SHARK FREE SEAL OF APPROVAL
WE ARE URGING BRANDS AND MANUFACTURERS TO SWITCH TO SUSTAINABLE SQUALENE ALTERNATIVES.
The Shark Free Products campaign is in a completely different structure than what Shark Allies is used to with shark fin trade bans. When the team sets out to pass shark fin trade legislation, we have one goal in mind, and we usually have an end date. All of that of course ebbs and flows with those involved in the legislature. The leading cause of shark population decline is due to the fin trade, claiming 100 million sharks per year. The squalene industry is responsible for a fraction of that, 3 million sharks per year, but that is not to say that it is not worth tackling, it is.
With Shark Free Products, we have a new plan in place. This campaign is not rooted in legislation, although it very easily could end up there. We want to keep our focus on shark fin trade bans from the top and drive down the squalene industry from the inside: the brands, manufacturers and the consumers. The overarching goal of this campaign is to have the consumer think of sharks in their cosmetics just as they do with seeking out vegan products, ones free of parabens or a Leaping Bunny certification. In order to qualify as “Shark Free” a brand, product or manufacturer needs to either not use squalene at all, or if squalene is used, it is plant-derived with the source listed on the ingredient list. And there is the tier system for getting it done…
BRANDS
Step 1: Does your product contain squalene? If yes, proceed to step 2. If no squalene is involved, does your company care to make a statement that you are Shark Free? Great, that is what our label is for, contact us to become a part of the Shark Free team. Take a stand for sharks and slap it on your products!
Step 2: Okay, so your product contains squalene, that’s potentially okay! Does the ingredients list specify where it comes from (i.e. shark, sugar, olive)?
If yes, fantastic, does your company want to take a stand for sharks and put the Shark Free seal on your products? Regardless of a Shark Free seal or not, specifying the source of squalene gets a company on our “Good List.” Contact us if you would like to become a part of the Shark Free team, or at the very least, be listed on our “Good List.”
If your product does not list the squalene source, and it is plant-derived, can you change your labeling? This is important to let consumers know what they are putting on and in their bodies. Contact us if you have added the squalene source or are looking to make the change.
Step 3: Your company uses shark-derived squalene, well, that’s NOT okay. But if you’re willing to make the switch, check out our blog on all of the alternatives to shark-derived squalene. The Shark Allies team would love to highlight your company for taking this important step towards preserving our oceans.
WHO SPORTS THE SHARK FREE LABEL?
Stream2Sea — Leading reef safe skincare brand
Products: Super Hydration Squalene oil & Nourishing After Sun Body Lotion
Vitalibis — A Socially Conscious CBD Wellness Brand
Products: Re-Vitalizing Face Wash, Re-Vitalizing Eye Cream & Re-Vitalizing Face Cream
Tritera — High-purity, Premium Squalene-based Skincare Products
Products: Pure Squalene Serum and Optimal Antioxidant Serum
Mokai — Inspiring Healthier Pets Through Real and Sustainable Ingredients
All products!
Xeno — Natural Cosmetics, As Natural as Your Skin (Germany)
Product: Save the Ocean - Squalane from Sugar Cane
WHAT IS SHARK SAFE?
As you know well by now, there are countless products that sharks are used for, including decoration like jaws or jewelry. But just because you want to wear a shark tooth necklace, doesn’t necessarily mean it is promoting the overfishing of sharks. How can you tell? Typically the color of the shark tooth is the giveaway, fossils have a dark or colorful pigment, whereas new teeth are white. Most sharks have 5 rows of teeth, and can have as many as 3,000 teeth at once, all while losing up to 100 per day. So if you’re a diver and find a white tooth on the ocean floor, that’s one story. If you’re in the souvenir store next the dive shop looking at a white tooth necklace, that’s a whole other story. When in doubt, avoid white teeth! Because a shark fossil necklaces or candles aren’t technically “shark free,” we have come up with an additional “shark safe” seal for these shark-loving brands! So far our allies include shark fossil candle company, Maya Bleu, gold-dipped shark fossil jewelry company, Fin Montauk, and fossilized jewelry by our partners at Finatics.
Shark Allies does not claim that “Shark Free” is a certification process, but a grassroots effort based on mutual trust and a whole lot of research on our end. A company may NOT use the Shark Free Seal until they have proved sourcing with a formal Certificate of Analysis from the squalene/squalane provider.