Vegans are like the extreme athletes of vegetarians. Not only do they avoid meat, but they also eschew products derived from animals.
Vegans can be pretty hardcore about avoiding animal byproducts. Most of them won’t wear leather since it’s skin from a cow. Some won’t eat honey because they feel bees are being exploited.
It should come as no surprise that vegans’ convictions may also extend to what goes on their walls.
Standard house paints and stains often include animal byproducts. For example, Ox bile – derived from the gall bladders of cattle – is used to improve flow, prevent brush marks, and enhance penetration. In the world of staining, shellac comes from a resin secreted from the female lac bug.
Any of these could cause a vegan to balk, so it may be worth adding vegan-friendly paint to your menu.
Paint Zero, an eco-friendly paint company based in Somerset, England, recently launched one such product.
The company’s vegan paint is made from 100% sustainable plant extracts, natural minerals, and salts. Paint Zero says the vegan paint performs similarly to leading paint brands in trials, meaning you won’t have to sacrifice quality.
The cruelty-free paint comes in powder packs that you mix with tap water. The smaller and lighter packaging means there’s less waste than traditional cans, a feature that should also appeal to customers who care about environmental issues.
Paint Zero isn’t the only company embracing the burgeoning trend.
UK-based Kreidezerit, known in the U.S. under the brand name “Unearthed Paint,” also makes a powder-based, organic wall paint.Meanwhile, the Organic Natural Paint Co. offers a selection of cruelty-free paints, though some aren’t strictly vegan because they contain casein protein, which comes from milk.
More well-known is KILZ. The company’s popular paints and primers neither contain animal products, nor are they tested on animals. KILZ latex paints use plant derivatives for thickening and mined minerals for pigment.
So if you only think about meat and milk at the dinner table, now might be the time to check the ingredients on your truck. Knowing whether your paint is cruelty-free could be the difference between a successful sale or a quote that’s dead on arrival.