I’m Emily. I’ve created Living Cruelty Free to document my switch to buying only CCIC-approved 100%-animal-testing-free cosmetic/household products. The reason I only buy CCIC-approved 100%-animal-testing-free cosmetics/household products is that animal testing is horrible and causes countless rats and rabbits suffer for and be killed to make sure shampoos/soaps/etc.won’t cause people with sensitive skin to have mild rashes. Since I don’t have sensitive skin, and I know any products with ingredients that might remotely be unsafe have already been tested (on numerous animals) by pharmaceutical companies and approved of by the FDA, this really bothers me.
This switch to buying only 100%-cruelty-free items has been more difficult than I originally thought it would be. I have a new respect for people who only buy organic products, or fair trade products, etc., because I never realized how much time and effort it takes to make sure every product you buy is ethical.
So far, while I still haven’t replaced all my old cosmetics/household products with cruelty-free ones (I hope eventually I’ll run out of Bedhead After Party smoothing creme), I’m well on my way. As it is, I’ve really enjoyed knowing that all the products I’ve bought have involved no animal suffering, and my money is supporting people who do not engage in animal cruelty. Also, I feel like I’m donating to an animal welfare charity just by buying cruelty-free toothpaste — I think one of the best ways to “vote” in the US market is to use dollars. Surprisingly, most of the new products I’ve been trying have turned out to be good, high-quality products. I’ve enjoyed the dramatic improvement in all the stuff I buy. So it’s been a lot of time and effort finding and buying these products, but so far, it’s been well worth it to me. One clarification I’d like to make here is that “cruelty-free” is used by different people to mean different things. I use it to mean products that have not been tested on animals — this means that what I call “cruelty-free” products may not necessarily be vegan. I’d love to buy cruelty-free, vegan products, but there aren’t many of them. The only comprehensive list I’ve found is at Vegan Action, and it’s fairly short — it’s available here. (I do try to mention in each product review whether the company that makes the product says it is vegan and/or organic — I think a lot of people want to know that information.)
I welcome all nice comments — please feel free to disagree with me about any product review made here — as long as you do so in a friendly manner, I’ll be pleased! Everyone has a right to their own opinion about all the products I’ve listed here, and reading numerous reviews will give people a more statistically precise view of various cruelty-free products, which might encourage them to buy some in the future, which would be fantastic.
Dear Emily,
I have been reading your blog about living cruelty-free and I am really impressed with all the content that you make available for your readers and thought you might want to share those comments with some of our site visitors.
I work for EC Next, the company that operates Manta.com. Manta is one of the top 15 most visited business websites as the site features 45 million public and private company profiles, including the profile for L’Oreal and Proctor and Gamble.
We’ve just launched the World’s Largest Business Conversation on http://www.manta.com. We’re asking the public to modify, update and contribute to company information on Manta. You can post your comments on the company page for any company you chose. Of course it is free to use and read.
Here is the page for L’Oreal, so you can comment on it’s cruelty-free status:
http://www.manta.com/coms2/dnbcompany_cdy8xhp
Also, here is the page for Proctor and Gamble, so you can inform consumers of the deaf ear they have turned to protecting animals:
http://www.manta.com/coms2/dnbcompany_dd37vw
I thought you might want to post your comments to this page and reach some of our 4 million monthly users.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
Thank you,
Sarah Deak
sdeak@ecnext.com
ECNext, Inc.
Comment by Sarah Deak — June 15, 2007 @ 10:04 am
Hello Sarah,
I’d be happy to share my comments with Manta.com — thanks for inviting me!
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — June 27, 2007 @ 11:39 pm
You are officially my idol! It is amazing how crazy you are about these causes.
Thank you for living cruelty free and I am trying to live that way too.
Please visit my website about about animal testing and leave advice and comment on helping us. It would be most obliged.
Thank you
Jonelle Littley
http://www.StopAnimalTesting.piczo.com
Please!
We would really like a completely cruelty free person, such as yourself, to give some advice to the site and add comments so others will see what to do.
Thanks again!
Comment by Jonelle — August 16, 2007 @ 12:41 pm
Im sorry I made an error the website is: http://www.StopAnimalTesting11.piczo.com
Opps *giggle*
Thank-you
Jonelle .L
Comment by Jonelle — August 16, 2007 @ 12:46 pm
I love your site and all the product reviews you do.
