evidence: Can I get a COVID-19 vaccine if I’m vegan? [...] Do the COVID-19 vaccines contain animal-derived ingredients? The vaccines made by Pfizer/BioNTech, Oxford/AstraZeneca and Moderna that were recently approved for use in the UK do not contain any animal-derived ingredients, though animal-derived materials may have been used in the production process. It is possible that future COVID-19 vaccines will contain animal-derived ingredients. An example of such an ingredient is shark squalene – an oil derived from the livers of sharks – which is sometimes added to make a vaccine better at stimulating an immune response. It will only be possible to know whether a future vaccine contains animal-derived ingredients if and when it is approved for use, and at that point, it may be possible to opt for a vaccine that does not contain them on ethical grounds. Again, this is something you should discuss with your health-care provider.