Copics update concerning MSDS

Too Marker Products Inc has informed me, that it is their understanding, their raw material suppliers do not test on animals. The Material Safety Data Sheets, provided by the raw material suppliers, are based on chemical substance data that is provided by  each country or governmental institution.

The previous gathered information about Too Marker Products Inc (Copics)is that they do not test on animals in their facilities nor commission other parties to do so.

Since countries’ regulations concerning material safety varies,  insitutions such as ECHA (European Chemicals Agency) can enforce animal testing, if they deem it necessary.  On the other hand, many chemical substances have been already tested decades ago in such ways and the data is already in the system.

Unless a company can give  clear information about the Material Safety Data Sheets, there is no guarantee for either direction being free or not free of such testing in recent time (the last couple of decades).

 

Source: mail contact

Copic – Too Marker Products

Copic Marker

Manufacturer: Too Marker Products Inc.

All Copic products are vegan / free of animal products; in all its components , also including the manufacturing process not just the finished products.

Cruelty-free level: Too Marker Products does not conduct nor commission animal testing from other parties.

Too will get back to me about  Material Safety Data Sheets – provided by raw material suppliers, about whether there has been such testing within the last 20-30 years.

They grade their Copic products as completely free of animal-testing.

Source: Mail Contact

Faber Castell update

Yesterday, I received an update from Faber-Castell. They sent me two statements to publish here: the English Version and a German Version for you to read.  According to those, the vast majority of products is free of animal derivatives.

They are still a cruelty-free company on all levels. They do not test on animals nor commission it by other parties.

I did reach out to them again today, to double check once more that all of the products previously listed in my February 2022 update are still free of animal derivatives and I also asked about the Fude Pens, which I forgot to ask about in December.

 

my Faber-Castell entry in the Compendium

Faber-Castell Vegan Statement 2022

Faber-Castell Vegan Bescheinigung 2022

Source: Mail contact

Quite perplexing …

I do find it quite perplexing, when companies decide to explain something back to me, which I already mentioned in my correspondence to them and my information sheet, I attach to all my enquiries.

I usually do not mention these kind of ‘quirks’ that I encounter, but hey, what the heck.

This week, I was informed – or mansplained if you will – that honey is not vegan; and that there is such a thing called rabbit skin glue that painters use to treat a canvas that actually contains rabbit, who would have thought.

You might just guess my bewilderment having sent this, which does state under animal ingredients both those things.

Reading into the reply, I can only guess they are still fed up with my contacting them five years ago and asking a lot of pesky questions.

all the “vegan” labelling but no replies …

Today I looked back into companies, I had written to in the beginning of this year and also in November of last year (2021);

They label (still do so, I checked) their products as “vegan” or “vegan-friendly” on their websites, in their catalogues or even on the product packaging but fail to reply, when asked about further information. Do they mean the whole product, or just for example the ink in a pen (see my 2022 Guidelines: cruelty-fee and vegan-friendly art supplies for reference; and this is my 2021 information sheet, which the companies in question received). Do they mean just the finished product or do they include the manufacturing cycle. And those are just details for the term “vegan”; then there is the whole cruelty-free status /animal testing topic, which makes a lot of companies uncomfortable, when asked about; so they just do the most convenient thing: ignore your enquiry. Which is a pity as well as bad customer service. I am not suggesting it was why the companies choose not to reply in these cases.

Companies that I, as of August 2022, have categorized as ‘declined to reply’  – after over 6 months to almost a year not responding:

  • Fabriano (for an update;  now label a couple of products as vegan-friendly on their website)
  • da Vinci Defet (for an update; label some of their products vegan online)
  • Léonard /Bullier brushes (brushes labelled as vegan in their online catalogue)
  • Etchr Lab (vegan-friendly labelled products on their website)
  • Strathmore (for an update)

source: websites; non-existing company replies

Golden Paints

manufacturer: Golden Paints

labels: Golden Paints (arylics), Williamsburg Oils (oils paints which contain honey), Qor Watercolors

cruelty-free status: the company itself does not test on animals but the raw materials are not free of animal testing, see their statement here;

products: not clear whether the given information solely applies to the finished products or the manufacturing cycle as well;

Golden Acrylicslist of ingredients containing animal derivatives

Williamsburg Oils (in 2017 listed here as vegetarian-friendly) oil paints : do contain beeswax, other animal derived ingredients: PbK9 (carbonized cattle bone) in Ivory Black, Payne’s Grey, Cold Black; size: rabbit skin glue (rabbit collagen)

Qor Watercolours: animal derived ingredient is PbK9 in Ivory Black; see their statement here

source: mail contact, websites Golden Paints, Williamsburg Oils and Qor Watercolors

Here is my new enquiry information sheet I sent out to all companies as of August 2022.

New enquiries sent out to …

Some of you wanted information about the following brands (here you find my information sheet I send to all the companies):

  • Claire Fontaine, Rhodia; an almost two hours nightmare of trying to get any enquiry through , searching contact information, all filled in forms (different countries) declined multiple times each. I thankfully finally got one email through (fingers crossed if it doesn’t get filtered out), all thanks to a reader’s  information
  • Golden Paints: updates for Golden Paints, Williamsburg Oils and Qor watercolours
  • Simply Gilded : about washi tape and stickers
  • Archer Paper
  • Hobonichi