02/01/12 Avon Tests on Animals
Letter to Avon Januray 30, 2012
We are sorry to inform you that we have erased Avon from our White List of companies that do not test on animals.
We were unpleasantly surprised with the news that was all over the media, how Avon decieved their consumers claiming that they do not test any of their ingredients or final products on animals. It is ethically devastating and shameless that Avon claimed such false information only to satisfy their profiting desire. In their confession about having toxicology tests on animals, Avon states how they do not want to withold themselves from animal testing because of their desire to introduce new ingredients in their products to increase the produce profit.
It is quite sad, that a big cosmetic company, such as Avon, is prepared to lie to their consumers, abuse their trust and take their money, rather than appropriately answering to the globaly spread consumers demands to stop unnecessary and painful animal testing. Testing cosmetics and cleansers on animals is forbidden in countries of EU, as well as in Croatia, because of the extreme cruelty to animals and because there are alternative testing methods available.
A trustworthy information on testing procedures is an ethical and legal duty of every producer, so the consumers are informed and make their own ethical decisions about giving trust and money to producers. Beside removing Avon from our White List, we shall inform our members and the public about Avon's lies to stimulate them to boycott Avon and support the companies that follow their ethical principles and do not finance monstrous and barbaric animal testing.
Due to everything mentioned above, we ask you to remove the incorrect information "Avon cosmetics are not tested on animals" in "Contact us" section from your web site in order to stop breaking the legislation by giving false information to consumers. Also, we urge you to inform your supervisors about the great disappointment among Croatian consumers, which will, we are quite sure of it, negatively reflect to the sale of Avon products. The White List of ethical companies is one of the most visited web pages on our web site, and every change made on that web site afflicts the profit of the company because of the citizens increasing aversion toward animal testing.
We suggest you change your outdated politics on animal testing that does not belong in the 21st century. We stay available for further information and collaboration considering the change of Avon's testing methods.
Best regards,
Luka Oman
Avon's reply January 30, 2012
Statements about Avon's animal testing of the association Uncaged on their English we bsite are incorrect and misinterpretated. Avon has been working on animal welfare and ending animal testing for many years. Read our complete statement with frequently asked questions and answers on http://www.avoncompany.com/corporatecitizenship/corporateresponsibility/resourcecenter/policies_and_procedures/animal_welfare.html.
We invite you to refer the question to our public relations first, if you come across any new statements and new information. We will always send you a correct current information.
Regards,
Lucija Josipovic
Reply to Avon February 1, 2012
Dear Mrs/Miss Josipovic,
We thank you for contacting us and sharing your comments.
We are familiar with Avon's point of view considering the animal testing policy. It is clearly stated on Avon's web site, as you told us. The Avon's policy was precisely the reason to remove Avon from the White List of producers that do not test on animals. Unfortunately, Avon has confirmed Uncaged statements, which are neither incorrect nor misinterpretated, as you claim them to be.
Avon highlights that is has ended testing of their products on animals twenty years ago. Also, it justifies itself that its products are sold in over one hundred countries, but only a few of them legally demand animal testing, so Avon would be breaking the law by selling products that aren't tested on animals. The company claims that there are only a few tests conducted on animals.
Given that Avon boasts how it uses alternative testing methods of their products which do not include animals and among which are information obtained from earlier tests conducted on animals, it is uncomprehensive that in over twenty years Avon hasn't tested all possible ingredients of their cosmetic products and that there is a need of some new tests to be conducted on animals.
Animals, who die because of Avon's creams, lipsticks and other products, do not care about what country they suffer and end their lives in because of the wanton and useless experiments, neither they are comforted by the fact that they are a part of a small percentage of Avon's animal testing. To evoke a parallel in ethical thinking, think of the violence towards women that is punishable in Western world, but allowed in Afganistan – does it justifies anyone who goes to Afganistan to beat women? Avon has a clear choice – it doesn't have to do business with the few countries that demand animal testing or sell their products on a market that, in times when man investigates other planets and space, still does primitive crimes over animals for trivial reasons.
It makes us sad that Avon is guided by interests in making profit and spreading the market toward these choises and support animal testing, instead of being guided by the ethical principles and obligation to protect beings who cannot protect themselves or escape from torture and human agression. Avon cannot justify animal testing but rather admit that it knowingly causes animal suffering; that way it discredits all effort it took by now.
We remind you that Avon filled the questionnare of Animal Friends in which it said, when answering the question about its ways of testing products, that it does not conduct animal testing and guaranteed with its signature that it does not test its products on animals, does not test the ingredients of its products on animals, does not buy ingredients that were tested on animals and does not use ingredients tested on animals for the products that they distribute.
Besides this dishonest business practices and deceitfulness of the consumers that don't want to finance companies that test their products on animals, it is frivolous that Avon refuses to state names of the countries which demand animal testing of cosmetics and directs consumers to animal rights organizations to get that information. That kind of attitude is unprofessional and insulting to the consumers who trusted them, coming from a firm with such a reputation.
We hope that Avon will look up to other companies, whose ethical principles are above profit, and stop animal testing which does not belong to 21st century due to their cruelty and absurdity.
It would be important if Avon would change their testing policy in order to meet the international Humane Cosmetics Standard (HCS) and join companies that are listed on www.gocrueltyfree.org. When Avon completely rejects all animal testing, we will be happy to collaborate and promote it as a producer of cosmetics that really respects life and consumers who trust it.
Best regards,
Luka Oman