Comment by Clara — August 17, 2007 @ 6:51 am
Hi Jonelle,
I’m so glad you’re cruelty-free too! I am definitely crazy about cruelty-free stuff.
Anyway, your site looks wonderful — I shall definitely leave lots of comments of praise on it for you, Breanne and Keona!
Emily
Comment by Emily — August 21, 2007 @ 2:01 pm
Hi Clara,
Thank you so much! I’m very glad the site is of use to you!
Comment by Emily — August 23, 2007 @ 12:53 am
I love this site. I’m glad their are people in this world that actually realize that animal feelings just like people.
Comment by Natasha — September 25, 2007 @ 2:26 pm
I’m so glad you love the site!
Comment by Emily — September 26, 2007 @ 10:54 am
Hi Emily!
I was searching for cruelty-free fragrances/parfums on net and your site came up!
I´m impressed with your fantastic site!Really!
I´m also grateful to the Universe for your existance!
Unfortunatelly i do not have internet at my house so i use my hour of lunch at work to do some searching on products that haven´t been tested on animals and i´m looking for a new man fragrance (eau de toillete, deodorant or parfum) because i´m no longer satisfied with the one i used to buy at Body Shop (”Kistna”) and also since the huge “evil” L`Oreal is on field…
In Portugal we don´t have many cruelty-free stores and the information about it is very little, too little
Can you sugest me something please? I´ve heard about that Oriflame (Sweden) is a cruelty-free firm. Is that true?
If you can help me i would be grateful.
Once again thank you very much and…keep on, please!
Best regards,
Vitor
Comment by Vitor Ribeiro — October 3, 2007 @ 4:50 am
Hi Vitor!
I’m so glad you like my site! Off the top of my head I’d recommend Aubrey Organics products because they have a new men’s line that has three different scents of aftershave — “North Woods,” “Spice Island,” and “City Rhythm,” and they are cruelty-free, vegan, and organic:
http://www.aubrey-organics.com/spec_prods/mens_shave.
But I’m not sure Aubrey Organics is available in Portugal. In which case, L’Occitane (which the CCIC thinks is cruelty-free but NAVS does not), has some wonderful men’s products and since it’s pretty international I suspect has products available in Portugal:
http://usa.loccitane.com/FO/Catalog/Catalog.aspx?cat=usg_MensCorner
I did a little internet searching, and I think you should check out the CCIC’s European partner groups — some of them may have lists of European companies that conform to the Humane Cosmetics Standard —
http://www.eceae.org/english/index.html
The list of groups is here:
http://www.eceae.org/english/whoweare.html
One of them is in Portugal, but it didn’t seem to have a list of approved companies. I tried to check out a bunch of the other European organizations, but since I don’t speak the languages I had a little trouble finding out which ones have lists of cruelty-free products — the British Union Against Vivisection has a list at:
http://www.gocrueltyfree.org/companies.php?cat=*
I can only hope some of these are available in Portugal and have men’s fragrances! I’ll keep an eye out and if I find anything, I’ll post it here. Good luck!
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — October 4, 2007 @ 1:04 pm
Great site, it’s good to know that people care about these subjects! I turned vegan about 2 years ago and I’m trying to be as cruelty-free as I can. I’m from Portugal and I’m finding it a bit difficult to find cruelty-free stores here but i’m trying my best.
Good job, keep up the good work!
Comment by Marta — February 6, 2008 @ 9:57 am
Hi Marta,
Thank you very much for writing such a nice note! Good luck with finding cruelty-free stores in Portugal — if I hear anything Portugal-centric I’ll be certain to post about it.
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — February 6, 2008 @ 5:26 pm
I love your site. I am doing a HUGE report on animal testing for school, and what’s being done about it. Your site has helped me trememdously, and our project may be making it to the state competition, thanks to your awesome site.
THANK YOU SOOO MUCH!
Comment by Kyli — February 21, 2008 @ 9:53 pm
Hi Kyli!
I’m so glad! That makes me very happy
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — February 23, 2008 @ 11:14 am
I don’t know if you’ve seen this yet, but I found it a bit unnerving: http://www.vegetarianorganicblog.com/
It’s the article about carcinogens in organic brands.
Comment by Wendy — March 21, 2008 @ 3:49 pm
Wow — I had not seen that yet. That’s REALLY unnerving. I’m kind of paranoid about carcinogens.
Gosh, I’d always kind of wondered how “USDA certified organic” was different from “organic.” I guess USDA certified organic is a good thing! Who knew . . .
