From veganfoodandliving.com
A new vegan interior package is coming to the Mercedes-Benz GLC, marking a world-first for cruelty-free car fittings and increased transparency for drivers
Mercedes-Benz has revealed the first car interior to be officially certified by The Vegan Society’s Vegan Trademark, marking a significant step forward for the automotive industry.
The new GLC with EQ Technology will be available with the ‘Vegan Package,’ which ensures all interior contact points, from the seats and steering wheel to the door trim, have been audited and approved by The Vegan Society. The brand also claims a ‘high recycled material content’ in the interior of the fully electric vehicle.
The new package is a result of a two-year project between the two organisations. The certification confirms that the materials contain no animal-derived ingredients and have not been tested on animals.
This move by Mercedes-Benz is a world-first and aims to provide customers with greater transparency and confidence in the materials used. The recognisable sunflower logo of the Vegan Trademark will also be clearly visible on the vehicle’s online configurator, making it easy for customers to identify the option.
How the vegan interior was certified
To meet the certification standards, Mercedes-Benz worked with The Vegan Society to audit materials across its supply chain. The certification process was thorough, involving testing of around 100 material components from various suppliers.
When evidence suggested that certain components might contain animal-based elements, they were reformulated and replaced with animal-free alternatives.
The testing covered soft-touch materials, including replica vegan leather, textiles, headliners, and carpets. Any risk of cross-contamination with animal-derived ingredients was also assessed and minimised as far as possible. Only after meeting these requirements were the materials awarded the globally recognised Vegan Trademark.
Mercedes-Benz emphasised that the new fittings had to maintain the company’s quality standards.
“Transparency and trust are very important to us,” said Markus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer at Mercedes-Benz. He added that certification by The Vegan Society ensures customers “can rest assured that our vegan interior materials do not contain any animal products and meet very high testing standards”.
What the Mercedes Vegan Package includes
Unlike earlier approaches that limited vegan-friendly interiors to seat covers, Mercedes-Benz has extended its Vegan Package to cover a broad range of surfaces.
Certified components include seat and steering wheel covers, door trims, sun visors, headliner, centre console, and carpets in both the cabin and boot. Many of these materials also incorporate a high proportion of recycled content.
The package will be available to order from launch via the Mercedes-Benz configurator, clearly labelled with The Vegan Society’s sunflower logo.
Initially, the Vegan Package will be available on the new GLC. However, the company has announced plans to progressively roll out the option to other Mercedes-Benz model series in the future.
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