2016 has truly been the year of cruelty free living. Perhaps it was the vegan hype that snowballed after veganuary. But what does cruelty free mean and why is it important?
In the beauty industry, many products use ingredients that have been tested on animals or test the final product on animals. In the UK it is illegal to test on animals but not illegal to use ingredients that have been tested elsewhere. The biggest issue is brands selling in China as their law requires these products to be tested on animals. This is where the phrase 'not tested on animals apart from where legally required' comes from - 'We don't test apart from when we do.' The reason why it's important? It's horrifically torturous to animals. A quick image search of 'animal testing' will show you a tiny insight into the gruesome reality. The majority of the cosmetics testing carried out is due to brands wanting to sell in China - profits over animal welfare. As more people have become aware of this the cruelty free movement has boomed.
As the movement grew and people realised the truth behind their cosmetics, brands realised they needed to adapt too. Going cruelty free seems daunting but now that celebrities are getting on board it'll soon become widespread.
The most recent cruelty free celebrity advocate is ex Made in Chelsea star, Lucy Watson. Lucy has been advocating cruelty free beauty on YouTube and just announced that she is launching her own cruelty free beauty products! It is important that celebrities who aren't traditionally thought of as being a bit 'hippie' endorse this change because it challenges stereotypes. Lucy appeals as a fashion and beauty role model to so many young people. She pouted a gorgeous red lip in one of her videos and then announced her new line.
"I've been working on it for nearly a year and it's cruelty free, so you guys will have some more products that you can use for your cruelty free collection, but it's the perfect red and it's just really good for nights out and glamorous sort of looks."
Another popular celebrity jumping on board is Kat Von D. Kat Von D made her vegan transition public and subsequently transitioned her makeup line into an all vegan one. This sends a huge message to not only her fans but to other brands. Demonstrating that it CAN be done. And not only can it be done but it can be done well. Some of Kat Von D's vegan products have become cult beauty items, like the Trooper eyeliner. She has also just done a collaboration with Too Faced Cosmetics, another cruelty free cosmetics line. It's not just ensuring that her makeup line is cruelty free, it's being an advocate for it too. Other celebrities, such as Jeffree Star, own vegan and cruelty free makeup brands but don't live by this themselves. Of course, it's great that they've chosen that route, but they could use their influence to change their fan's attitudes to animal cruelty in the beauty industry.
Perhaps one of the most well-known names today is Miley Cyrus. Miley has been voicing her veganism and fight for animal rights for a while now and uses her social media platforms to help promote the cause. While she doesn't explicitly talk about cruelty free beauty, she's inadvertently promoting a cruelty free lifestyle through her veganism. She has 54.9m followers on Instagram - all receiving a vegan message.
But is all of this just a fad? Are these celebs in it for the long run or in it for the publicity? Remember when celebrities were all drinking vitamin water and it was really cool and now no one really cares? Some YouTube beauty gurus have done their token cruelty free makeup tutorials but then continued to promote animal tested products. Despite this, it indicates a concern. It's on our minds and celebrities and social influencers are bringing it to the media.
This was posted from cruelty free blog, Daisily.