Hello,
Some eagle-eyed buns may have noticed our Selective Naturals range is looking a little smaller. And sadly it is. We have had to stop stocking Berry Loops, Woodland Loops and Country Loops.
These products list their ingredients differently for US and UK markets. The lists include carmine for the US, but not for the UK, so we believed that the UK version was free from this ingredient. Carmine is crushed beetles that produce a red colour. It is not not needed in rabbit food, and is purely a cosmetic addition. On further investigation and communication with Supreme we have since discovered that the UK versions of these treats do include carmine and so we have pulled them from sale.
I have always stated Rabbit Retail is a vegan shop, so I find this very upsetting that I have contributed to the death of creatures and apologise to all the vegans that bought these in the past. I have been assured by Supreme, the makers of Selective that they are working on a vegan alternative, but they say this takes time. I have pressed them on this issue, but if you want you can send them a polite message saying you would like the recipe to be vegan, so that we can have these items back at RR. I believe they are otherwise a good brand. Their food is made in a meat free facility which is great, meaning no accidents of meat based kibbles for other animals sneaking into rabbit food packs. The rest of their range, including the new Care items are without carmine. And I will be double checking all new items we stock even more carefully in future.
I could have quietly removed these items, but I think it is important to own up to our mistakes. The world of rabbit care is complicated and online can get quite catty. I was not and I am not, a perfect bunny pawrent. Before RR I went to large box stores and bought items because they looked okay and had a bun on the packet, and assumed they would be okay for rabbits. Unfortunately, this can’t be counted on to be the case. It is on the manufacturers and shops, like us, to do better. Customers shouldn’t have to spend ages researching whether a product is safe and won’t kill a bunny. For instance, so many products contain corn and corn can be fatal for rabbits. It makes me so angry that it is sold for rabbits still. With RR I want to continue to create a safe place where you can shop with confidence for your beloved bunnies.
Therefore I am owning up this issue, letting you know how I am fixing it, and what I am doing so it won’t happen again.
Thank you, and have a hoppy day.
Anna
xx