Indian Soap and Detergent Manufacturers Prohibited From Testing on Animals

For Immediate Release:

18 April 2016

Contact:
Jennifer White +44 (0) 20 7837 6327, ext 222; [email protected]

INDIAN SOAP AND DETERGENT MANUFACTURERS PROHIBITED FROM TESTING ON ANIMALS

Official Order Issued by Indian Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals After Bureau of Indian Standards Committee Removes Animal Tests From Requirements

Delhi – Through a Right to Information request, PETA India has received an order that was issued by the Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CPCSEA) and sent to Indian soap and detergent associations. The order prohibits tests on animals for many household products in India, such as soaps, detergents and other surface active agents, and it’s the final step in the process initiated by PETA India in 2014, when the animal rights group successfully worked with the Bureau of Indian Standards to remove animal tests from the testing standards for household products – an effort supported by now–Union Minister Maneka Gandhi and other policymakers.

“Consumers in India will be delighted to know that the production of soaps and detergents manufactured there will not involve harming rabbits, mice or guinea pigs”, says PETA UK Director Mimi Bekhechi, “However, as household products manufactured elsewhere can still be tested on animals, we continue to urge consumers all over the world to buy only from those companies listed as cruelty-free on PETA US’ website.”

More than 2,000 companies around the world have ended all tests on animals in favour of more effective, modern non-animal methods, but many still choose to subject animals to painful tests in which substances are dripped into their eyes, smeared onto their sensitive skin or forced down their throats.

Last year, the UK government took a small step towards ending the suffering of animals in laboratories by banning tests on animals for finished household products. However, animals may still die in cruel, painful tests for the likes of detergent and air fresheners because the government continues to permit the testing of ingredients used in household products in certain circumstances. The UK must follow India’s lead by implementing a full and complete animal testing ban for both household products and their ingredients and should encourage other European countries to do the same.

For more information on the cruelty of animal experimentation, please visit PETA.org.uk.

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