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You can find Fenty Beauty cruelty-free products at fentybeauty.com and Sephora.
Fenty Beauty is *Cruelty-Free
Fenty Beauty 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 Fenty Beauty to be *Cruelty-Free.
Below is a snippet of the email response I received from Fenty Beauty:
“Fenty Beauty + Fenty Skin does not test our products on animals, nor do we test the ingredients on animals. Our manufacturers do not test our products on animals. We sell the same products in Europe and the cosmetic regulations in the EU require that we (and our manufacturers) do NOT test products on animals.
In addition, we are NOT allowed to use raw materials that are tested on animals for cosmetic purposes.”
Fenty Beauty Owned by Animal-Tested Parent Company
*Fenty Beauty is owned by Kendo. And Kendo is owned by LVMH, a corporation that is NOT cruelty-free because they allow some of their other brands to test on animals.
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, but I think it’s important to disclose that LVMH owns Fenty Beauty.
What About China’s Animal Testing Laws?
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 2021.
But Fenty Beauty has confirmed they only sell their products online or in Hong Kong and Macau but not in retail stores in mainland China; therefore, they are not required to test on animals.
Since Hong Kong and Macau are not part of mainland China, they do not have the same animal testing laws. Also, cosmetics sold online, including online Chinese retailers like Tmall, do not require animal testing. Fenty Beauty is not selling in physical stores in mainland China so that they can remain 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, or any third parties.
Also, note that Cruelty-Free and Vegan don’t always mean the same thing.
Fenty Beauty is Not 100% Vegan
‘Vegan’ in cosmetics can refer to an entire brand that is 100% Vegan or a specific product is vegan.
In the case of Fenty Beauty, not all of their products are vegan. But they have some products that are suitable for vegans.
Note that Fenty Beauty (the makeup line) is not 100% vegan. But Fenty Skin (the skincare line) is all vegan.
How to know which of Fenty Beauty products are vegan?
All of Fenty Beauty’s vegan products are clearly marked on their website. See below for an example.
Vegan Policies
Similar to ‘Cruelty-Free,’ there is no standard or legal definition for the label ‘Vegan.’ But it’s usually used in the context to describe something that doesn’t contain any 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 Fenty Beauty if their mica is ethically sourced without the use of child labor and they responded by stating,
“Fenty Beauty is committed to only use natural mica from mines that comply with human rights and labor standards. We make every effort to ensure the traceability and transparency of our supply chains for the natural mica used in our products.“
