The Body Shop Celebrates the Government of Canada's Ban on Cosmetic Animal Testing
The Body Shop joined the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, MP Adam van Koeverden, beauty industry partners, Cruelty Free International and other advocacy groups this morning to celebrate the government's official announcement of Canada's Ban on Cosmetic Animal Testing.
TORONTO, June 27, 2023 /CNW/ - This morning, The Body Shop joined the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, MP Adam van Koeverden, beauty industry partners, Cruelty Free International and other advocacy groups this morning to celebrate the federal government's official announcement of ending cosmetic testing on animals in Canada.
Made official with the passing of the Budget Implementation Act (Bill C-47) this past Thursday, Canada joins more than 40 countries worldwide that have enacted laws banning cosmetics testing on animals. In addition to banning cosmetics animal testing, the amendments in the Bill also prohibit selling cosmetics that rely on new animal testing data to establish the product's safety, and false or misleading labelling pertaining to the testing of cosmetics on animals.
Activist beauty retailer The Body Shop, has been fighting for the rights of animals globally since 1989 and in Canada for more than a decade. In 2017, with Cosmetics Alliance Canada and Cruelty Free International, The Body Shop formed the stakeholder coalition of advocacy organizations and industry partners in Canada, all of whom were present today.
Cruelty Free International has been in the fight against animal testing with The Body Shop for 34 years. In fact, they helped The Body Shop become the first beauty brand to campaign against this cruel practice globally. In addition to its work with the animal protection and advocacy group in Canada, The Body Shop led a number of advocacy efforts to help pass this legislation, including: A Pet March on Parliament Hill, direct meetings with more than 90 Members of Parliament, and a petition in all of the brand's brick-and-mortar retail locations across the country which resulted in 925,000 signatures, making the petition the largest in the history of Canada since the Bill of Rights in 1949.
Hilary Lloyd, VP of Marketing and CSR, The Body Shop North America, said: "This is a historic win for beauty lovers and animal rights activists. More importantly, it's a win for the animals who have been cruelly and unnecessarily subjected to painful experiments for the sake of products. Thank you to the Government of Canada and to all of our partners, we are proud to have led coalition discussions with Cosmetics Alliance Canada and Cruelty Free International which created the conditions for all of us to be here today – We did it. Canada is Forever Against Animal Testing!"
The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos Canada's Minister of Health said: "Protecting animals, now and in the future, is something that many Canadians have been calling for, and something we can all celebrate. We are proud to move forward with this measure, and to assure Canadians that the products they buy are cruelty-free. We will keep working with experts and international partners to explore safe, cruelty-free alternatives so no more animals suffer and die due to cosmetic testing."
Monica Engebretson, Head of Public Affairs North America, Cruelty Free International said: "Canada has surpassed the United States in taking federal action on this issue and I hope the United States follows Canada's lead. It has brought industry, advocates, and government regulators all together for a common cause. You probably could not find an issue that brings together more voters across party lines, genders and generations more than ending animal testing for cosmetics."
This Thursday, June 29th from 6-8pm the brand will celebrate the grand opening of its new experiential flagship store at the Yorkdale Shopping Centre, where the celebrations for this historic win will continue. The event is open to the public. RSVP here.
The Body Shop 'Forever Against Animal Testing' Celebration Event
Thursday, June 29, 2023
6:00pm – 8:00pm
The Body Shop at Yorkdale Shopping Centre
3401 Dufferin Street, Toronto, ON
As a B Corp business, The Body Shop is committed to ambitious social and environmental targets. Earlier this year, it established a Youth Collective to help amplify youth voices within its own business. The Body Shop Youth Collective is formed of 10-12 people from inside and outside the business, all aged under 30. They will advise The Body Shop Executive Leadership Team with the views and voices of young people.
The Body Shop invests heavily in activism and has a dedicated activism team, focused on research and tactics, operating around the world. Long before activism was an industry buzzword, The Body Shop has pushed for change where other brands saw risks. It has mobilized its global collective and campaigned for over 20 years on issues such as the rights of indigenous peoples, animal rights, sex trafficking and the burning of the Amazon rainforest.
For more information follow @thebodyshopnorthamerica on Instagram or visit, thebodyshop.com.
For further information:
Aimee Cook
[email protected]
647-231-5106
SOURCE The Body Shop
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