The barbaric practice of testing cosmetics on animals has to stop, said ECR environment spokesman Boleslaw Piecha, after MEPs in the European Parliament today backed a resolution he co-authored.

The barbaric practice of testing cosmetics on animals has to stop, said ECR environment spokesman Boleslaw Piecha, after MEPs in the European Parliament today backed a resolution he co-authored.

Cosmetic testing on animals has been banned in the EU since 2009 but shockingly 80% of the world still allow the practice to take place. Therefore, MEPs have now called for the conclusion of an international convention within the UN framework to support such a ban.

The resolution also asks the Commission to step up efforts to ensure that products tested on animals do not find their way on to the EU market, which would serve to undermine the testing and marketing bans already in place within the EU.

Speaking after the vote, Piecha said:

“Today we have sent a clear signal that the barbaric practice of testing cosmetics on animals has to stop. It’s hard to believe that 80% of the world still permit cosmetic testing on animals and the UN now needs to step in and help bring about a global ban.

“The EU and its Member States have led the way in animal welfare and the testing of cosmetics on animals has rightly been banned for many years throughout the EU. Our ban won’t count for anything if products tested on animals still find their way on to shelves in the EU and we need to step up efforts to ensure this doesn’t happen.”

Background:

• Animal testing of finished cosmetic products and cosmetic ingredients have been prohibited in the EU since September 2004 and March 2009 respectively.
• The marketing ban of finished cosmetic products and cosmetic ingredients which were tested on animals became fully applicable in March 2013, irrespective of the availability of alternative non-animal tests.
• Despite some notable legislative advances around the world, about 80% of the world’s countries still allow animal testing and the marketing of cosmetics tested on animals.
• The resolution calls for the Commission to take decisive action to create an international agreement (within the UN framework similar to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)) to bring a definitive end to cosmetics animal testing globally.