“Cruelty-free” is a popular term used to describe a product that has been made without animal testing. Many products can be cruelty-free, including toothbrushes, laundry detergent, lip balm, and makeup. Although it seems like a reasonable feat to live in such a way that no product you own has ever been tested on animals, it’s much more complicated than that. 

Let’s start off with what cruelty-free means. Leaping Bunny is the authoritative figure in the world of certifying cruelty-free products. They explain that when a company says that they are cruelty-free, they might not test on animals, but their factory partners and affiliates may endorse cruel practices. 

An example of this is the brand Love, Beauty, & Planet, which makes its lotions in the United States where it doesn’t test on animals, but sells products in China, where animal testing is mandatory. Either way, the company in itself is not cruelty-free, and this stumps many consumers in that it prevents them from being entirely cruelty-free. Companies that, on the surface level, are cruelty-free, may not always be. So, a real cruelty-free product is one that does not test on animals in any harmful way in any capacity as far as their products can track back to.

Another issue with being entirely cruelty-free is quality control. Many products that use abusive practices are considered to be better quality. For example, if someone were to find out that they have acne, they could be prescribed Benzoyl Peroxide, which is tested on mice and rats, therefore preventing it from being cruelty-free.