Comment by Emily — March 21, 2008 @ 9:34 pm
I’m glad to have found your site. I follow a vegan diet, but do not have a vegan lifestyle (not yet anyways). It’s nice to have found a site that is focused on cruelty-free living.
Comment by Marilyn — April 8, 2008 @ 9:48 am
That makes me very happy — I’m glad you’re here!
Comment by Emily — April 8, 2008 @ 10:33 pm
Emily, check this company out: http://www.flexpetz.com/
This company is an insult to shelters and volunteer pet foster homes. This is a company that RENTS out pets for hundreds of dollars so people can pledge short term commitment to pets. Poor animals, shuffled around from home to home to the highest bidder…
Comment by kathy — April 23, 2008 @ 1:18 pm
Wow, that sounds awful . . .
Comment by Emily — April 24, 2008 @ 9:37 am
Hi Emily, I’m so glad you put together all these lists and reviews! I alway try to buy cruelty-free products, but it’s not always easy. An updated list helps, so thank you.
The one thing I realy have trouble finding is bar soap that doesn’t test on animals and also doesn’t cost $5/ea. My husband and I go through at 1-2 bars a week, so while the animal-friendly ones that I’ve seen are lovely, they’re not practical for everyday use. Any ideas?
Comment by Briana — April 29, 2008 @ 1:07 pm
Dear Briana,
I’m so glad my lists are helping you!
Wow, I can see how you might need inexpensive soap if you go through 1-2 bars a week. I’ll add this to my list of cruelty-free things to find. Off hand though, I think Queen Helene has bar soap:
http://www.queenhelene.com//bar-soaps.php
And the best thing about Queen Helene products is that they are sold at Walgreens and Longs (last time I checked).
Oh, and I just remembered, a long time ago I read a very positive review of Kirk’s castile soap, which is very inexpensive:
http://www.greenfeet.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=7505-00590-0000&utm_source=gf-google&utm_medium=sse&utm_term=SOAP_SHOWER_GEL&utm_campaign=7505-00590-0000&utm_campaign=Kirks-Castile-Soap
And I don’t know if you would be willing to use liquid soap, but a lot of hippie-people swear by Dr. Bronners liquid castile soap, which is very inexpensive, and made from USDA certified organic ingredients:
http://www.drbronner.com/
I hope that helps!
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — April 30, 2008 @ 12:17 am
Hi there,
Emily–EXCELLENT site! Thank you! I have a question…I WAS buying Equate products (Sobeys), and President’s Choice (Superstore), but I’m not sure if their parent company tests on animals…any information on this? I believe Sobeys’ parent co is Empire Co Ltd?? and Superstore/President’s Choice is Loblaw/George Weston Ltd?????? I have gone cruelty free in the last few months from starting out not buying products tested on animals AND i became a vegetarian immediately after i educated myself on slaughterhouses. i get e-mails from peta also and am horrified by the seemingly endless types of abuse out there…so incredibly sad and horrific. Thank you. Shannon
Comment by Shannon — May 11, 2008 @ 2:35 pm
Dear Shannon,
I’m so glad you like my site! I’m actually not very familiar with those companies, but I’ll read up about them and get back to you.
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — May 11, 2008 @ 11:12 pm
I was wondering about President’s Choice products too since I live near Superstore and shop there a lot.
As for Equate (a Walmart brand)I emailed them a while ago and they said thye make an effort to choose suppliers that do not test on animals.
Comment by Natasha — May 12, 2008 @ 4:14 am
Thanks Natasha!
Comment by Emily — May 12, 2008 @ 9:01 pm
No prob.
Comment by Natasha — May 13, 2008 @ 3:53 am
I forgot to say that who knows if they are telling the truth. Companies like Aberto Culver for example say they don’t test but they do. People are horrible!
Comment by Natasha — May 13, 2008 @ 8:35 am
I agree — you never can tell if a company is telling the truth. That’s why I stick with the CCIC
That’s interesting that Alberto Culver says it doesn’t test on animals but it does. How awful.
Comment by Emily — May 13, 2008 @ 11:12 pm
Alberto claims they don’t because the finally product isn’t tested but they get their ingredients from suppliers that test on animals. They also brag about donating to charities that test on animals. It’s horrible!
Sticking with CCIC is the way to go!
Comment by Natasha — May 14, 2008 @ 4:19 am
It sucks though that most of the products that are on the list is not sold where I live so I can hardly buy any.
