One unethical practice we don’t necessarily speak about is animal cruelty in the fashion industry. Today I want to specifically focus on the beauty industry where animal cruelty is being practiced that may us humans but harms animals through its testing. While we tend to test beauty products on animals mostly for disease purposes, it makes practically no sense since animals and humans don’t develop the same diseases. The main animals used in this testing include mice, rats, rabbits and guinea pigs; all animals that are considered to be unimportant or gross in our industry. Could you imagine injecting chemicals into your fur loved ones like our dogs or cats? I don’t think so, which is why we should end this tortuous procedure to every animal today. At the end of each testing, most animals end up getting killed with pain medication or dying on their own. This practice not only kills innocent animals but practices something that is unnecessary for this industry.
Modern testing methods for products have made it even more unnecessary for animal testing on beauty products specifically. In the United States today, the Humane Cosmetic Act is a bill that focuses on ending animal cruelty for all products. They are constantly talking about the alternatives to animal testing. Some of these methods include human cell based tests and sophisticated computer models. These methods are less expensive, more reliable and quicker to use; factors that play a role when deciding which method to use. Many companies in the U.S have already moved away from animal testing including Glossier, Marc Jacobs Beauty, Too Faced, Urban Decay and Anastasia Beverly Hills. We need more of these well known companies to follow cruelty free guidelines and be a leader in this movement for the better of the industry.
While we see a change in companies moving away from animal cruelty, there are still a large amount that pratice this today. Many companies and organizations are working together to resolve this issue and find better solutions. The Animal-Free Safety Assessment (AFSA) and its partners have come up with a plan to practice in smaller companies to show the government why they should ban animal testing. Some cruelty free brands are also taking a stand and demonstrating safe practices when testing products and sharing them to the world. For example, “Lush, Dove and Herbal Essences create innovative new products safely by relying on modern non-animal tests in combination with existing ingredients with established histories of safe use” (Humane Society International). If we can regnonize a safer way in testing products that works, then we can expose it to the public and inspire other companies to do the same.
Sources
“Ending Cosmetics Animal Testing.” The Humane Society of the United States, https://www.humanesociety.org/all-our-fights/ending-cosmetics-animal-testing.
Zuazua, Rebeccah, and Photo by Madison Michelle. “Cosmetic Animal Cruelty: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” FINE Homes and Living, 21 July 2021, https://www.finehomesandliving.com/featured/cosmetic-animal-cruelty-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/article_22f3191b-8ef2-50a6-962a-c540748a9b43.html.
I think this is an extremely great post. I too remember seeing that it was crucial for researchers to test on animals, however its nice to know that this isn't the case. There is in fact safer alternatives for testing before ending up on humans. It's nice to be reassured this concept.
I used to see a lot of pro animal testing arguments saying that it is a necessary step for human safety. It is great to know there are, in fact, better alternatives. Beauty products don't usually remind us the cruelty behind them the way meat or fur products do, which makes the progress in the industry especially great to see
I feel like animal testing of beauty products is an area where most people would agree it is not right, but simply don’t care enough to stop it, especially if that means jeopardizing some of their favorite products. As you mentioned, I think a large factor of the apathy is the animals that are tested on, like rats, which are not cute. Unfortunately that really does mean they get less sympathy than cute animals, like our pets. Overall though, I feel like there has been significant progress in making animal testing obsolete with technological advancements, which is great.