Pearl Creamy Soap, 4 x 90g

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Everyone must of course make up their own minds but our feeling is that most vegans would feel uncomfortable ever buying a pearl. Whether it was farmed or formed naturally 10 years ago or 100 years ago makes no real difference to the ethics and logic of the argument. Moreover, when a pearl has been produced naturally, it may be of variable quality, with the shape, size and type of irritant, just some of the factors affecting the quality of the pearl that will result. All of these factors made pearls very expensive. Usually different types of oyster have a particular use and whilst many molluscs can produce pearls, it is one particular type of oyster whose pearls are most prized. In scientific terms, these are not “true” oysters, which is to say they are not part of the super family Ostreidae. Pearl oysters, or Pinctada, to use their biological name, are part of the Pteriidae family instead. There are various species of commercial importance, of which Pinctada maxima, as it is known to its binominal friends, is the largest. All this science is rather irrelevant as once again, we return to the simple fact that oysters, of whatever family, are animals. But how does an oyster (or other mollusc) produce a pearl and might there be such a thing as an ethical, vegan-friendly pearl? How Do Oysters Make Pearls?

Pears Soap is an ideal way to attain clean, healthy looking skin. It contains high quality skincare ingredients like glycerin and natural oils which moisturise the skin while cleaning thoroughly yet gently. Pears soap is especially made to take care of even the most delicate skin. Each bar is prepared by a unique process of moulding and matured until it reaches pure transparency. Pears is a 200 year old brand. Dermatologist tested. Product Specification At the very least it is safe to say that cultured pearls necessitate the exploitation of the host oyster. Others would go further and suggest the process causes them pain and stress, of sorts. Natural pearls see the oyster discarded and this is essentially the same fate that awaits a farmed oyster at the end of its productive life, and so it seems untenable to suggest that pearls can be vegan. Do Oysters Have Feelings?Pearls come from oysters and, as we explain in our dedicated feature on these bivalves, what we call oysters are actually a fairly wide group of species that have a number of things in common. Oysters, be it the animal inside the shell, the pearls that can be produced by them, or the shells themselves are used by (non-vegan) humans in a whole host of ways, including for food, jewellery and decoration. As far as vegans are concerned, the most important thing they all share is that they are taxonomically, biologically, part of the Kingdom Animalia. If that sentence is too much of a mouthful, let us put it another way: oysters are animals. And, as such, consuming them, harming them or exploiting them is not vegan. Sadly, for vegans, this solution is traditionally made from fish scales and so it is also not suitable for those who lead a plant-based lifestyle. It seems plausible that a vegan alternative could be found that would replicate the finish but as far as we are aware most imitation pearls are not vegan.

Mussels (also not vegan!) produce pearls of some value and whilst the process is essentially the same, from now on when we talk about pearls we will be referring to those from the genus Pinctada.

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If you simply love the iridescent lustre and crystalline shimmer of pearls then imitation pearls may seem like a solution. These do not rely on oysters at all but are instead typically made by dipping a glass bead or similar core into a solution to coat it and give it a finish very similar to a real pearl. Second, it is possible that these molluscs do indeed experience pain, at least on some level. We may in time learn whether or not this is the case but for now at least, it is certainly on the table. Given this, and given that living without oysters and pearls can hardly be considered any form of real inconvenience, the vast majority of vegans are perfectly happy to view them as non-vegan. Are Synthetic Pearls Vegan Friendly? Sadly, even fake many pearls aren’t typically vegan