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Is Foreo Cruelty-Free?
❓It is unclear whether Foreo is truly cruelty-free or animal-tested. Therefore, Foreo is listed as Grey Area – Brands with Unclear Policies.
To be a truly cruelty-free brand, companies must meet all of the following:
- Company does not test its products or ingredients on animals or ask others to test on its behalf
- Company can ensure none of its ingredient suppliers test on animals
- Company does not allow or sell its products under conditions where animal testing is required by law
Based on our research, Foreo has not met all of the above cruelty-free criteria. For those reasons, we are unable to classify Foreo as a truly cruelty-free brand.
Learn more about our findings and why Foreo’s cruelty-free policy is unclear below.
Foreo’s Animal Testing Policy
When asking, does Foreo test on animals? We must look beyond to ensure none of Foreo’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 Foreo’s animal testing statement anywhere on its website.
So I reached out to Foreo to ask for more information about their cruelty-free policy. 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 Foreo responded by saying:
“Products that we can claim are vegan & cruelty-free:
Our products are not tested on animals, and we have statements confirming that; Devices, F2F masks, Micro-Foam cleansers, Daily Duo & Advanced Masks.
All our new cosmetics: FOREO LUNA – Ultra-Nourishing Cleansing Balm, FOREO SUPERCHARGED – HA+PGA Triple, FOREO SUPERCHARGED – Ultra-Hydrating
Sleeping Mask, FOREO IRIS – C-Concentrated Brightening Eye Cream, FOREO IRIS – Firming PM Eye Serum, FOREO IRIS – Eyelashes Serum is non-animal tested & do not contain any raw material/ingredient derived from animals.
And for those, we have all the required documentation.
Products that we can’t claim are vegan:
SERUM SERUM SERUM, Youth Junkie Masks (collagen derived from fish skin), Glow Addict (Pearl extract), Manuka Honey (Honey extract), and Bulgarian Rose (Silk Amino Acids) are not vegan.
In reality, most of our masks are vegan but we don’t have certifications from our manufacturer so we can’t claim it.”
In Foreo’s response, they provided a list of their products that are not tested on animals and a list of products that are not vegan. However, I wanted to know if there was perhaps a list of products that were tested on animals.
So I asked Foreo if any of their products are NOT cruelty-free and that may have been tested on animals.
Foreo responded and said, “The products we cannot claim are vegan, mentioned in the previous email, are also products we cannot claim are cruelty-free. Therefore, they may have been tested on animals.”
Update! Foreo reached out to me again and told me the information they shared was not entirely correct. With the new information provided, I have decided to move Foreo from an Animal-Tested brand to a Grey Area Brand.
See below for an updated statement:
“Unfortunately, the information that was shared with you was not entirely correct and we apologise if this has caused any inconvenience or discomfort.
I would like to share more insight and valid answers on the questions you have had to clear out any misunderstandings that may have happened throughout previous correspondence.
I am happy to say that we can confirm that none of our products are tested on animals and we do have internal documentation to support these claims.
In regards to our products being tested on animals in countries in which this practice is abide by the law, we can confirm that we do not produce products or ingredients in countries where they require animal testing.
Our products are sold worldwide, therefore we do have our products sold in the retail shops in China.
When it comes to vegan products in our range and which are not considered vegan we can claim that all of our products are vegan, except these:
Glow Addict UFO™ activated mask (because it contains pearl extract, for which there is no synthetic substitute yet)
Manuka Honey UFO™ activated mask (because it contains honey, for which there is no synthetic substitute yet)
Bulgarian Rose UFO™ activated mask (because it contains silk)
Take our apologies once more for providing you with incorrect information as we always thrive to inform our customers to our best ability and always provide correct and verified information.”
I was glad to hear that Foreo claims none of their products are tested on animals and they have documentations to support those claims. However, Foreo admits it sells in retail shops in China. This concerns me as animal testing is still required for some cosmetics in China.
I asked Foreo what steps they have taken to avoid animal tests while selling in China, and they told me:
“FOREO has avoided animal testing in all cases and can confirm cruelty-free status.
We were also informed by our Product Development that Animal testing has not been required for ‘general’ (non-functional) cosmetics sold in China for a couple of years now.”
It is true that ‘general’ cosmetics sold in China no longer require animal tests in China only if the company has obtained a safety certificate from their country of origin. And this was unclear in the response Foreo provided.
As a result, Foreo is listed as a Grey Area Brand.
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Is Foreo Certified Cruelty-Free?
Foreo is not certified cruelty-free by any third-party cruelty-free certifications like Leaping Bunny or PETA.
Since Foreo is not certified cruelty-free by a third party, no one is substantiating or auditing Foreo’s cruelty-free commitments and claims.
Does Foreo Test on Animals?
Unfortunately, Foreo did not clarify what steps they have taken to avoid animal tests while selling in China.
As a result, we cannot classify Foreo as a truly cruelty-free brand until they are more transparent with their animal testing policy.
Currently, Foreo is on our Grey Area Brands List – Brands with Unclear Policies.
Is Foreo Vegan?
❌ Foreo is NOT vegan. Foreo claims to offer some “vegan” options that are free of animal-derived ingredients, but because Foreo’s cruelty-free status is unclear, we wouldn’t consider anything sold or produced by Foreo to be vegan at this time.
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.
Vegan Policies
Similar to ‘Cruelty-Free,’ there is no standard or legal definition for the label ‘Vegan.’ But Vegan is generally used to mean formulated without animal-derived ingredients or animal by-products.
Some common animal products 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 unless a brand explicitly labels its ingredients or product as Vegan, it’s often 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 chose were from non-animal sources.
