RSPCA and BUAV call on Europe to not delay 2013 animal testing ban
Lack of validated and accepted alternatives still making waves
Both the RSPCA and the BUAV are urging the European Commission and European Parliament to ignore requests by some parts of the cosmetics industry to delay the 2013 deadline for the sales ban on cosmetics using ingredients tested on animals. This date is currently scheduled to be the final stage of a staggered ban based on the development of validated and accepted alternative tests. The RSPCA is concerned that this could now be delayed until 2018 or until alternative methods become available.
“While we accept that there are not yet replacements for some animal tests, the RSPCA is demanding that the EU Commission respects the overwhelming public opinion and keeps the original deadline,” says the RSPCA.
Senior scientific officer with the RSPCA, Barry Phillips says: “The industry has know for years that this ban was coming. More should have been done to find alternatives to tests on animals. If companies can’t make new cosmetics ingredients without causing animal suffering, they will just have to make do with the 10,000 ingredients they already have available to them.”
The BUAV is protesting against a potential delay to the ban with its ‘Say no to cruel cosmetics’ campaign. It has been joined by celebrities including Pussycat Doll Kimberley Wyatt, model Jodie Kidd, actress Jenny Seagrove and designer Meg Matthews. Retailer Marks & Spencer and brands Bulldog and Kimberley Wyatt’s new make-up range BM Beauty are also supporting the campaign; all three brands carry the BUAV Leaping Bunny logo on their cosmetic products.
Mike Barry, head of sustainable business at Marks & Spencer says: “We know that animal testing is a significant concern for our customers and that great products can be manufactured safely without the use of animal tests.”