States mull bans on cosmetic products tested on animals

Several U.S. states are in the process of making a pledge to ban the sale or purchase of cosmetics that have been tested on animals, according to an AP report.

Nevada, California and Illinois all saw laws passed and take effect this year that will ban the sale and import of animal-tested cosmetic products. 

Democratic Nevada State Sen. Melanie Scheible sponsored the Nevada ban and told animal rights advocacy group PETA that “the time has come to make cruel cosmetics a thing of the past and I am proud that Nevada is leading the way.”

While most companies have reportedly shifted away from testing on animals, none of the laws are expected to have a major impact on the cosmetics industry.

What the laws do put pressure on, however, is for the U.S. federal government to outlaw animal testing on a national scale and for China to end regulations that cosmetic products must be tested on animals. 

Sen. Scheible is quoted in the AP article as saying: “We are trying to join a group of other communities that have stood up and said, ‘We don’t support animal testing.’”

Despite this stance, the new state bans each have a clause exempting cosmetics that are required by foreign regulations to test on animals. This notable exception is a direct nod to China, whose gargantuan market is valuable to American cosmetics companies. 

China’s animal testing policy is fairly rigid, applying to all imported cosmetics such as makeup, perfume and hair care products, as well as some goods like sunscreen or teeth whitening products. 

Each of the new bans in Nevada, California and Illinois requires cosmetics sellers and manufacturers to use non-animal tests to confirm their products are safe for human use. Ideally, products will be applied to synthetic materials that resemble flesh to determine if it will cause any skin irritation or damage, per the article.

Some innovative companies have already worked around animal testing, namely MatTek Corporation and its product EpiDerm, which is exactly the type of synthetic skin tissue for testing in lieu of animals. 

Multiple drug and cosmetics companies, such as Procter & Gamble, as well as Avon, use EpiDerm for their product testing. 

In terms of a national bill, banning animal testing across the U.S. has been introduced in Congress in 2014, including support from business organizations. Should a national ban be enacted, it would likely also exempt cosmetics required to be tested with animals per Chinese regulations. Sellers would be able to sell them as long as they were retested in a cruelty-free way. 

Other states slated to adopt similar legislation are Hawaii, Maryland, New York, Virginia and New Jersey, joining countries in Europe and India that have already taken steps to ban products made with animal testing.