The Body Shop and Cruelty Free International have always believed passionately that animals should not be used for cosmetic testing, and together pioneered the ‘Against Animal Testing’ campaign back in the 1980’s. In 2013, The Body Shop / Cruelty Free International campaigning led to a EU-wide ban on Animal Testing in cosmetic products and ingredients. Though much progress has been made in Asia, there is still more for us to do.
The potential for animal testing is still a huge risk around the world, with over 80% of countries not having laws against testing in cosmetics. Cruelty Free International estimates that approximately 500,000 animals are still used in cosmetics testing every year.
Rules on animal testing in cosmetics are currently patchwork, with legislation differing globally, leaving consumers ill-informed. Traditional animal tests have never been validated for their use in reliably detecting the safety of cosmetic products and ingredients. There are now revolutionary alternatives such as artificially grown human skin, that are, in the majority of cases, as effective as the animal test they replace and have been validated by authorities.
The Body Shop and Cruelty Free International’s new campaign is calling for an international ban on animal testing in cosmetics, on both products and ingredients – everywhere and forever. It is the most ambitious campaign ever against animal testing, and aims to engage eight million people to sign the petition, calling on the United Nations to introduce an international convention to end the practice once and for all.
The petition can be signed online or at any of The Body Shop’s 3,000 stores across the globe.
Besides signing the petition, show your support to the cause and encourage everyone to participate by posting an image on Instagram while doing the bunny ears gesture and tag: #ForeverAgainstAnimalTesting #TheBodyShop @TheBodyShop @CrueltyFreeIntl
