The news that China will no longer require animal testing data on most cosmetics is an important step in the right direction, opening up ‘cruelty-free’ products in a market famously without them, but is it really the cause for celebration that many are making it out to be?

China’s state-run National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has this month released a statement essentially removing the requirement that all manufacturers of imported ordinary cosmetic products also provide animal testing data.

This is excellent news for brands such as Garnier, who just last week pulled out of China in favour of receiving its cruelty-free accreditation and a license to use the Leaping Bunny logo, but the change does not apply to domestic and specialist cosmetic products that do not make claims such as anti-ageing, skin whitening or anti-acne. It also isn’t clear how easy it will be for companies based in the US and Europe to apply for animal testing exemption as they must go through an ‘association’ to attain a ‘good manufacturing practices’ (GMP) certification, whereas manufacturers in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region can apply directly.

According to Cosmetics Design Asia: “companies will still be required to conduct animal testing regardless if their product falls under three conditions: If it has claims targeting infants and children, if it is using new cosmetic ingredients under the three-year monitoring period, or if the notifier, responsible person or manufacturer is listed as a key supervision target according to NMPA’s quantitative rating system.”

All the jargon aside, it is very clear that there is going to be a lot of red tape to get through before cruelty-free brands can get into China, but it is a lucrative market and China itself stands to make a lot from import revenues. As animal rights advocates and staunch vegans, we always look to news like this as a ‘win’, but the decision from China was probably less out of compassion for non-human animal test subjects, and more keeping up with the rest of the world to maintain an important sector of international trade.

As reported in Plant Based News, PETA science policy manager, Dr. Julia Baines, said: “At PETA, we’ve worked on this issue long and hard. We celebrate the cruelty-free steps China is taking to spare animals the pain of cosmetics being put in their eyes, applied to their shaved skin, or forced down their throats.

“The animal-testing exemptions apply only to imported non–special use products, like shampoo, body wash, lotion, and make-up, with certain conditions imposed…So the forthcoming implementation of the exemptions is an exciting milestone, but animals used in testing in that country still need our help.”

In other words, testing is still going on in huge numbers and while ordinary cosmetics - the shampoos, body lotions and so on - make up the vast bulk of cosmetics imported into China, there is still a long way to go until restrictions are lifted on specialist products that command a higher price.

That being said, it is an important sign that the world is changing. China has famously been a sticking point for many brands that have so far not brought out cruelty-free ranges because China is an important market for them. This applies to some big names too including L’Oréal, Clinique and Estée Lauder, according to PETA. There are also brands that many of us think of as cruelty-free in the West, but according to CrueltyFreeKitty.com, are questionable because they still sell in China and where they will still export products that fall under the ‘specialist’ category, including Dove, Herbal Essences, Aussie, Dermablend, Secret, Simple and Suave.

Animal testing takes place in huge numbers for medical research, even in the UK where there are laws designed to “protect” vertebrate animals such as mammals, fish and birds used in scientific and medical research. What this means in practice, however, is that under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986, testing procedures are just counted and published annually in a report from the Home Office, with 3.4 million procedures carried out in Great Britain with over 97% of those on mice, fish, rats and birds. 

Cruelty Free International estimates that the “top ten animal testing countries in the world are China (20.5 million) Japan (15.0 million), the United States (15.6 million),  Canada (3.6 million), Australia (3.2 million), South Korea (3.1 million), the United Kingdom (2.6 million), Brazil (2.2 million), Germany (2.0 million) and France (1.9 million), in that order.” However, there are alternatives to animal testing including cell cultures, donated human tissue and computer modelling, and some of these could be used in cosmetic testing - and in fact, the wording of the NMPA statement does include the acceptance of data from such alternative methods.

When it comes to cosmetics, the main barrier to doing away with animal testing has as previously mentioned been China and its until recent very strict requirements. While it’s not the all-out victory and cause for celebration that many outlets are making it out to be, it is a very strong signal that the world is changing. Whether that’s for economic and trade reasons or otherwise, change on this level is often driven by large-scale trends that begin with personal choice. People choosing to support brands bearing the Leaping Bunny logo and a general increase in awareness of animal cruelty is having an effect on manufacturers, and China isn’t stupid, closing off trade when the rest of the world is changing is not in their best interest.

Andrew Gough is Media and Investigations Manager at Surge.

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