Misuse of Vegetarian Society Trademarks

If your consumers need to know that their food, medicine, cosmetics or anything else meet their personal ethical standards, the Vegetarian Society trademarks can help your customers choose your products above the competition.

This is why we cannot stand for the misuse of our trademarks. Customers, who rely on the marks to know that they can trust the products they use, need to know that the trademarks are being used correctly and accurately.

 We have noted a disappointing increase in the number of lapsed or former customers continuing to use the trademarks after their contract has ended – as well as businesses who have never been customers of ours using the trademarks on their packaging / advertising.

This devalues the trademarks that have been correctly organised and arranged. If consumers cannot trust that the trademarks they see are genuine, there is no reason for them to put their faith in one product above any others.

What is Misuse?

Our certification scheme uses an exhaustive and detailed checking procedure to ensure that all of the ingredients and processes used are in accordance with the relevant certification mark’s criteria. If a product features a trademark without having gone through that procedure, it could lead to consumers buying and using products that don’t align with their lifestyles.

We are aware that sometimes businesses use the trademarks incorrectly in ignorance, rather than malice. Common examples include using honey in ‘vegan’ products. Because no animal has died, some people incorrectly assume this means that honey is vegan. However, vegans do not generally eat honey, and would not be happy to learn that it was used in a product that they had been incorrectly informed was vegan.

Some businesses might continue to use the trademarks after their subscription has lapsed. While this can be entirely accidental, it can also be the consequence of no longer wanting to go through the checking process, while still keeping the benefits of displaying a certification mark. Cases like this can often be seen through the use of an out of date trademark.

We believe that everyone has the right to trust that the products they buy meet their personal standards and ethics. Correctly used certification marks help people know they can trust the products they have chosen. Every time our certifications are misused and used without being paid for, it takes away funds which enable us to continue our campaign and education work for the betterment of Animals, People and the Planet.

How will the Vegetarian Society respond?

We’re taking action against serial misusers of our trademarks. We’re asking anyone who hasn’t paid for a continued subscription to remove any marks from their packaging, and if they refuse, we may be forced to take legal action.

We’ve created an email address you can use to help us catch incorrectly used trademarks. Whether you are a concerned individual, or another business who has reason to believe a competitor may be using our accreditation scheme incorrectly, let us know.

Contact us at misuse@vegsoc.org