A few months ago I discovered that one of the products I use most, L’Oréal, is still testing on animals. For years I’ve been using their hair and beauty products, so I was really torn to hear this. If you’ve never been told about the extent of animal testing, it forces live animals to undergo situations which can cause pain, suffering, distress and/or ongoing harm and disease. Often, this leads to death of the animal. And this isn’t even done in the name of science, really. Humane Society International approximates that 100,000-200,000 animals suffer and die just for cosmetics every year around the world. Mainly these animals are rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, rats and mice. But even though dogs and monkeys are never used to test cosmetics (as far as we know), they can be used to test other types of chemicals. To know more for yourself, read the facts on the HSI website.

“Animal tests for cosmetics include skin and eye irritation tests where chemicals are rubbed onto the shaved skin or dripped into the eyes of rabbits; repeated oral force-feeding studies lasting weeks or months to look for signs of general illness or specific health hazards, such as cancer or birth defects; and even widely condemned “lethal dose” tests, in which animals are forced to swallow massive amounts of a test chemical to determine the dose that causes death.” –HSI.org

After hearing about L’Oréal and realizing the number of other companies who also test on animals (whose products I use daily), I knew I needed to be more intentional with the beauty products I buy. As I did my research on cruelty-free cosmetics, I found little information out there which actually shared the facts. Companies, of course, don’t want to admit if they test on animals, so wording is used which generally beats around the bush. Luckily, I was able to find a beauty blogger who uses facts to share the truth about which products and brands do & don’t partake in animal testing.

Stephanie Kilbourn, a beauty blogger who lives in the states, is passionate about all things that can preserve the environment. In college, she made a drastic change in her life and became a vegetarian. She has now been a vegetarian for over 5 years and is gradually taking steps to become 100% vegan. Through changes like this, she began to learn how her small decisions in life could make such a large impact, such as choosing cruelty-free beauty products. Thus, her blog Free The Bunnies emerged where she writes about beauty advice, tips and tricks, and focuses on her favorite cruelty-free and vegan brands.

“Having a vegan, cruelty-free beauty routine, while a small change in your everyday life, can have the largest impact on the world around us.”

There are so many misconception out there about which products are truly cruelty-free and/or vegan. As I talked to Stephanie about this, she laid it out well for me: “The key to truly using cruelty-free products is to make sure they are not owned by a parent company who does test. I think that’s my biggest issue with information from other bloggers is that they say NYX is cruelty-free but it’s not because NYX is owned by L’Oreal, a company who does test on animals, so ultimately you’re supporting a company that does animal testing.”

One of her articles “Famous Beauty Brands That Are Surprisingly NOT Cruelty-Free, Despite What They Tell You” breaks down some misconceptions. She states that for a company to have 100% cruelty-free status they meet these three requirements:

1. Cannot sell products where animal testing is required by law (i.e. mainland China).

2. Cannot conduct animal testing anywhere in production.

3. Cannot be owned by a parent company that tests on animals (because you are then supporting the parent company).

“To gain certified cruelty-free status (i.e. PETA, Leaping Bunny, Choose Cruelty Free), companies only need to obey Rules #1 and #2. However, most companies who are certified cruelty-free unfortunately have been acquired by a parent company who does test on animals. By supporting the certified brand, you are ultimately just supporting the parent company. This is how major beauty brands still gain profit by targeting the cruelty-free market. Their own brand is not cruelty-free, so they seek out brands that are certified cruelty-free and earn the profit they once lost to those cruelty-free companies or to simply gain more profit they never had before.” –Free The Bunnies Blog

Though Cruelty-Free Brands can be identified with these logos or are labelled as vegan, these can be companies which still are owned by parent companies that test on animals. (Image from Full of Kindness)

The third factor on Stephanie’s list was definitely one I hadn’t considered before. It suggests that there is so much more information needed when picking out cruelty-free brands. And as I have made my switch to such products, a cruelty-free label still leaves me skeptical. Luckily, I know I can go to Stephanie with any questions I may have! On her blog she also includes more of this information, which I refer to often. It includes great reviews of products, and lists of cruelty-free brands, making it easy for consumers to know which companies truly do/don’t test on animals.

As I read through her lists myself, it was shocking to find out other brands which are not actually 100% cruelty free. And it’s crazy to think that a majority of the products I’m using daily – brands I’m supporting by buying their products – test on animals unnecessarily (like Aveeno, Dove & Neutrogena). You can read the full list of famous brands that still test on animals on Stephanie’s blog here. She also makes research easy for us, and has written up a list of brands which ARE 100% cruelty-free (including those which are also vegan). This blog post can be found here.

Now, I’m not saying y’all need to go throw away every product you use which tests on animals. I, myself, am not there yet. I’m not even vegan. If you need to label me, call me a “reductatarian”. I’m doing what I can to gradually reduce the amount of animal by-products I use and consume. In fairness, I also don’t like waste so I’m trying to use up any current products before converting to new ones. Plus, I’ll admit – it’s difficult to part with certain products you’ve grown to love, especially when it comes to putting something on your skin. However, as I’ve been more intentional with buying cruelty-free and even vegan products, I’ve found that there are so many which are amazing! And Stephanie is posting products and brands which meet the criteria of cruelty-free daily on her instagram, and giving thorough reviews on her blog. These products do the job just as well, if not better, than the previous products I had been using. Realizing this brought up a big question for me: Why is it necessary for companies to test on animals to ensure human safety, when there are companies that don’t test on animals and still provide consumers with an excellent product? If there is anything you come away with from this article, please allow this question to sit with you.

Anyways, I’m not here trying to convert everyone to be vegan or stop buying animal by-products altogether. However, I think as a whole, our world needs to think more about what types of products we consume and use. And if you truly are okay with the way they are produced. And if not, why keep supporting them?

Cruelty-free brands I’m currently using which I love:

• • Maui Moisture – Loving their Thicken & Restore Bamboo shampoo & conditioner. It keeps my hair smelling floral and looking shiny for days. This is saying a lot considering I only wash my hair every 3 days or so and I’m always breaking a sweat at the gym or at work 😛

• Botanics Skincare – I’ve specifically been using All Bright Hydrating Day Cream w/SPF 15. Love that they package products to be recycled/reused or compostable. Smells nice and stays on well. SPF is a plus! Also one of Stephanie’s favorite brands which she posts about all the time 🙂

• Andalou Naturals – 1000 Roses Body Lotion. So far so good. Very hydrating, but can be thick and more like a body butter.

• Lush – All their products are fab, but their face masks are one of my favorites!

Stephanie’s Top Picks:

• • Botanics – Skincare

• • Tree Hut – Skincare

• • Wet N Wild -Makeup

• • Colourpop – Makeup

• • Pacifica – Makeup & Nails
  • LAW – Nails

For more information on cruelty-free + vegan beauty, follow @freethebunnieslife on Instagram and be sure to bookmark Stephanie’s blog for easy reference!

Thanks for reading, and we hope you will join us in taking even just little steps to free the bunnies 🙂