At Flora & Fauna, we want to drive change so that all global businesses are ethical, cruelty-free and conscious in every aspect of their business.
We do this by empowering people with knowledge, providing environmental solutions and by only offering products that are vegan, ethically sourced, low impact, and of course – cruelty-free, and we look at parent companies too!
Endorsing and selling cruelty-free products undoubtedly sparks positive change in our society. It offers consumers a better choice; a choice that inevitably saves animals from being enslaved, tortured and killed. The overall number of deaths is staggering when we consider animal testing for scientific research, medical purposes and drug testing. Overall, millions of rats, mice, cats, rabbits, dogs, monkeys, fish and birds suffer and die during these inhumane tests.
Help the animals.
The most significant reason to choose cruelty-free products is to prevent the death and suffering of animals all around the world. Did you know that roughly 500,000 rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, rats, and mice die each year due to cosmetic testing alone?
According to Humane Society International, animal tests for cosmetics include skin and eye irritation tests where chemicals are rubbed onto shaved skin, or dripped into the eyes of these animals. These tests cause immeasurable pain and can cause blindness, swollen eyes, internal bleeding, and organ damage.
Make a statement with your purchasing habits.
By purchasing cruelty-free products, you are making a statement to companies who still test on animals, to your friends and family, and the wider community. The statement is that I, as a consumer, refuse to put my money towards these unethical, outdated animal testing practices. Through sharing these products on social media and with those around you, the practice of buying cruelty-free products will become mainstream.
If enough people boycott companies that still test on animals, we can send out a clear and important message that will create real change. Sadly, many companies have a choice about whether or not to test their chemicals and ingredients on animals. You might be wondering why animal testing still occurs - if an injured customer sues a company, the company can provide data from approved animal experimentations as a defense. Any ‘new’ ingredients or chemicals must also be tested on animals to generate safety data, despite already having over 7,000 safe ingredients to choose from!
The cruelty-free movement.
Many countries have already banned animal testing, including New Zealand - the first Australasian Country to do so. Cosmetic animal testing and trade bans have been legislated in places throughout the European Union, Israel, Norway, India, and Turkey. Countries like the United States, Brazil, Canada, Argentina, Russia, and Australia are still working on similar measures. In Canada 8 out of 10 people are in support of a national cosmetics animal testing ban, and it looks like they will become the 40th Country to do so.
Support ethical brands.
According to Mintel’s Global New Products Database, cruelty-free and vegan cosmetics launches represent a 175% increase from July 2013 to June 2018. This means that consumers (primarily Gen Z and Millennials) are making a conscious effort to purchase cruelty-free cosmetics from ethical brands. I’m sure many makeup-wearers are well aware of this shift. Nowadays it’s easy to find high quality, cruelty-free makeup.
At Flora & Fauna, we stock a great range of cruelty-free makeup, skincare and haircare products from ethically responsible businesses. Brands like Elate Beauty, Dirty Hippie, INIKA, Hanami, Lily Lolo and Acure refrain from animal testing and using chemicals/ingredients tested on animals. Supporting these brands is an excellent step towards living a cruelty-free lifestyle.
One top tip: vegan doesn't necessarily mean cruelty free and vice versa. A 'cruelty free' product can be made with animal ingredients such as carmine (crushed up insects) and a 'vegan' product could be tested on animals so please do your research. We always suggest choosing vegan and cruelty free. And please do check parent companies. We have stopped seling brands where the parent company tests on animals or sells physically in China. There are many other amazing brands to support and we choose to support them instead.
