LONDON, June 23, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

Congress urged to ban cruel animal testing of cosmetics in the U.S.A.

Animal testing of cosmetic products and ingredients, and the sale of newly animal-tested cosmetics, would be phased out under proposed legislation introduced in the United States Congress. Passage of the Humane Cosmetics Act would bring the U.S. in line with more than 30 other countries - home to more than 1.7 billion consumers - that have already implemented similar bans.

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The BeCrueltyFree USA campaign led by The Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society Legislative Fund, welcomes the introduction of this bipartisan bill as a key opportunity to rid the United States of cosmetics cruelty. This legislation is sponsored by U.S. Reps. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., Don Beyer, D-Va., Joe Heck, R-Nev., and Tony Cárdenas, D-Calif.

BeCrueltyFree is the largest campaign in the world to end cosmetics animal testing, led globally by Humane Society International. Claire Mansfield, HSI's BeCrueltyFree campaigns director, said from London, "Testing cosmetic chemicals for lipstick and shampoo on live animals isn't just morally indefensible; it also makes poor scientific sense because these animal tests have never been proven reliable to assure human safety. Hundreds of brands produce cosmetics without harming a single animal, and more than 30 countries globally have already banned such testing, so it's time for the United States to catch up and join the BeCrueltyFree movement."

U.S. law doesn't require animal testing for cosmetics, but it doesn't prohibit it either, so in laboratories around the country, thousands of animals are still suffering and dying to test beauty products and ingredients. Mice, rabbits, rats and guinea pigs have substances forced down their throat, dripped into their eyes, or smeared onto their skin, usually without any pain relief.

The bill is supported by BeCrueltyFree celebrities including Kesha, Jenna Dewan-Tatum and Ricky Gervais, alongside more than 140 cosmetics companies such as Lush, Juice Beauty and Jack Black.

Jenna Dewan Tatum, who last year starred in a Hollywood billboard for the BeCrueltyFree USA campaign (clickherefor video), said of animal testing: "I truly hope that in this day and age, the United States will follow other amazing countries that have already banned cosmetic testing. We, as a global leader, have not done that yet. That is absolutely disgusting to me."

Ricky Gervais said: "I'm delighted to help The Humane Society of the United States' BeCrueltyFree USA campaign to end the cruel and outdated practice of testing cosmetics on living animals. Rabbits and rodents forced to endure toxic cosmetics testing in U.S. laboratories have no-one to speak up for them but us. So I urge all Americans to be their voice, support the Humane Cosmetics Act and make the U.S. the next cruelty-free cosmetics zone."

Facts

Seventy-three percent of American voters are in favor of federal legislation to end animal testing for cosmetics. (2014 poll conducted by Lake Research and commissioned by the BeCrueltyFree campaign's The HSUS and HSLF)

More than 600 cruelty-free companies are accredited by the Leaping Bunny standard or recognized by top cruelty-free sites Logical Harmony and My Beauty Bunny . Cruelty-free companies avoid all animal testing by using the thousands of existing, safe cosmetic ingredients combined with available non-animal tests. For our BeCrueltyFree shopping guide, click here .

standard or recognized by top cruelty-free sites and . Cruelty-free companies avoid all animal testing by using the thousands of existing, safe cosmetic ingredients combined with available non-animal tests. Check out our BeCrueltyFree infographichere

Click here to contact your representatives and urge them to support the Humane Cosmetics Act.

Media Contact: Wendy Higgins, HSI's EU Communications Director: whiggins@hsi.org +44(0)7989-972-423

