Animal Free Cleaning Products

When we talk about animal free cleaning products, we don’t mean there are animal by-products used within some cleaners (although beeswax is included in some polishes) but that the products or ingredients have been tested on animals to ascertain their safety for use by humans – particularly where the product will come into contact with skin.
Animal testing has been used for years to ensure that products are safe. Since strong chemicals are often part of the cleaning agent and they are likely to touch our hands, it’s important to know how strong to make the cleaner so it won’t burn us. Bleaches, caustic soda and so on are irritants that can harm us if we use them irresponsibly and several recommend the use of rubber gloves and even masks when we use them.
What Tests Are Used On Aminals?
Manufacturers are obliged to demonstrate their cleaning products are safe to release on the market and in the past this has meant animal testing. Animals are subjected to the Draize Test where the product is dripped in their eyes; the Skin Irritancy Test where it is applied to their shaved skin; and the Toxicity Test where they are forced to consume the substance, often in lethal quantities, or have it injected under their skin.The Alternatives To Animal Testing
Today however, animal testing is mostly unnecessary for domestic products. Scientific advances mean non-animal tests are very sophisticated and a much better guide to human reactions. There are very few new ingredients going into domestic cleaners, therefore manufacturers can rely on data from previous tests to demonstrate the safety of the ingredients in their products. Also, based on a vast understanding of chemicals and their reactions, scientists have developed sophisticated computer mapping programs that can run simulations to accurately determine the likely effect of skin contact from certain products. It is also possible to run human cell and tissue tests in test tubes. It's also worth pointing out the growing lobby against animal testing.What Is The BUAV And How Does It Help?
The BUAV (British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection) is against animal testing awards certificates to companies who don't employ animal testing and operates a list of those complying with their Humane Household Products Standards. This requires the companies not to conduct or commission animal testing on their products and to operate a Fixed Cut Off Date (FCOD) with the ingredients they source. This means they must name a date beyond which they will not use ingredients that have been tested on animals. Some companies have a Five Year Rolling Policy. This means they will not source ingredients that have been tested on animals in the past five years; however BUAV do not support this as a means of preventing animal testing.Unfortunately, under the strict guidelines of BUAV, very many companies and brands are not truly animal testing free, and even reading the bottle may not be an accurate way of discovering if animals have been harmed during the testing of the cleaning product or its ingredients. Cleaning products often carry statements such as “We are against animal testing” or, “This product has not been tested on animals”. Unfortunately neither is a guarantee that at least some of the product has not undergone animal tested. BUAV carry a list of those they approve and those they suggest you avoid. Although most of the supermarket own brands say they do not test on animals, BUAV confirm that many of them have failed to provide evidence that none of their ingredients are free of animal testing.
Products to Avoid
All the big manufacturers (Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive, Reckitt Benckiser, Procter & Gamble and SC Johnson) continue to use animal testing according to their own correspondence with BUAV.Animal Friendly Products
The BUAV approved list of animal friendly cleaning products includes: Clear Spring (Faith in Nature); The Laundry; The Co-op own label products; Bio-D; The Oil Refining Company (Astonish); Jason Cosmetics (Heather’s Natural, Organic Cleaning Products); Aubrey Organics.Between them, these manufacturers make washing up liquids, detergents, dishwasher products, window cleaner, polish and any other cleaning product you could possibly want. Check the BUAV website for more information on the supermarkets and other brands of cleaner that operate a five year rolling policy and for other statements about their animal testing policies.
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