Amazing Progress! China to Approve First Non-Animal Cosmetics Test
After four years of hard work persuading the Chinese government to accept non-animal methods for cosmetics testing, scientists at the Institute for In Vitro Sciences, whose work in China was first funded by a grant from PETA US, are celebrating an important victory!
Chinese government officials have stated that they will soon, for the first time ever, be recognizing data from a completely non-animal test method for safety evaluations of cosmetics.
Currently, the Chinese government requires cosmetics companies to pay for cruel tests on animals in order to sell imported and special-use cosmetics in China – a practice PETA US exposed in 2012. The government’s acceptance of the 3T3 Phototoxicity assay means that cosmetic companies selling in China will be able to submit data on cosmetics for this particular test, involving exposure to light, without having to harm animals.
PETA is proud to have contributed to this effort, and congratulates the scientists at IIVS for their critical work helping to end the Chinese government’s requirements for tests on animals for cosmetics.
