Cruelty-free Beauty

You may think animal testing is a thing of the past, but sadly it’s still happening, and the beauty industry is one of the main culprits. Although animal testing doesn’t happen in Australia, some companies test their products on animals in other countries before shipping them to Australia.

Cosmetic testing on animals exposes them to chemicals that may cause irritation of the skin or eyes, developmental abnormalities, cancer and even death. These test can be extremely painful for animals who are not given any pain relief. Animal testing is actually not an effective way to find out if substances are toxic to humans, and we now have many more effective, cheaper and cruelty free ways to test products. (Like computer modelling and cell cultures).

So what can you do to make sure you’re not contributing to cruel animal testing practices?

Look for the Choose Cruelty Free logo. Products with this label have been independently accredited, they are not tested on animals and no animals were killed specifically to make that product.  They even have a list of cruelty free products so you can know what to look for before you hit the shops.

You can also check out Shop Ethical’s guide to ethical personal care products, this guide considers other ethical factors as well as animal testing so you know which products are good for the earth as well as our furry friends!

If you want to find out more about animal testing head to Animals Australia’s Unleashed.