Bondi Sands

Last Updated: August 4, 2023

How Ethical Is Bondi Sands?

Make a positive impact by supporting companies with the same values and ethics as what matters most to you. To navigate and find ethical brands, here's a summary of Bondi Sands' ethics and initiatives.

Where to Shop /

Ethical Analysis

Is Bondi Sands cruelty-free, vegan, or sustainable? We’ve got the answers here! Read below for more details on Bondi Sands’ policies.
Bondi Sands is *cruelty-free, but Bondi Sands was just acquired by Kao, a parent company that is NOT cruelty-free.
Not all of Bondi Sands’ products are vegan, but they have some vegan options.
Bondi Sands’ primary product packaging contains plastic. The company pledges to have fully recyclable packaging across all of its products by 2025. Currently, their Pure collection claims to be “100% recyclable” and “made from recycled materials”

In addition, Bondi Sands claims they have partnered with Impact International to purchase portion of trees to offset its carbon emissions. But it’s not clear from their website how much they have contributed and how they’re measuring their current or future goal of carbon emissions.
I am currently awaiting Bondi Sands’ response regarding their ethical mica mining policy.
Bondi Sands’ primary product packaging contains plastic. The company pledges to have fully recyclable packaging across all of its products by 2025. Currently, their Pure collection claims to be “100% recyclable” and “made from recycled materials”

About Bondi Sands

Bondi Sands offers self-tan, skincare, and suncare products that are Australian-made and globally loved.
COMPANY BASED IN: Australia
PRODUCTS: Skincare, Bath & Body Care
CERTIFICATIONS: PETA-Certified

Bondi Sands

This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.

You can find Bondi Sands cruelty-free products at bondisands.com, Ulta, Target, and on Amazon.

Is Bondi Sands Cruelty-Free?

Bondi Sands is a *cruelty-free brand. Bondi Sands 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 Bondi Sands to be *Cruelty-Free.

2023 Update! It’s just been announced that Kao will acquire Bondi Sands. Kao is NOT a cruelty-free corporation, as they allow some of their other subsidiaries to test on animals when required by law.

It’s your choice whether you want to support or boycott cruelty-free brands owned by a parent company that is not cruelty-free. There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answer to this. I encourage you to do what you’re comfortable with.

Below is a screenshot of what’s currently stated on Bondi Sands’ website about its animal testing policy:

What About Bondi Sands’ Animal Testing Laws?

Bondi Sands has confirmed they do not sell their products in retail stores in mainland China; therefore, they are not required to test on animals.

“We do not test on animals and will not be entering any markets that require animal testing.”

As of May 1, 2021, some imported ordinary cosmetics can be exempt from animal testing under certain conditions. However, for the most part, animal testing is still legally required for most imported cosmetics in 2022.

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, or any third parties.

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

Is Bondi Sands Vegan?

‘Vegan’ in cosmetics can refer to an entire brand that is 100% Vegan or a specific product is vegan.

In the case of Bondi Sands, not all of their products are vegan. But they have some products that are suitable for vegans.

How to know which of Bondi Sands products are vegan?

View all of Bondi Sands’ vegan products here.

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.

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 the 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 Bondi Sands if their mica is ethically sourced without the use of child labor and I’m currently waiting to hear back.


I hope this article helped you to understand Bondi Sands’ cruelty-free and vegan status and by choosing cruelty-free together, we can help end animal testing for cosmetics once and for all!

Kindly Share
the Good Vibes

Inspire others to make a positive change by sharing this resource on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or Email.

Share /

Share on facebook
Share on twitter
Share on pinterest
Share on email

What do you think

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *