Bill S-214: Not All Brands Sold In Canada Will Be Cruelty-Free
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As of late June, 2018, Canada has reached the official halfway mark towards becoming a cruelty-free cosmetics marketplace. Bill S-214, the Cruelty-Free Cosmetics Act, has received an endorsement from Senate and is now on its way to the House of Commons. If the bill is passed, the act will ban the testing of domestic animals for cosmetic purposes and the sale of any new cosmetics that have undergone new animal testing after the bill becomes law.
While we are extremely pleased to see this (finally) come to play, it is important for the conscientious consumer to remember that should the bill pass and become law, we still have the buying power to boycott brands that choose to conduct animal testing in other markets
For example, any large brand that you love and support and buy in Canada could still be selling their product in China, where their product has to undergo animal testing due to government requirements. Case in point, in a controversial move last year NARS started animal testing so they could sell in China. Regardless of whether a brand conducts in-house animal testing or contracts the animal testing out to a third party in order to be sold in China, their cosmetics are being tested on animals in a cruel fashion for capital gain.
Therefore, by purchasing NARS in Canada, where their products must be cruelty-free by law, one is supporting their acts of cruelty on animals. Other brands that are still conducing animal testing in order to be sold in China include Revlon, Estee Lauder, L’Oreal, Johnson&Johnson, and more. By purchasing these products in Canada, we are essentially ok-ing practices in other markets.
We are 100% proud and supportive of B S-214 and all the immense efforts that have gone into getting it to the House of Commons. Canada is setting an example for other cosmetic markets and joining the likes of Norway, Europe, Israel and India that has banned animal testing completely. We do however want consumers to remain conscious about how powerful their wallets are. With many amazing independent brands having adapted cruelty-free ethos from the start and becoming only more accessible, there’s no better time than now to clean up your beauty routine and positively impact the planet and the lives of our little animal friends, even those in other countries.