FIAPO

Cosmetic Testing

The Ugly Side of the Beauty Industry

Did you know that most of the cosmetics we use in our daily life are tested upon on animals for safety? Chemicals are sprayed, rubbed and dropped on the skin, eyes and mouth of various animals such as guinea pigs, rats and rabbits. It is not only painful but also unnecessary since hundreds of non animal methods have been developed which can replace these tests.

Take action today to stop cosmetics testing. Sign the petition here!

For years, cosmetic testing on animals has been an issue of concern for consumers all around the world. Yet, other than the European Union, who has ordered a progressive ban on animal testing on cosmetics, no other country has been able to achieve a complete ban on the testing on animals for cosmetics.

India’s laws neither have any restriction nor any compulsion on testing on animals for cosmetics.

FIAPO is all set to change this by bringing about a complete prohibition on any sort of animal testing! Sign the petition today!

FIAPO has joined the global campaign of “Be Cruelty Free”, in partnership with Humane Society International.

Be Cruelty Free is an effort to bring about a change in the existing laws of the Government along with giving the consumers a variety of options of “ cruelty free cosmetics” to choose from.

But we need your support. Please sign the petition urging the Government of India to completely ban testing on animals for cosmetics. This will be presented to various ministries of the Government of India such as Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Ministry of Environment & Forests and Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Frequently Asked Questions:
1. What are the laws that govern safety testing on cosmetics in India?
A. The Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 hands over the responsibility of stating guidelines or test methods of safety testing of cosmetics to the Bureau of India Standards (BIS). The Bureau of Indian Standards, in its standard IS4011:1997 gives various test methods using animals to check toxicity of cosmetics .

2. Is cosmetic testing mandatory in India?
A. Only cosmetics which use “new” and untested ingredients need to be mandatorily tested. BIS produces two documents - one contains a list of already tested “safe” ingredients. The other list contains chemicals which have been prohibited from using. The cosmetics which have ingredients listed in the first document or which follow guidelines such as those of CFTRA, IFRA or EEC, need not mandatorily be tested but is entirely up to the manufacturer.

3. The tests given in US4011:1997 must be important and irreplaceable then.
A. No, not at all. Europe has witnessed a ban in most of it tests since 2009 and will see a complete ban from 2013. There are alternatives and methods available for all tests. Hence all these tests are completely replaceable and can be humane and cruelty free.

4. How many animals get tested on for cosmetics in India?
A. There are no official statistics present on the number of animals tested for cosmetics in India. Officials say it is bare minimum. Excepting for a few big companies which produce cosmetics with “new” ingredients, testing is done for companies abroad who have outsourced their work to India. According to a few undisclosed sources, only 0.99% of experimented animals in India are those tested for cosmetics.

5. What can I do to help?
A. There are 3 very important steps you must take to free the animals of their pain and India of its obsolete ways of cosmetic testing.
i. Pledge to use cosmetics that have not been tested on animals
ii. Sign the petition to be cruelty free
iii.Help spread the message and share this with your friends and family

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