Byredo (Puig)

Last Updated: March 6, 2024

How Ethical Is Byredo (Puig)?

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 Byredo’s ethics and initiatives.

Ethical Analysis

Is Byredo cruelty-free or vegan? We’ve got the answers here! Read below to learn more about Byredo’s policies.
Byredo is NOT Cruelty-Free. Byredo engages in animal testing by allowing its products to be animal-tested.

Byredo is also owned by Puig, a parent corporation that does engage in animal testing.
Yes, Byredo sells its products in stores in mainland China under conditions where animal testing is still legally required.
Byredo claims to offer one or more “vegan” options that are free of animal-derived ingredients, but because Byredo engages in animal testing, we wouldn’t classify anything sold or produced by Byredo to be vegan.

Byredo (Puig)

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Byredo is NOT Cruelty-Free!

Byredo allows its products or ingredients to be tested on animals when required by law including when selling in stores in mainland China.

Also, Byredo will soon be acquired by Puig, a parent corporation that isn’t cruelty-free as well.

Byredo’s Animal Testing Policy

While researching to learn more about Byredo’s cruelty-free status, I couldn’t find the brand’s official animal testing policy anywhere on its website.

So I reached out to Byredo to ask for more information about their animal testing policy. More specifically, I wanted to know if they commission or allow others to test their products/ingredients on animals, including when selling in countries that require animal testing (like in mainland China).

And Byredo responded by saying:

“BYREDO does not test on animals and we never ask others to do so on our behalf. However, if an international authority demands such testing for safety or regulatory assessment, unfortunately, we are obliged to comply.”

Based on the response I received from Byredo, the company admits to allowing its products to be tested on animals when required by law.

Policies stating, “if an international authority demands such testing for safety or regulatory assessment, we are obliged to comply,” usually imply the company is selling its products in mainland China. That’s because cosmetics sold in stores in mainland China are required by law to be tested on animals.

Is Byredo Sold in China?

In my research, I discovered that Byredo products are indeed sold in a few stores in mainland China.

Below is a screenshot of Byredo store locator showing results in mainland China:

Byredo Sold in China - NOT Cruelty-Free!

But Doesn’t China No Longer Tests on Animals?

Companies can bypass China’s pre-market animal testing by choosing to manufacture their ordinary or general cosmetics in China, but it’s not stated anywhere that Byredo has taken this route.

Additionally, the possibility of post-market animal testing is not completely ruled out and may be conducted on some cosmetics sold in physical stores in China.

As of May 1, 2021, cosmetic companies can also export and sell their ordinary or general cosmetics in China without animal testing only if they meet a set of preconditions first. However, meeting these conditions has proven difficult, and it’s still unclear what exactly is accepted according to the new regulations. So there’s no word yet of any company that has successfully done so.

Follow the highlighted lines in the graphic below to see why most cosmetics sold in China (like Byredo and Puig) are still required by law to be tested on animals in 2022.

Because Byredo decided to sell in mainland China stores, they must consent and pay to have their products tested on animals. That’s why most cosmetics brands selling in mainland China cannot be considered cruelty-free in 2022.

Although Byredo may not be conducting these animal tests themselves, they knowingly allow Chinese authorities to test their products on animals to sell in China.

For those reasons, we would not consider Byredo to be cruelty-free by our standards.

Cruelty-Free Policies

Many truly cruelty-free brands have chosen not to sell their products in China because of its animal testing laws. Unfortunately, Byredo refuses to do the same and therefore cannot be considered cruelty-free.

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, including when required by law.

See below for our complete cruelty-free checklist. Since Byredo already does not meet the last two, we cannot classify the brand as being cruelty-free.

Complete Cruelty-Free Checklist

Is Byredo Certified Cruelty-Free?

Byredo is not certified cruelty-free by any third-party cruelty-free certifications like Leaping Bunny or PETA.

Because Byredo is not certified cruelty-free by a third party, no one is looking into or substantiating Byredo’s cruelty-free commitments and claims.

Is Byredo Owned By A Non-Cruelty-Free Parent Company?

Yes. Byredo is owned by Puig, a parent corporation that still engages in animal testing in 2022.

Some cruelty-free consumers may choose to purchase and support cruelty-free brands owned by animal-tested parent corporations as they hope it will convince the parent company to go cruelty-free eventually.

But in this case, Byredo is NOT cruelty-free and neither is its parent corporation, Puig.

Is Byredo Cruelty-Free?

To sum up, by choosing to sell in mainland China, Byredo must have its products tested on animals. Therefore, we would NOT consider Byredo to be a cruelty-free brand.

Currently, Byredo is on our List of Brands to Avoid – Animal Tested.

Is Byredo Vegan?

As part of Byredo’s email response when I was inquiring about their animal testing policy, they also told me:

“I can confirm the presence of ingredients that are not tolerated by vegans in some of our products. Indeed, we use beeswax and honey.”

Since we do not consider Byredo to be cruelty-free as their products are tested on animals when required by law, we also wouldn’t consider anything sold or manufactured by Byredo to be vegan.

In order for products to be considered vegan by ethical elephant’s standards, the products and their ingredients must not be tested on animals anywhere in the world. Also, they must not contain any animal-derived ingredients or by-products.

Cruelty-Free Alternatives to Byredo

Looking to switch to cruelty-free cosmetics? Here are some cruelty-free brands to check out that are similar to Byredo:

Or want a cruelty-free fragrance alternative to Byredo? Find a guide to vegan & cruelty-free fragrances available at Sephora here.

And for a guide to cruelty-free & vegan candles, see here.

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