Canada has officially banned animal testing for cosmetics.

The country’s Budget Implementation Act, passed Thursday night, included an amendment to the Food and Drugs Act prohibiting testing cosmetics on animals in Canada. It also bans false and misleading labeling pertaining to the testing of cosmetics on animals. 

Jean-Yves Duclos, minister of health, government of Canada, said: “Testing cosmetics on animals is each cruel and unnecessary. That’s the reason we’re proud to maneuver forward on our promise to ban cosmetic animal testing and trade. Protecting animals now and in the long run is something many Canadians have been advocating for and now, we are able to all be assured that cosmetics in Canada are cruelty-free, and we’ll proceed to take all mandatory measures to enhance animal welfare.”

Brandi Halls, chief ethics officer at Lush Cosmetics, North America, welcomed the news, stating that there isn’t a reason for “this ineffective, outdated and inhumane practice to proceed anywhere on this planet.” As a substitute, she highlighted that there are roughly 20,000 cosmetic ingredients which have already been established as secure, in addition to a growing variety of proven, nonanimal test methods which are “scientifically superior, faster and cheaper than their cruel alternatives.”

Hilary Lloyd, vice chairman of promoting and company responsibility, The Body Shop North America, said: “We applaud Minister Duclos and Health Canada for bringing forth this laws and thank all who’ve made this transformation possible, notably our partners at Cruelty Free International and The Body Shop’s passionate retail teams and activist customers, who delivered over 625,000 signatures to Parliament Hill in 2018 calling for this transformation.”

Canada follows in Mexico’s footsteps, which passed the same ban in 2021, and was the primary country in North America to accomplish that. In line with the Humane Society International, in prohibiting cosmetics animal testing and trade, Canada now joins the European Union, United Kingdom, India, South Korea, Taiwan, Latest Zealand, Australia, Brazil and 43 other countries which have already enacted similar bans or restrictions.

“Paired with the Canadian government’s recent passage of historic measures to phase out all chemical toxicity testing on animals, this week’s victory positions Canada as a frontrunner in advancing progressive, compassionate science,” Kitty Block, chief executive officer of the Humane Society, explained.

As for the U.S., she added that the organization has helped to make sure passage of 10 state-level bans on the sale of cosmetics which have been newly tested on animals with one other bill heading to the governor in Oregon for her approval, but there may be more to be done.

“Despite our tireless advocacy and substantial industry support, this worthy measure has yet to grow to be law.  After Canada’s and Mexico’s progress on this area for animals, it’s clear there’s a rustic sorely lagging behind in North America,” she said.