When I was growing up, the choice of cruelty-free skincare products for men was, to say the least, limited. How times have changed. Global sales of vegan-friendly skincare are up 38 per cent, with more and more companies adapting formulas to cater to vegan customers. The number of products aimed specifically at men is increasing, too – partly because, according to the Vegan Society, 37 per cent of vegans in the UK are now male.

Luckily, thanks to mainstream brands like Bulldog, extending your animal- friendly bona fides to the bathroom is a cinch but even if you’re not vegan, it’s still worth investigating what’s on offer.

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You don’t have to do much to avoid animal ingredients such as honey, lanolin, collagen, retinol (an animal-derived version of vitamin A used in anti-ageing products) and beeswax, which often appears in lip and beard balms. A cursory glance at the ingredient list, or clocking
a Leaping Bunny or Vegan Society logo is all it takes.

Big Green Tree’s VirtusTM Beard Balm, for example, swaps beeswax for olive wax, which is just as good at conditioning, and there are plenty of synthetic shaving brushes which offer great results and often last much longer as they’re easier to clean and don’t suffer from bristle loss.

More of a minefield is finding companies which don’t test on animals where local laws demand it, though crueltyfreekitty.com has a great list of ones that pass the remit if you fancy checking up on your favourite brands.

According to a recent BUPA Health Clinics study, many men first explore a vegan lifestyle in midlife, especially once they hit milestone 40th or 50th birthdays. The mainstream press painted this as a “midlife crisis” and if that’s the case, I’m all for it. As much as anything because going vegan is better than squeezing yourself into nut-cracking skinny jeans and careering down the street on a skateboard pretending you’re 18.