[Updated] Canada Bans Cosmetic Animal Testing

Editor's note: This article was originally published on June 26, 2023, and was updated on Decembe 22, 2023, as per the latest developments. The updated section is highlighted in red.

The amendments to the Food and Drugs Act, prohibiting the testing of cosmetics on animals in Canada, were enacted through the Budget Implementation Act, Bill C-47. This received Royal Assent on June 22, 2023, and came into force on December 22, 2023.

On March 28, 2023, the Government of Canada introduced its 2023 Federal Budget, proposing to amend the Food and Drugs Act to ban cosmetic testing on animals. ¹ On April 20, the Budget Implementation Act, Bill C-47, was introduced and tabled in Parliament to proceed the implementation of the key commitments outlined in the Budget, including the prohibition of cosmetic animal testing. ²

On June 22, Bill C-47 was passed by the Senate, legally putting an end to cosmetic testing on animals in Canada. ³ This important legislation includes amendments that will ban the following:

1) testing cosmetics on animals in Canada;

2) selling cosmetics that rely on animal testing data to prove the product's safety, with some exceptions; and

3) false or misleading labeling related to the testing of cosmetics on animals.

The amendments allow for the sale of cosmetics that rely on data derived from animal testing, provided that the data satisfies any of the following four conditions:

animal testing was conducted before the prohibition on sale came into force;
animal testing data has been published by the Government of Canada on its website or in a scientific journal (e.g., referenced in a published Chemicals Management Plan assessment);
animal testing data is publicly available and not conducted or sponsored by the manufacturer, importer, or seller; or
the animal testing was required to meet either a legislative requirement in Canada other than the cosmetic requirements under the Food and Drugs Act, or a requirement unrelated to cosmetics under another country’s legislation (e.g., pharmaceutical drugs), and the ingredient has a valid non-cosmetic use.

Process of Animal Testing Ban in Canada

Previously, Canada's Food and Drugs Act did not explicitly prohibit cosmetic animal testing, although it was not mandatory. Government officials have been debating the issue of the animal testing ban for years.

In 2015, a Senate bill (S-214) was introduced with the aim of amending the Food and Drugs Act to prohibit cosmetic animal testing and the sale of cosmetic products developed or manufactured based on animal testing. Although it passed in the Senate in 2018, it did not progress further due to the election in 2019. Calls to abolish cosmetic animal testing have continued since then.

Finally, in June 2023, Canada joined 40 other countries, including the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, South Korea, India, Israel and Turkey, in implementing a cosmetic animal testing ban.

Darren Praznik, president and CEO of Cosmetics Alliance Canada, said in a statement, “Industry and animal protection advocates have worked together over the last several years to advance a cosmetics animal testing ban in Canada. Since this issue was first raised in Parliament through a Private Member’s Bill in the Senate in 2015, our group has met frequently to build a collaborative relationship and to align on the principles with Health Canada while ensuring the ban works within the Canadian regulatory framework. We are very pleased to see the government pass this long overdue legislation.”

[Updated] Canada Bans Cosmetic Animal Testing

Process of Animal Testing Ban in Canada

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