“Cruelty Free” Beauty Brands In The Hot Seat Over Lawsuit

Looks like PETA is going to be up in arms soon. A recent class action lawsuit filed by 5 women in the Los Angeles area are alleging that cosmetics giants Mary Kay, Estee Lauder, and Avon have been profiting off of apparently false claims that their brand doesn’t test on animals. The three brands are on PETA‘s Do Not Test list, have advertised their products are cruelty free and have indications on their packaging that they do not test on animals. According to the suit, the plaintiffs are peeved that though the companies did not test their American products on animals, they did in fact test on animals for their products based out of China. The plaintiffs are alleging that many consumers bought the Avon, Estee Luader, and Mary Kay products based on the apparent false pretense that the company does not test on animals in any way and are asking for $100 million in compensatory damages for their trouble.

Something to note though is that it is actually legally required by the Chinese government for beauty products to be tested on animals before they can be released to the market. Also the FDA has no actual legal definition for the phrase “cruelty-free”. Without that definition it is possible the women don’t really have a legal case.

What do you think? Do the LA ladies have a case or do the companies have the right to bend the term “cruelty-free” a bit if the animal tested products aren’t for the US market? Tell us in the comment section below!