Are Incense Sticks Vegan or Free from Animal Ingredients?
Incense sticks or agarbattis are items of daily use found in most households in India but have you ever wondered whether they are vegan? This article sheds light on the main ingredients that incense sticks are made up of and informs about the animal ingredients used in their making. Of course, as always, we end with alternatives.
What are incense sticks made of?
The “stick” in incense sticks is essentially bamboo cut into thin 6 to 12-inch pieces. The other important ingredient is the “masala” or paste, which is wrapped around the stick. This paste emits the aroma upon burning.
The masala is made up of sandalwood, agarwood, patchouli (a species of flowering plant from the mint family), vetiver grass, star anise, and cloves. In some varieties of agarbattis, the paste may also contain coal dust and sawdust. These ingredients are ground into a paste with water, a little oil, and a little saltpeter or potassium nitrate.
Are you wondering what’s non-vegan about these ingredients? That’s about to be revealed, read on!
A kind of natural binding glue called jigat powder is added to the paste. The thin 6 to 12-inch bamboo pieces are then rolled on over the paste and dried to form incense sticks or agarbattis.
In another technique of making incense sticks, the bamboo pieces are first coated with a paste of charcoal or sawdust made from Machilus hardwood and then dipped into a mixture of perfume and essential oils.
Are animal-derived ingredients used to make incense sticks?
Well, the jigat powder or the adhesive element, also known as the fixative, a crucial ingredient in the manufacture of agarbattis, may contain operculum or nakhla. Nakhla is derived from marine organisms such as fish, mussels, or molluscs. Agarbatti manufacturers process the nakhla to remove the fishy smell after which it becomes a part of the jigat powder.
Other fixatives used in agarbattis may be musk (glandular secretions of deer), civet (glandular secretions of civet), and ambergris (intestinal secretions of whale). Source
Some varieties of agarbattis may also contain honey.
Are there vegan substitutes to the jigat powder?
Researchers have found that the jigat powder can be completely plant-based and made from a mixture of two or more biopolymers from guar, maize, acacia, or tamarind gums. Source
Need to disclose ingredients of agarbattis
Given that agarbattis may also contain animal parts, it is essential that they be marked as vegetarian or non-vegetarian.
One of the oldest animal advocacy groups in India, Beauty Without Cruelty (BWC) had approached the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) with the request to categorize agarbattis as vegetarian or non-vegetarian and mark them with the veg/non-veg symbols. The All India Agarbathi Manufacturers’ Association, in response to this request, had stated that to the best of their knowledge, no manufacturers in India were using animal products in the production of agarbattis as synthetic substitutes for the nakhla were easily available in the country. However, BWC states on their website that they do “not accept this as an accurate answer.”
Are vegan incense sticks available in India?
Yes, there are. We found two agarbatti brands that do not use any animal ingredients. One is Herbal Strategi – they carry the pink bunny ‘Cruelty Free & Vegan’ logo on their website and further declare on their About Us page the following: “Our products are not tested on animals. All of our products are PETA certified, 100% Vegan and free of artificial ingredients.”
Another option is agarbattis from Sri Sri Tattva. Since the company is an offshoot of a spiritual organization, we emailed them asking whether their incense sticks are vegan and received this as reply: “No product in Sri Sri Tattva contains animal products and neither are tested on them.” Note, Sri Sri Tattva sells cow milk ghee, so this statement is not technically correct.
Consumers have the right to know
Consumers have the right to know the ingredients of the product they buy. This information would help them make informed choices about their purchases. In this regard, it is imperative that agarbatti manufacturers mark their products with the veg/non-veg symbol. By doing so, the manufacturers would be showing respect toward the beliefs of consumers, especially those who believe that no animals should be harmed in the making of agarbattis or any other product.
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