It took a long time for some beauty companies to stop animal testing and gain the ‘Leaping Bunny’ logo that indicates ‘cruelty-free’ status. Recently, however, a few of them are returning to old practices regarding animal testing, in order to get their products commercialized in China. Humane Society International launched the ‘Be Cruelty-Free’ campaign, featuring actor and comedian Ricky Gervais, to denounce the situation.
‘Like me, most people will be shocked to learn that testing cosmetics on animals is often still a legal requirement in China,’ Gervais said. ‘By law, rabbits must have cosmetic chemicals dripped in their eyes or spread over their sensitive skin, causing sores and bleeding. It makes me really angry that this is still going on, and it makes me particularly angry that some previously cruelty-free companies are abandoning their principles and returning to animal testing in order to profit from the Chinese market.’
‘China’s cosmetics market is worth billions of dollars and virtually every major global cosmetic company is getting a piece of the action,’ he continued. ‘It remains one of the few countries in the world to insist on animal testing, so companies manufacturing there have made the very clear choice to test lipsticks and shampoo on animals to increase their profit margins.’
According to Humane Society International website, these companies are, among others, Yves Rocher, L’Occitane, Mary Kay and Caudalie. On the other hand, global brand Urban Decay has decided to not sell products in China.
China is not the only country that requires animal testing in order to commercialize beauty products, but it may be the most important one in terms of demand. The UK banned animal tested cosmetics in 1997, while the EU announced that a ban on these products will be effective next year.
Want to know more? You can read the interview to Wendy Higgins, the Communications Director at Humane Society International, made by Carian Thus for United Academics.
Source: The Independent
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
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