Comment by Natasha — May 14, 2008 @ 7:54 am
Ah, so Alberto is another one of those companies that implies that its products aren’t tested on animals but actually they are. I really dislike how confusing and misleading cruelty-free labeling can be. I wish the FDA would mandate that companies could not write “not tested on animals” unless the products were 100% verified not tested on animals, ingredients and final products. Wouldn’t that be nice?
Comment by Emily — May 14, 2008 @ 10:47 pm
That would be really nice but the FDA are heartless sadly! I can’t stand misleading companies. I sent Alberto an email and they were like blah blah blah we don’t test anything on animals but we donate to charities that test on animals. They know very well their ingredients are test that’s why they were taken off PETA’s list and of course they were never on CCIC’s list.
Comment by Natasha — May 15, 2008 @ 4:19 am
I’m pleased you emailed Alberto though! Companies like that need all the negative reaction they can get.
Comment by Emily — May 15, 2008 @ 11:21 pm
Comment by Natasha — May 16, 2008 @ 3:50 am
Very interesting website here. I stumbled upon it looking for information on Biokleen and their products.
I’m curious, though, are you mainly documenting your journey towards cruelty-free products and companies, or are you also concerned with the toxicity levels of the products? I am looking for both - cruelty-free products that are healthy for me and my family also.
Just wondering if that factors into your site here.
Keep up the good work!
Comment by Allyson — May 22, 2008 @ 12:42 pm
Dear Allyson,
Well thank you! I’m glad you’re interested in buying cruelty-free products!
To answer your question — I just focus on animal-testing-free products; I don’t focus on toxicity levels at all. I feel very strongly that animal testing doesn’t get enough attention on the internet — it’s often considered secondary to toxicity. So I want this site to have only one focus — that of being against animal testing. So I don’t focus on toxicity, and I try to support all companies that are cruelty-free, whatever else they may be.
That being said, I’ve received many requests to review more organic products, so I try to gravitate towards them when I’m trying out new products. (I’m assuming here that you think organic products are more nontoxic than inorganic products. If I’m wrong about this, please let me know!) Secondly, to be helpful to people who only want to buy organic products, I always try to mention whether the product I’m reviewing is organic or not. Thirdly, because a lot of companies that are cruelty-free tend to be against using toxic ingredients, and a lot of animal testing is done in the name of toxicity-testing, I’ve learned a bit about toxicity. I do occasionally check the Environmental Working Group for information on cosmetic ingredients’ toxicities, and I occasionally look up companies on the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics’s website just to see if they’re on their list or not.
Hmm, I really should go through and mention whether the product is listed on the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics peoples’ list. Perhaps I’ll start doing that in the future!
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — May 23, 2008 @ 12:16 am
Hi Emily! I really appreciate your website. I have learned a lot even since I started visiting it a few months ago.
I am currently composing a post on why cruelty-free medical research is better than injecting animals with cancer. I know I read somewhere once that there have been studies on how non-animal testing is actually more effective and drains less money then animal testing. But I cannot find an article like that anywhere… do you know where you could direct me to find a study like that? It would be so helpful!
Thanks,
Gloria
Comment by Gloria — May 25, 2008 @ 11:50 am
Hi Gloria!
What a great idea for a post! Just off the top of my head, unfortunately, I don’t think I’ve seen any overall studies that have researched that sort of thing — I think most scientists dislike coming out with blanket statements like that. However, if you list a number of studies that have shown an in vitro alternative to be cheaper and more effective than their animal-using alternatives, I think that’s very convincing. I definitely have seen a few individual articles that report for one animal-using-test, the in vitro alternative was cheaper and more accurate. A good place to start would be to sift through all the articles at CAAT and PCRM on alternatives to animal testing, to find ones that show cheaper in vitro alternatives:
http://caat.jhsph.edu/publications/index.htm
http://www.pcrm.org/resch/anexp/index.html
And I think your premise is basically common sense. Laboratory animal-equivalents are far, far less expensive than live animals. Petri dishes don’t require feeding, for one thing, and you can fit 1000 petri dishes in the same area it would take to kennel five dogs. I wrote a post a while ago on artificial joint tissue — you could make the argument for most any non-animal-using test that it’s far less expensive than any animal test, and far more repeatable, which is very useful for scientific research. Whereas researchers using live dogs to do arthritis stress tests could only get maybe 10 dogs to physically harm to test joint stress every six months or so, they can perform 100 stress tests a day on artificial joint tissue. It’s really much more scientifically effective, and cheaper per stress-test. Plus — I’m not sure if those researchers are doing this — but they could eventually make artificial joints to test that are more like human joints than dog joints will ever be — I think this is far better science than using dogs. Much more effective.
