Hair and Beauty Mind and soul Wellbeing

Animal testing, the ugly side of beauty

Against animal testing, growngals.com

I stupidly thought we’d won the battle against animal testing on beauty products. I was WRONG. It was banned in the UK in 1998 and in the European Union in 2009 but pre-market testing is still required for any brand that imports into china. It is also a common practice in many other countries around the world.

Cruelty-free beauty blogs have been highlighting the double standards of some of the global brands. They might put ‘not tested on animals’ on a product but the ingredients may well have been tested separately or they may subscribe to testing on the same product in another market. A grown gal alerted me to the issue on social media and I decided to investigate.

A lot of you midlife women are the ones buying toiletries and other beauty products for your families and you can make a difference. My theory is a simple one – buy ethical products and boycott the big brands so that they take notice. As we approach christmas make sure that the products and gifts that you buy are not causing cruelty to animals.

Leaping Bunny – against animal testingAnimal testing: the safest UK brands

It’s simply not enough to read ‘not tested on animals’ on the packaging. I decided to do some digging around to find out which brands are safe to buy. I looked at beauty blogs like crueltyfreekitty.com and campaigning sites like PetaUK – both of which are incredibly informative and provide their own long lists of brands which are safe to use. They also give you some pretty horrid facts. One thing to look out for when you are shopping is the Leaping Bunny logo from Cruelty Free International.

What I wanted create was was a really easy UK edit – a list of products that can be bought with the weekly shop or on the high street and which represent good value. It is not a definitive list but each of the brands below have strong environmental credentials and don’t test on animals worldwide (each link is to their policy statement or certification). I’ve included cleaning brands too – in case, like me, you decide to do a complete overhaul.

The Body Shop
I’ve returned to The Body Shop and I’m now using their Drops of Youth skincare range which is lovely. Like many others I’d assumed that as they were owned by L’Oreal they were no longer a safe bet. They have remained strong against animal testing. They’ve also recently been bought by Natura, a Brazilian brand which also owns Aesop and shares many of The Body Shop’s founding principals.
Products: cosmetics, hair, skin, body, fragrance, gifts, men.

Neal’s Yard Remedies
The one with that lovely blue packaging.
Products: cosmetics, hair, skin, body, fragrance, gifts.

Urban Decay
Products: cosmetics

Marks & Spencer
Leaping bunny certified.
Products: cosmetics, fragrance, hair, skin, body, gifts, household cleaning

Morrisons
Leaping bunny certified.
Products: cosmetics, fragrance, hair, skin, body, gifts, household cleaning

Waitrose/John Lewis
Leaping bunny certified.
Products: cosmetics, fragrance, hair, skin, body, gifts, household cleaning

Bulldog
Products: shaving, skin and body care for men

Barry M
Products: cosmetics

Lush
Products: cosmetics, skin, body, fragrance

Molton Brown
Products: skin, body, fragrance, gifts

Liz Earle
Products: cosmetics, skin, body, fragrance

Method
Method is stocked by most of the big supermarkets, John Lewis, Boots, and even B&Q. Its the brighter, more trendy, sister company of Ecover.
Products: handsoap, laundry, dishwashing, household cleaning.

Ecover
See method above.
Products: handsoap, laundry, dishwashing, household cleaning.

Astonish
This one literally astonishes me because I love their oven and cookware cleaning paste and I don’t have to throw it away!
Products: household cleaning.

In addition, Aveda, Paul Mitchell haircare, Dermalogica, Sainsburys and Co-op own brands are all cruelty free and against animal testing.

Brands to Boycott

I am sorry to do this to you because there are probably lots of your favourites brands here. These brands are involved in animal testing, not in the UK, but elsewhere in the world. Again the list is not definitive and you can get much more information at the resources links below.

Major companies
You need to avoid most of the brands owned by these companies: L’Oreal, Estee Lauder, Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, Colgate-Palmolive, Reckitt Benckiser and Unilever.

Cosmetics
Avon, Almay, Bobbi Brown, Benefit, Chanel, Clinique, Dior, Lancôme, MAC, Max Factor, Maybelline, Rimmel, Revlon, Shiseido.

Skincare
Aveeno, Avon, Clarins, Clearasil, Clean and Clear, Dove, Garnier, Johnson’s, Kiehl’s, L’Occitane, Lux, Neutrogena, Nivea, Olay, Origins, Radox, ROC, Simple, SK-II, St. Ives., Vaseline, Vichy.

Haircare
Alberto V05, Aussie, Bumble and Bumble, Clairol, Head and Shoulders, Herbal Essences, John Fieda, Kerastase, Nice & Easy, Pantene, Sunsilk, TREsemmé, Vidal Sassoon.

Resources

Leaping Bunny Program

Cruelty Free International 

Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)

Cruelty Free Kitty

The Derm Review

Please share and lets make a better world together.

Avril x

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Photo by Ray Hennessy on Unsplash