Last week Cruelty Free International, along with the European coalition of animal protection groups it leads, presented arguments at the Europe Union’s top court against industry’s attempts to water down the historic ban on cosmetics testing.

The case was referred to the Court of Justice of the European Communities by the High Court in London, and Cruelty Free International and the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments were allowed to intervene because of our expertise around animal testing.

The case has been brought by the European Federation for Cosmetics Ingredients (EFCI), which represents most cosmetics ingredients manufacturers in Europe.

They argue that cosmetics companies can sell in the EU cosmetics containing ingredients tested on animals - as long as the tests were nominally carried out under some legislation other than the EU Cosmetics Regulation.  That includes testing in the European Union.

We believe this would make a nonsense of the bans, which took 20 years’ of hard-fought campaigning to achieve.

The Court will give judgment next year.

Michelle Thew, Chief Executive of Cruelty Free International and ECEAE said: ‘We say that the legal position is very simple: the EU cosmetics bans apply to any animal test relating to the safety of a cosmetic product or ingredient. No cruel cosmetics tests are allowed in the EU, and cosmetics newly tested on animals outside the EU cannot be sold here. This is what the European Union intended when they introduced the bans, and this is what European citizens expect.”

Find out about our campaign to end animal testing for cosmetics worldwide 

Photo: Cruelty Free International Legal Consultant David Thomas with barrister Alan Bates, outside The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg.