The Basics of Cruelty-Free Beauty October 3, 2019
At it’s most simplistic definition, Cruelty-Free Beauty refers to beauty and personal care products that are manufactured or developed by methods that do not involve experimentation on animals. This includes the raw materials used to make the products, too. However, Cruelty-Free Beauty is much more complicated to navigate in real life. Despite the straightforward book definition, there is no legal definition of what constitutes a Cruelty-Free brand. Keep reading to better understand the basics of Cruelty-Free beauty.
A Note About my Methodology
In a recent video from JenLuvsReviews, she classified Cruelty Free Beauty into three, easy-to-understand groups. Like her, I will use the same methodology for explaining the levels of Cruelty-Free consumption.
Bunnies are often a symbol for Cruelty-Free Beauty, Photo by Ulrika Joutseno on Pexels.com
The Basics of Cruelty-Free Beauty
Cruelty-Free Beauty Level 1 | Brands that don’t personally test on animals, but pay for third-party animal testing
First, despite claims on certain companies’ websites, the brands that fall into this category are not considered Cruelty-Free by Cruelty-Free standards. Why? These brands are still paying for third-party testing on their products. Moreover, I do NOT consider brands that pay for third-party testing as Cruelty-Free. As such, I do NOT label them as ”CF” on my blog.
Most mainstream Western beauty brands fall into this category. Prominet examples include L’OREAL, Estee Lauder, MAC, NARS, Lancome, and Maybelline. These brands do not conduct animal testing in the United States or Europe. However, they pay for third-party testing to sell products in mainland China.
On a personal note, I fall into this category. This means that I am not a Cruelty-Free consumer. However, 84% of my beauty collection is Cruelty-Free.
Cruelty-Free Beauty Level 2 | Brands that do not sell in China and do not pay for Third-Party animal testing, but are owned by a conglomerate that tests on animals
The brands in Level 2 do not sell in markets that mandate testing nor do they conduct animal testing. However, these brands are owned by parent companies that sell non-Cruelty-Free products.
Major CPG parent companies include Coty, Estee Lauder, L’Oreal, Revlon, Shiseido, and Unilever. None of these parent companies are Cruelty-Free. However, they own sub-brands that comply with Cruelty-Free practices. For example, L’Oreal owns Cruelty-Free brand, Urban Decay. Meanwhile, Estee Lauder owns Cruelty-Free brands, Too Faced and Smashbox.
Many mainstream Cruelty-Free consumers will purchase from Cruelty-Free brands that are owned by parent companies. However, some staunch Cruelty-Free consumers will not purchase from these brands.Those shoppers do not want to fund the larger non-Cruelty-Free organization.
Cruelty-Free Beauty Level 3 | Brands that do test on animals, do not sell in China and are not owned by a parent company
Many American and European indie beauty brands are 100% Cruelty-Free. These are brands that do not test on animals and are not owned by large conglomerates that sell in territories that mandate animal testing.
Popular examples of indie, Cruelty-Free brands include ColourPop, Melt Cosmetics, Persona Cosmetics, and more! Also, these just happen to be three of my all-time favorite brands.
For rapid-fire ColourPop reviews, check out my ultimate ColourPop Palette ranking, ColourPop Monochromatic Palette ranking, or my epic Super Shock Shadow collection. Across the board, ColourPop is one of the trendiest and most affordable Cruelty-Free brands. Moreover, its sister brands, Fourth Ray Beauty and Sol Body, are Cruelty-Free, too!
If you prefer edgy, prestige makeup, check out my brutally honest Melt Cosmetics Palette ranking or Amor Eterno review. Melt Cosmetics is grunge beauty goals for beauty consumers who love smoked out, high impact looks.
Finally, Persona Cosmetics is an incredible, indie option for any beauty lover looking to build a basic beauty collection full of trust-worthy, high-quality staples. For my honest thoughts on Persona Cosmetics products, read my reviews on the Season One Lip Glosses, Season One Matte Liquid Lipsticks, or Identity Palette.
Overall, this is the brands that fall into this category are the most clear-cut, Cruelty-Free options. By supporting these brands, no money is going towards a company that profits from brands that are not Cruelty-Free.*
Note: retailers such as Sephora and Ulta, as well as platform providers such as Shopify or Woo Commerce may still profit off of brands that are not Cruelty-Free.
Cruelty-Free Beauty News
In the US, starting in January 2020, California is set to become the first state to ban the importation and sales of cosmetics tested on animals. This mandate includes personal care and hygiene options, too.
However, this law has little impact on Cruelty-Free standards. More specifically, brands that do not conduct testing in the United States will still be permitted to sell products in California. For example, MAC Cosmetics is not going to be banned from selling products in California even though they submit to animal testing regulations in China.
Helpful Resources for Transitioning to a Cruelty-Free Beauty Collection
If you want to learn more about Cruelty-Free Beauty or are considering going Cruelty-Free, please check out the following resources:
YouTube is another great resource for anyone looking to go Cruelty-Free. At first, it may be daunting to find and replace holy grail items in your collection. However, it is 100% possible to make the transition.
Consider checking out some of my favorite Cruelty-Free Influencers for bomb product recommendations:
Other Environmental Considerations
Cruelty-Free brands are less harmful to animals in some ways. However, these brands are no necessarily any less toxic or environmentally detrimental than non-Cruelty-Free alternatives.
