Biotech Company Develops Testing Kit For Vegan Fashion Items

Quality control laboratory AMSlab has expanded its AMSvegan testing kit. The new addition checks if there are any animal origin substances in fashion items such as clothes, shoes, and accessories. 

AMSlab has been working on the testing kit in collaboration with animal charity PETA.

The companies can use it to prove that their products fulfil all the criteria for bearing the “PETA-Approved Vegan” logo. 

The testing kit uses mass spectrometry to verify if an item has been treated with non-vegan dyes such as carmine, a red dye made from crushed lice and other cochineal insects.If the concentration of red colour exceeds a specific limit, it means that the colour is of animal origin.

PETA-Approved Vegan logo was introduced in 2013 and is used by over 1,000 fashion brands and designers around the world, including Topshop.  PETA’s vegan label is a way of helping shoppers quickly find animal-free clothing, footwear, and accessories.

Verifying a product as vegan can be a complicated process. The fashion items cannot be made with leather, wool and natural silk, contain no glues, dyes and chemicals derived from animals.

Earlier this year, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) issued new guidelines to help retailers and brands source vegan fashion products that claim to be free from animal-origin substances.

“Today’s kind consumers don’t want insects to be killed, dried, and crushed for their red jumpers and lipsticks,” says PETA Director Elisa Allen.

“PETA is pleased to point compassionate clothing companies towards AMSlab’s new way to make sure that textiles were made without harming any living, feeling being.”

Currently, the companies can use the AMSvegan test kit on textiles and footwear. The laboratory plans to expand its use to the cosmetics industry.