B. Cosmetics is Cruelty-Free

B. Cosmetics has confirmed they do not test their products or ingredients on animals or ask others to test on their behalf. Their suppliers also do not test on animals, nor do they allow their products to be tested on animals when required by law. And finally, their products are not sold in stores in mainland China or any other country that may require animal testing.

By our standards, we would consider B. Cosmetics to be Cruelty-Free.

Cruelty-Free Policies

Note that there is no legal definition for the label ‘Cruelty-Free.’ It can mean different things to different people. But Cruelty-Free is generally used to imply no animal testing. More specifically, the ingredients, formulation, or finished product are not tested on animals at any stage of product development.

At ethical elephant, we always assess a company’s cruelty-free policy using our Cruelty-Free Checklist. This ensures no animal testing was performed by the brand itself, its suppliers, and by any third parties.

Also, note that Cruelty-Free and Vegan don’t always mean the same thing.

B. Cosmetics is 100% Vegan

B. Cosmetics has confirmed all of its products are vegan and don’t contain any animal-derived ingredients or by-products.

“In 2013, we launched our B. Cosmetics brand – a completely vegan and cruelty free range of beauty and skincare products and we’ve not stopped there.”

Vegan Policies

Similar to ‘Cruelty-Free,’ there is no standard or legal definition for the label ‘Vegan.’ But it usually means no animal-derived ingredients or animal by-products.

Some common animal products used in cosmetics include carmine, lanolin, snail mucus, beeswax, honey, pearl or silk-derived ingredients, animal-based glycerin, keratin, and squalene.

There are plant-based and synthetic alternatives to animal-derived ingredients. But it’s sometimes difficult to know with certainty whether a product is vegan just by reading the ingredient list.

So it’s best to ask the company and manufacturers to ensure the ingredients they’ve chosen to use were from non-animal sources.

Where are B. Cosmetics made?

“I can now confirm that currently B. cosmetics are manufactured in China & Thailand.“

*Note: Cosmetics made in China are not required to be tested on animals. Only cosmetics that are imported and sold in physical stores in mainland China are required to be tested on animals according to China’s animal testing laws.

Ethical Mica Mining Policy

Mica is a mineral that’s used in cosmetics to add a shimmery effect. But the mining of natural mica has been linked to child labor and human rights violations.

Unless a company discloses its mica mining policy, we have no way of knowing whether its mica is ethically sourced without child or forced labor.

So I asked B. Cosmetics if their mica is ethically sourced without the use of child labor and they responded by stating,

“At Superdrug we are committed to the Responsible Mica Initiative, a global coalition for action that is working to eradicate child labour by 2022, by using mica mines that are fully audited by accredited independent auditors, to ensure they do not use child labour. It is a requirement that all our suppliers use fully audited mica suppliers with full traceability for all our Own Brand products.”