You can find Sol de Janeiro cruelty-free products at soldejaneiro.com, Sephora, and Amazon.

Sol de Janeiro is *Cruelty-Free

Sol de Janeiro 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 Sol de Janeiro to be *Cruelty-Free.

2021 Update: L’Occitane recently announced they will acquire a majority stake (83%) in Sol de Janeiro. L’Occitane is NOT a cruelty-free corporation.

*L’Occitane owns a majority stake in Sol de Janeiro. L’Occitane is a corporation that is NOT cruelty-free because they allow their products to be tested 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 L’Occitane owns a majority stake in Sol de Janeiro.

Below is a screenshot of what’s currently stated on Sol de Janeiro’s website:

What About China’s Animal Testing Laws?

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

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.

Sol de Janeiro 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 Sol de Janeiro, not all of their products are vegan. But they have some products that are suitable for vegans.

How to know which of Sol de Janeiro’s products are vegan?

All of Sol de Janeiro’s vegan products are clearly marked on their website. In addition, Sol De Janeiro states on their FAQ page,

“All of our products are vegan, except our Brazilian Kiss Cupuaçu Lip Butters as they contain beeswax.”

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.

Where are Sol de Janeiro’s products made?

According to Sol De Janeiro’s FAQ page, they claim their products “are made in the US with the finest globally sourced ingredients, including those that are indigenous to the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil.”

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 Sol de Janeiro if their mica is ethically sourced without the use of child labor and they responded by stating,

“We use all-natural mica in our products, and Sol de Janeiro works within the framework of the Ethical Trade Initiative to ensure our mica is responsibly sourced. All our partners share our commitment to the spirit and principals of the code, and our supply chain is regularly audited to ensure that we maintain the highest ethical standards.”

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