's documentation in the file. We review the formulation and supplier declarations from your manufacturer, under NDA on request.

We use a co-packer. Can our products still be certified?

Yes, when the co-packer's controls are documented. The reviewer looks at cross-contact controls on shared lines and asks the co-packer for the same supplier declarations.

How do we get vegan certified?

Request a quote, approve it, and send your documents. A reviewer works through the file remotely, a certification committee makes the decision, and a pass issues a numbered certificate. The steps are set out in the process section above.

What does vegan certification cost?

There is no public price list. Your quote is one annual fee, scoped to the marks you choose, what you make, and the number of products and production sites. Requesting a quote costs nothing and carries no obligation. Nothing is payable until you approve the quote in writing, and the payment terms are set out in the quote. Quotes are issued in US dollars.

How long does vegan certification take?

Typical timeline: digital certificate within 7 business days of a complete application and documentation, for standard scopes. The clock starts when your application and documents are complete. If something is missing, the reviewer names it and the clock pauses until it arrives. If your scope needs physical verification, it gets its own written timeline up front.

Is the review remote, or do you visit our site?

The standard review is remote: a reviewer reads your documents, formulations and supplier declarations. There is no on-site audit unless your quote states one. If your buyer's contract requires an on-site audit scheme, V-Cert is not the right fit, and we tell you at the quote stage, before you pay anything.

Does requesting a quote mean we are certified?

No. A quote request is not a certification. Certification is granted only after your complete file has been reviewed and the certification decision has been made. If the file falls short, you get a written list of exactly what is missing.

How long is the certificate valid?

Certificates run for 12 months and are renewed annually. Renewal is the same annual fee stated in your quote, re-confirmed each year for the same scope.

Is V-Cert accredited?

Where is V-Cert based, and which countries do you work with?

Headquartered in New York. Certifying manufacturers worldwide — remote desk review in any time zone.

Get a vegan certification quote for your products

Tell us what you make. You get a free quote for a vegan review of your ingredients and supplier declarations, scoped to your products, and a plain answer if V-Cert is not the right fit for your buyer.