I’m pretty sure I mentioned recently a PCRM newsbreak that mentioned that some in vitro alternative to live animal testing turned out to be more accurate more of the time than the live animal test. Ah yes, it is:
http://www.livingcrueltyfree.com/2008/05/12/in-vitro-test-beats-animal-tests-for-measuring-skin-irritancy-another-small-step-in-the-push-to-remove-animals-from-toxicological-testing/
Anyway, I hope that helps! I can’t wait to see your post!
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — May 25, 2008 @ 11:59 pm
Hi Emily,
Bless you and your efforts. I am trying to start a line of bath and beauty products that include ingredients that are not tested on animals. The problem is that I am finding it impossible as the “little guy” to find suppliers that pledge themselves as cruelty-free. I want to adopt the leaping bunny logo, so I need to find these suppliers. I have found some soapmaking suppliers on the internet (most of them in the U.S.) who claim to be cruelt-free, but when asked for verification, they cannot provide me with it (is it paperwork they need to have?). I have emailed PETA, Leapingbunny.org, Animal Allinace of Canada and even a humane council in the UK, but have heard nothing back (I only emailed them yesterday). Is there not a directory of such suppliers who are certified? From what I understand in Australia, there is a bank of certified companies (who are even available to the local yocal wanting to do at-home creations). Labels can be so misleading and many brands who claim to not test on animals are only speaking of the finished product I suspect. I can in no way consciously create a product where I know an innocent life was spared just to make someone smell good. I am becoming increasingly desperate and am wondering if I am merely perfoming an attempt of ethical futility. Do you have any suggestions? (I hope you feel really good about yourself and you efforts–you’re great).
Wendy
Comment by Wendy N. — May 26, 2008 @ 7:13 pm
Dear Wendy,
I’m glad you appreciate my efforts.
They do make me feel like a better person every day, actually! Though I am absolutely thrilled at YOUR efforts to create a product that harms no innocent lives. It will be a real benefit to society.
I think you’re getting too stressed about this — as a small business, it is not your responsibility to ethically monitor all these questionable suppliers. You do not have the time or billions of dollars that would take. All that is within your power is to ask your suppliers to provide you with 100%-animal-testing-free ingredients, and have them sign a legal document stating that they will provide you with 100%-animal-testing-free ingredients.
First, you should register with the CCIC (the leaping bunny organization) right away: (I assume you can do this even if you’re still in the startup phase — I hope you can anyway!)
http://www.leapingbunny.org/register.php
Once you’re registered with them and have filled out an application and have been accepted, a CCIC administrator will email you to help you get started. I suspect this administrator will answer all your questions and may be able to point you in the right direction to find some cruelty-free suppliers. However, that is not even necessary — all you have to do is find some suppliers who pledge to you that they will not test any of the ingredients they give to you on animals, and have them sign this form:
http://www.leapingbunny.org/pdf/Raw_Material_Compliance_Form.pdf
And you will be set! You’ll be 100%-cruelty-free.
I hope that helps! (And I hope the CCIC and your suppliers will be fairly easy to deal with!) As soon as you’re listed on the CCIC’s list of cruelty-free companies and have begun producing products, email me, and I’ll add you to my cruelty-free list!
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — May 26, 2008 @ 11:35 pm
Thanks for the great advice. I wouldn’t have thought to apply to the CCIC yet since I am in the start up phase, but that is a great suggestion. I’ll give it a go and keep you posted. With regards to Gloria who was looking for info on the pro’s of animal-testing alternatives, I received a reply from a member of the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection. Since it is their objective to advocate alternatives to testing on animals, perhaps there may be some documented and/or publications supporting the effectiveness of non-animal research. Their website is http://www.buav.org.
Again, thank you for your advice.
Wendy
Comment by Wendy N. — May 27, 2008 @ 5:18 pm
You’re very welcome! Much as I love the CCIC, I’ve never actually dealt with the CCIC, so I have been feeling a little guilty urging you to email them. I can only hope they’ll be nice and help you out!
I’m very glad to hear that you received a reply from the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection — I didn’t realize that was the British humane council you’d emailed — they are just fantastic! They are the CCIC’s sister site and they uphold the humane cosmetic standard in the U.K. and run GoCrueltyFree.com, so I’m very much in favor of them. (Plus I love their name — I’m pro anything that’s anti-vivisection.)
