Progress: Chile Bans Cosmetic Animal Testing
Chile becomes the 45th country in the world to ban animal testing for cosmetics, bringing a cruelty-free future closer than ever before.
Chile has announced a ban on animal testing for cosmetics, marking the latest progress for the global campaign for a cruelty-free world.
The ban also applies to the import and marketing of cosmetics tested on animals outside of the country.
The legislation, known as Bulletin 13,966-11, was passed after a unanimous vote by the full Senate session last month on December 20. It had already received widespread support from leading names in the cosmetics industry including Unilever, L’Oreal, and Lush, as well as the Chilean cosmetic industry association Camera Cosmetica.
“This is a milestone for our organisation and for animals. Thanks to this initiative, countless animals will be saved from unnecessary cruelty in Chile,” stated Nicole Valdebenito, director of awareness and advocacy at NGO Te Protejo. “In addition to suffering, these experiments are outdated compared to new methods that do not require living beings.”
The bill’s passing makes Chile the third country in South America to abolish animal testing for cosmetics, and the 45th country in the world to do so.
Is Cosmetic Animal Testing Banned In The United States?
In the US, eleven states (California, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon and Virginia) have all passed laws to end the sale of animal-tested cosmetics.
However, there is no legislation that bans cosmetic animal testing on a national level, so cosmetic companies in the US are still legally allowed to perform invasive tests on animals including rabbits, mice, guinea pigs and rats. These experiments range from skin and eye irritation tests where chemicals are dripped into the eyes of restrained rabbits, to widely condemned “lethal dose” tests, where rats are forced to swallow high amounts of chemicals to determine what amount causes death.
It is estimated that more than 50 million animals are subjected to painful tests in US laboratories each year. And a large percentage of the animals used in such testing receive no protection under the US Animal Welfare Act.
Many animal welfare groups and campaigners are working to pass the Humane Cosmetics Act in the US, which is federal legislation that would prohibit animal testing for cosmetics as well as the sale of animal-tested cosmetics. Add your name to Species Unite’s petition to urge congress to ban animal torture for cosmetics now.
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