In fact, many Cruelty-Free brands still use ingredients that are harmful or toxic to humans. These ingredients include sulfates, parabens, talc, essential oils, etc. Also, many Cruelty-Free brand use unsustainable ingredients. Specific ingredients include palm oil and titanium dioxide.
Additionally, tons of Cruelty-Free beauty brands continue to use bulky, wasteful plastic packaging. Brands will use packaging that cannot be recycled. Moreover, can brands with ‘fast-fashion” business models truly be considered Cruelty-Free if they encourage wasteful overconsumption?
Also, there are Cruelty-Free beauty brands that produce products in China, where animal testing is mandated for international brands. Is it ethical to produce products in a country that mandates animal testing?
Finally, some Cruelty-Free brands use questionable or deceptive sales tactics to encourage consumers to shop. These tactics include false-scarcity marketing, and non-disclosed sponsorships. Meanwhile, other Cruelty-Free brands align themselves with controversial figures with questionable morals and behaviors.
To note: Cruelty-Free does NOT mean Vegan. In fact, Cruelty-Free brands may use animal by-products (like carmine or beeswax), in their formulas.
Making a Cruelty Free Beauty Transition
If you are considering transitioning to Cruelty-Free beauty, please try donating or giving away your non-Cruelty-Free products. Some charities and sites will take gently used products.
All-in-all, I have so much respect for anyone who keeps a Cruelty Free beauty collection. It is my hope that animal testing for cosmetics will be banned in the future. I hope this post on the basics of Cruelty-Free beauty helped you to understand the intricacies around Cruelty-Free brands!
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New to Persona Cosmetics? Please consider using my referral link for 15% off your first purchase. If you make a purchase I will receive 5% cashback for the sale, but please know that I’ve been purchasing from Persona long before I had a code. I would never recommend products I didn’t truly love.
Are you Cruelty-Free or are you considering going Cruelty-Free? What is your favorite Cruelty-Free beauty brand? Please let me know in the comments below.
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sophienaylor1 says
October 3, 2019 at 9:09 amI try my hardest not to buy anything that’s sold in China, but I find it hard to do the same with brands owned by parent companies that do sell in China as I feel like I’m left with literally no other brands to choose from! It’s so hard to find genuinely cruelty free brands. Something needs to seriously change in the beauty industry 🙁 x
glamwithkelly says
October 3, 2019 at 10:09 amIt’s really hard to navigate CF in beauty. So insanely hard. I don’t think people really know how much is owned by a parent company that isn’t CF; it really is eye opening when you look into it. I’ve heard there’s a difference in bunny logos too. The PETA one basically is just a bought stamp of approval anyone can get it even if they aren’t CF. It’s one of those topics that there isn’t a clear guideline and it gets confusing so fast.
PoojaG says
October 3, 2019 at 11:04 amThanks for these guidelines I think it’s really important to try to be as cruelty free as possible when it comes to makeup products.
Simone says
October 4, 2019 at 11:04 amI wish I could say that I’m 100% cruelty-free but I have to admit I fall in levels 1 and 2. It’s actually crazy to see how many brands who say they’re cruelty-free aren’t actually 100% cruelty-free. Such as MAC and Urban Decay etc. it’s even stated on their websites that they’re cruelty-free but they (or their parent company) still sell in China.
The Newbury Girl says
October 4, 2019 at 11:14 amI’m not 100% CF either and I struggle with it. The majority of my collection is CF, but there are def brands I have a hard time giving up on.
But for me it is especially hard because I have a lot of international friends from China who love makeup/beauty and enjoy a lot of American brands, many of whom have been selling in China for quite some time. Some of them have even applied to positions in the Chinese offices for these brands. So I would feel bad if they suddenly lost access to them.
Simone says
October 4, 2019 at 5:27 pmOh yeah, that makes it even harder! It kinda feels wrong to take away their access to huge brands.
I thought I’ve read something about China changing their laws so it’s not required to test on animals anymore (so brands can choose themselves if they want to test on animals or not). This would be a huge step already!
jennifertarheelreader says
October 4, 2019 at 5:38 pmAnother helpful post, LP. This helped me learn a lot, and gosh, China needs to stop. Now I need to go doublecheck all my brands!
kattieh says
October 5, 2019 at 4:10 amThis is really interesting. I’ve always tried to buy products that are completely cruelty-free, but it’s hard to know sometimes whether they sell in China! I’m aiming to buy more cruelty-free products this year!
Geraldine says
October 5, 2019 at 7:09 pmWow this was really helpful / informational! I felt it was always really confusing to understand CF because it’s similar to when food is marked organic – not all parts of the process may be CF or organic! this was very easy to understand and I’m glad that you added info about their ingredients and how it may or may not be just as toxic as non-CF brands. Reading CF makes me think everything is natural, organic, safe AND CF. Thanks for sharing LP!! x
Geraldine | https://geraldinetalks.com
Hunida says
October 9, 2019 at 3:29 pmI am definitely Cruelty-Free Level 2. I didn’t know Cali was going to pass that law, how awesome! Now, all we need is China to drop their crazy, cruel regulations. I just think it’s awful to test on animals for our BEAUTY needs.