I’ll pass on your message to Gloria, and please do keep me posted of your progress — I would be interested to know if there is a list of cruelty-free suppliers.
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — May 27, 2008 @ 10:43 pm
Hi Emily,
Aside from pulling my hair out trying to find CCIC compliant ingredient suppliers (I did submit an application to CCIC so we’ll see what happens), I’d like your opinion on cruelty-free cleaning products. In the past, I’ve tried “leaping bunny” products, but I have to say that they are often not the best for cleaning. What products have you used that you find work best? The cleanning products that I’m looking for are laundry detergent and bathroom cleaners. My clothes truly don’t feel clean after using CF products, and the same for my bathroom. After such frustration, I hate to say it, but I usually buy Tide because it truly works. After doing my research for CF ingredients for my bath and body line, I am just so much more aware of the atrocities that occur with animal testing so I am determined to be find a product that works.
As always, thank you.
Wendy
Comment by Wendy — May 31, 2008 @ 11:12 am
Hi Wendy!
I’m so glad you’re trying to find CCIC compliant ingredient suppliers! (And that you submitted an application to the CCIC! I hope they get back to you pretty quickly.) I’m sorry it’s been so difficult though — that’s too bad so many suppliers out there are just interested in profits and not in ethics. Did the BUAV not have any suggestions?
Your comment on cruelty-free products not working so well made me laugh! I tried a bunch of environmentally-friendly cleaning products five years ago that left my laundry and floors dirty and coated with oily buildup, and since then I’ve been wary of any eco-cleansers. I can’t claim to know why your cruelty-free cleansers aren’t cleaning very well for you, but for me I’ve found that detergent-based — instead of soap-based — cleansers really do the trick. My tapwater is really hard, so soaps just react with all the minerals floating around in it and precipitate out forming huge amounts of waxy buildup without actually cleaning anything, whereas detergents actually get things clean and don’t leave any awful residue. I really like Method products for that reason — they are detergent-based, not soap-based, and they seem to get things clean and shiny and leave no residue (plus they have beautiful packaging!). If I see “soap” in the ingredients of any household cleaner I tend to run the other way. (Though I do suspect all detergents are made from poisonous cancer-causing chemicals, and soaps are probably much less dangerous. But I’ve never found any soaps that work very well. Ah well . . .)
So are you thinking of making a line of laundry and bathroom cleaners? That sounds awesome!
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — June 1, 2008 @ 5:50 pm
Hey Emily,
No, not laundry or bathroom cleaners–not yet. I can’t even find a fragrance oil that is not tested on animals! However, I have been emailing companies (small but established bath and body product companies) that are using the leaping bunny logo. It’s funny: most of them here in North America don’t want anything to do with me. For the 10-12 inquiries I’ve made, I think I’ve only heard from two companies. These responses were quite helpful and very encouraging though. I would think that if someone has made the effort to be certified by the CCIC, we would have a common goal to avoid animal suffering and therefore would want as many up-and-coming companies to thrive and succeed. I have been speaking with someone from Pure Gaisha which is out of Australia. A very lovely woman who has been very helpful. I’ve turned to the UK and Australia because one, perhaps I’m not seen as a competitor, and two, the UK, the Scandinavian countries, and Australia seem to be much more advanced in the animal welfare arena, and I thought I would have greater access to cruelty-free suppliers. The problem is is that alot of them don’t ship to the US or Canada (which is where I am). Thanks for the advice on the cleaning products. I will look for the Method brand and I’ll let you know how it goes. Have a great week.
Cheers,
Wendy
Comment by Wendy — June 1, 2008 @ 8:12 pm
I’m vegan, but I follow the same practices as you, I think it’s far more important for it to not be tested than for it to be completely vegan. I’m reducing animal suffering much more buying a product that is not tested than one that is for sure 100% vegan. I love your blog and think it’s great what you’re doing!
Comment by Kristin — July 7, 2008 @ 12:38 am
Hi Kristin!
I’m so pleased you’re a cruelty-freeist and a vegan! I’ve read a lot of blogs written by people who are vegan yet don’t seem to care about animal testing at all. So it’s nice to find you
Your website looks wonderful, by the way! I shall go read it beginning to end
Regards,
Emily
Comment by Emily — July 8, 2008 @ 12:01 am