Last Updated on April 9, 2021 by Eco Elsie
It is often hard to identify whether or not a beauty brand is cruelty free, today we’re taking a look at Makeup Forever to answer the question ‘is Makeup Forever Cruelty Free?’.
Is Makeup Forever Cruelty Free?
No, Makeup Forever is not a cruelty free brand. The reason that Makeup Forever can not be categorized as a cruelty free brand is the same reason why many other companies cannot be, and that is because they trade in mainland China.
Up until May 1st 2021, all foreign beauty products sold in China must be tested on animals before they can be sold, and so some companies trade their cruelty-free ethics to access the Chinese market.
However, unlike some companies that claim to be cruelty free despite blatantly trading in China, Makeup Forever does not claim this. In fact, they do not disclose their animal testing policy, and so whether they also animal test outside of China is unclear.
Since they have not made their animal testing policy public knowledge, it is also unclear whether or not any of the ingredients used in Makeup Forever products are tested on animals.
But despite all of this uncertainty, there is one clear thing, and that is the fact that Makeup Forever is currently not a cruelty free brand.
Is Makeup Forever Vegan?
As you will probably expect, Makeup Forever is not a vegan company. In the same way that they do not claim to be cruelty free, they also do not claim to be suitable for vegans either.
If you look at any Makeup Forever product, you will find no symbol that suggests that they are cruelty free or that they are vegan, and this is because they are not.
It is difficult to tell what makes Makeup Forever unsuitable for vegans, other than the fact that they sell in China, but it is likely because of the ingredients that they use. Generally speaking, a lot of companies choose not to use vegan-friendly products because they are more expensive.
Any product that contains ingredients derived from animals or animal by-products cannot be classed as vegan, these include collagen, milk, honey, and many other common ingredients.
Makeup Forever has not disclosed which ingredients make their products unsuitable for vegans, but a quick search of the ingredients list will likely find the culprit. But whatever the cause, Makeup Forever is not suitable for use by vegans.
Is Makeup Forever an Ethical Company?
So Makeup Forever is not cruelty free, and they are also not vegan, but are they ethical? Much like the rest of the information surrounding this company, their ethics is definitely a grey area.
From an animal perspective, it is arguable that Makeup Forever is not an ethical company.
They test on animals in order to sell in China and do not publicize their animal testing policy, so it is possible that they may also be testing products/ingredients on animals to sell in countries where this is not necessary.
Likewise, their parent company, LVMH, also tests on animals, so not only are they not cruelty free, but neither is their parent company.
The ethics surrounding Makeup Forever are unclear, so let’s take a look at the ethics of LVMH, their parent company.
While some companies owned by LVMH are ethical, the company itself is not. LVMH has been associated with tax avoidance in the past and operates in several countries where labor abuse is likely for employees.
Additionally, they have a large amount of greenhouse gas emissions and have been known to use materials that are definitely not eco-friendly. All of this arguably makes LVMH an ethically questionable company.
So while it is not possible to determine whether or not Makeup Forever is ethical, it is clear that their parent company is not.
Does Makeup Forever test on Animals?
Yes, Makeup Forever does test on animals. But what is worse than them testing on animals, is the fact that Makeup Forever does not publicize where they test on animals.
So other than animal testing in China, it is difficult to tell if the company uses animal testing in any of the other countries that it operates in.
The fact that Makeup Forever does not disclose their animal testing policy also makes it impossible to know if any of the ingredients used in their products have been tested on animals.
This makes it impossible to identify exactly which products have been tested animals, which is why most animal-conscious consumers will simply avoid this company altogether.
This is further supported by the fact that Makeup Forever’s parent company, LVMH, also tests on animals. For some companies, the fact that Makeup Forever’s parent company test on animals would be enough to prevent them from buying this company’s products.
So in short, yes Makeup Forever does test on animals, but the precise details of this are unclear.
Are Makeup Forever Products Toxic?
Finally, let’s take a look at whether or not any Makeup Forever products are toxic. In good news, it appears that none of the products which Makeup Forever produces contain any toxic ingredients.
In 2009, Makeup Forever removed all parabens from their formulas, and none of their products produced since then have contained these harmful ingredients.
That being said, some of the products produced before this date will contain parabens, so you must be aware of this. This meant major changes to some of the formulas of Makeup Forever products, including their HD foundation range which traditionally contained parabens, but no longer does.
One point of concern for some consumers is that Makeup Forever’s High Definition powder contains a lot of silica. This is an ingredient that is toxic for some animals.
However, as long as you do not consume this ingredient then this foundation is not toxic. But if you are worried about toxic ingredients, it is probably best to avoid these products.
Summary
In short, no, Makeup Forever is not cruelty free. Their animal testing policy is not public knowledge which can make it difficult to tell, however, they currently operate in China which confirms that they are not cruelty-free.
