This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission.
Is CANMAKE Cruelty-Free?
☠️ CANMAKE is NOT cruelty-free in 2023. CANMAKE does not have a corporate animal testing policy, and they’ve confirmed they export and sell their products in China, where animal testing may be required by law.
CANMAKE’s Animal Testing Policy
When asking, does CANMAKE test on animals? We must look beyond to ensure none of CANMAKE’s ingredients or suppliers test on animals. And they don’t sell in any country or under conditions that may require animal testing by law.
To assess whether brands are cruelty-free, I always start with the company’s official animal testing policy on their website.
However, I couldn’t find CANMAKE’s animal testing statement anywhere on its website.
So I reached out to CANMAKE to ask for more information. More specifically, I wanted to know if they commission or allow others to test, not just their finished products but their ingredients on animals, including when selling in countries that require animal testing (like mainland China).
And CANMAKE responded by saying,
“Regarding your questions, we don’t have the company policy of vegan or cruelty free.
We don’t do animal testing in the processes of the production, however, we don’t know about raw ingredients.
We export our products to China.
We leave the inspection-related issues to our distributor there, therefore, we don’t know the details of the law after exporting.”
Based on the response I received from CANMAKE, the brand does not have a corporate animal testing policy and they were unable to trace if their raw material suppliers test on animals or not.
In addition, CANMAKE confirmed they export and sell their products in China. And was unable to clarify whether they have taken any steps to qualify for an exemption from China’s animal testing laws.
Is CANMAKE Sold in China?
When I asked CANMAKE if they could clarify if their products are sold in stores or just online in China, they replied and confirmed they sell online and in stores.
“We sell our products in real stores and online in mainland China.”
But Doesn’t China No Longer Test on Animals?
With the recent changes to China’s animal testing laws, cosmetic companies can now export and sell some of their cosmetics in China without animal testing only if they meet ALL of the following preconditions first.
- ONLY sell ‘general’ cosmetics (like makeup, skincare, haircare, nail polish, and perfumes)
- must NOT sell any ‘special’ cosmetics like sunscreens, hair dye, hair perming, or other cosmetics claiming new efficacy
- must NOT sell products designed for infants or children
- must NOT sell products that contain a ‘New Cosmetic Ingredient’
- AND if post-market testing is required, then the company must have a policy in place where it will RECALL its products rather than allow its products to be tested on animals
Also, products must meet ONE of the following in order to avoid animal testing in China:
- manufactured in China, or the final assembly is in China
- if manufactured outside of China and then exported to China, companies must obtain the proper product safety certificates and documents
However, it’s not stated anywhere that CANMAKE has taken any steps to meet the above preconditions in order to avoid animal testing while selling in China.
Follow the highlighted lines in the graphic below to see why most cosmetics sold in China (like CANMAKE) are still required by law to be tested on animals in 2023.
Because CANMAKE has 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 2023.
Although CANMAKE may not be conducting these animal tests themselves, they’re allowing Chinese authorities to test their products on animals in order to sell in China.
For those reasons, we would not consider CANMAKE to be cruelty-free by our standards.
☕️ Every week, I continue to reach out to new brands while trying my best to keep current brands updated. If you found any of my posts or guides helpful, consider Buying Me A Coffee! I would greatly appreciate it! ❤️
Cruelty-Free Policies
Many truly cruelty-free brands have chosen not to sell their products in China under conditions where animal tests may be required. Unfortunately, CANMAKE 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, or by any third parties, including when required by law.
See below for our complete cruelty-free checklist. Since CANMAKE already does not meet the last two, we cannot classify the brand as being cruelty-free.
Is CANMAKE Certified Cruelty-Free?
CANMAKE is not certified cruelty-free by any third-party cruelty-free certifications like Leaping Bunny or PETA.
Since CANMAKE is not certified cruelty-free by a third party, no one is substantiating or auditing CANMAKE’s cruelty-free commitments and claims.
Does CANMAKE Test on Animals?
To wrap up, CANMAKE allows its products to be tested on animals when required by law, like when selling in China. Therefore, we would NOT consider CANMAKE to be a cruelty-free brand.
Currently, CANMAKE is on our List of Brands to Avoid – Animal Tested.
Is CANMAKE Vegan?
❌ CANMAKE is NOT vegan. CANMAKE does not claim or market itself to offer any vegan-friendly options. And since CANMAKE engages in animal testing in some capacity, we wouldn’t consider any CANMAKE products vegan anyways.
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.
