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How To Ensure Your Cosmetics Are Not Tested On Animals.
You are trying to do your best to be a caring, ethical, consumer. You stick to purchasing what you believe to be are cruelty free cosmetics and personal care products. You diligently check the packaging for a cruelty free rabbit logo and/or a statement that the product is not tested on animals. But is this enough?
Can you trust what is written on the packaging, or the sales person at the cosmetic counter ensuring you that a product is cruelty free? Sadly no you can’t.
If you live here in Australia and truly want to buy cosmetics, personal care, household and cleaning products that are not tested on animals, then there is an easy answer to How To Ensure Your Cosmetics Are Not Tested On Animals and that is to always buy only accredited cruelty free products, that are listed by the non-profit organization Choose Cruelty Free.
As you can see from the look I created on the model holding this beautiful shelter rabbit Jordan, you can indeed get a professional beauty look using accredited cruelty fee and also, organic mineral makeup and hair products.
What Are Accredited Cruelty Free Products?
Choose Cruelty Free accredited companies are companies that have put in the time and effort to go through the process of completing the Choose Cruelty Free accreditation questionnaire, honestly and with complete transparency. They then complete the accreditation process by signing a legally binding contract to state their cruelty free commitment.
The Difference Between Choose Cruelty Free’s List & Other Cruelty Free Lists.
Yes there are other cruelty free shopping guides by other animal welfare organizations like Peta, but Choose Cruelty Free’s accreditation standards are far more stringent and I believe, by far the most comprehensive in the world. Be consulting the Choose Cruelty Free List, this is exactly How To Be Sure Your Cosmetics Truly Are Not Being Tested On Animals.
Choose Cruelty Free’s accreditation process, is free of charge to all companies wishing to achieve accreditation. Companies must complete truthfully, a very detailed questionnaire that covers everything from the raw ingredients to the finished products and the countries they are sold in.
Please note Choose Cruelty Free also accredits international companies that are committed to cruelty free production.
- Choose Cruelty Free will not allow a brand to be listed on their cruelty free list if it is owned by a parent company that test on animals; e.g The Body Shop being owned by L’Oreal.
- Choose Cruelty Free will also not accredit a company if any ingredients they purchase from suppliers to use in their products are tested on animals.
- Choose Cruelty Free takes even further measures to ensure the welfare of animals by not allowing companies to be on their list if any of the ingredients that they use in any of their products, comes from:
- wildlife
- by-products of the fur industry
- from an animal killed purely for that ingredients
- a live animal in where it causes that animal any pain of discomfort
- slaughterhouse by-products of a commercially significant value (meaning the animal was not killed specifically for the ingredient, but that the ingredient was available due to the animal being killed for other purposes) .
Choose Cruelty Free also will not list a company if they sell their products into China. As currently the law in China is that, (with few exceptions) imported cosmetics to be sold in China must have their ingredients tested on by animals.
To see more on the process Choose Cruelty Free have in place for accrediting a company as cruelty free see here.
Not All Bunny Logos Are The Same
Many cosmetics, personal care and cleaning products proudly display a rabbit logo on their packaging. This unfortunately is not a sure fire way to ensure that the company is 100% cruelty free. Any company can legally whack a rabbit logo onto their products, as there is no law governing this. There are also many variants of rabbit logos out there, but there is only one official Choose Cruelty Free rabbit logo and this is pictured left.
Looking for the official Choose Cruelty Free logo is a good start, but it is not enough to ensure cruelty free accreditation. I have seen many cosmetics and skincare brands using the official Choose Cruelty Free rabbit logo, both here in Australia and also internationally, yet these companies have not been accredited by Choose Cruelty Free. While these companies may legitimately be cruelty free and have the best intentions, the fact is they have taken liberties to simply download the Choose Cruelty Free logo and use it. This is actually illegal, as the logo is trademarked. Other companies may not by truly cruelty free, but know the rabbit logo entices shoppers to buy from them.
To ensure products with a rabbit logo are officially accredited by Choose Cruelty Free there is really only one way to check and that is to look the company in question up on the Choose Cruelty Free List. If they are not on the list then they have not right to be using the official rabbit logo and you should contact Choose Cruelty Free and let them know that this company is using their logo.
Not Tested On Animals Labeling Loopholes
As there is no legal laws in Australia, or in the US governing the labeling of cosmetics, personal care and cleaning products as cruelty free, then relying on a cruelty free statements printed onto packaging unfortunately is just not enough. Again, this is why it is so important to support the companies that take the time and effort to become accredited by a non-profit organization such as Choose Cruelty Free.
Important – before you read any further please understand I am not trying to black list the below animal welfare organizations in any way. I commend them for all they do to help save animals, but I sincerely wish they would take up the same standards of cruelty free accreditation as Choose Cruelty Free do. If world wide all the cruelty free lists were of the same stringent standards, then together they could create a loud, strong voice of persuasion to help save even more animals and encourage all cosmetics companies to go 100% cruelty free.
Also with PETA and Leaping Bunny’s Cruelty Free shopping guides, I know that yes, there are some truly, committed, ethical and completely cruelty free companies. The problem is they get a little lost in the list of other big brands that are owned by big parent companies testing on animals etc.
Therefore if you like outside of Australia and PETA and Leaping Bunny are your go to lists, it is very important for you to look into the individual ethics and cruelty free stance of each company listed on these lists and make informed choices.
What About PETA’s Cruelty Free Companies List
While PETA does a seriously, incredible amount of good for animal welfare, their PETA, Cruelty Free Shopping Guide does not have the strict accreditation standards of Choose Cruelty Free’s. They ask companies listed to sign the PETA statement of assurance, or give PETA a statement that they do not conduct or commission animal tests.See PETA’s requirements here.
There are many companies on the PETA list that are owned by parent companies that still test on animals and by companies that contain ingredients that aren’t humanely obtained.. Plus PETA allow companies on their list that buy raw ingredients from suppliers that may still be testing their ingredients on animals, so long as it wasn’t for the benefit of the company wishing to be listed on the PETA list.
Leaping Bunny.org’s Cruelty Free List
LeapingBunny.org are very strict with regards to animal testing of finished products and ingredients, but they too list companies owned by parent companies that test on animals- see their statement on Urban Decay being bought by Loreal.
Where they differ to Choose Cruelty Free is that they don’t look into how, where, or from what, the ingredients in cosmetic products were obtained, they only deal with the animal testing component. – See the LeapingBunny.org Standard For Listing. and here.
Making A Conscious Effort To Shop Cruelty Free
Please help save animals from torturous, cosmetic testing by taking the extra step and effort to shop for cosmetics, personal care and household cleaning products that are accredited and listed with Choose Cruelty Free.
Also be sure to download the Choose Cruelty Free iPhone and android phone app. This makes it easy to consult the cruelty free list when you are out and about shopping.
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Some other personal care articles you may find interesting are;
Botox – Not Safe – Not Cruelty Free – Yes Animal Tested
How To Live A Cruelty Free Lifestyle Checklist
Animal Testing Do Your Part To Stop It