A 430-page federal government omnibus budget bill includes a revision that would ban animal testing by the cosmetics industry within six months of being passed into law.
Bill C-47, the Budget Implementation Act, amends multiple federal bills, including the Food and Drugs Act, according to Blacklock’s Reporter on April 24.
The revision to the Act states, “No person shall sell a cosmetic unless the person can establish the safety of the cosmetic without relying on data derived from a test conducted on an animal that could cause pain, suffering or injury, whether physical or mental, to the animal.”
Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos, in a Mandate Letter on Dec. 16, 2021, promised to “introduce legislation to end testing on animals.”
According to a June 23, 2022, briefing note, “Ending Cosmetic Testing on Animals in Canada,” Health Canada was flooded in 2022 with 69,000 emails and letters that called for a ban on animal testing.
The note said, “Our government recognizes Canadians are concerned about the well-being of animals and supports the elimination of cosmetic animal testing.”
The note also said a universal ban was considered impractical.
“While there have been significant advancements in the development and implementation of non-animal testing methods, science has not yet progressed to the point where alternative methods can completely replace animal testing,” said the note.
“There are several complex health endpoints relating to cancer, reproductive toxicity and the way the body processes toxins that are lacking validated alternative methods to animal testing.”
Health Canada said it did not allow animal testing in its facilities. In 2016, a Toy Regulations notice said that chemicals and stuffing could be tested on animals. The documents detailed using albino rabbits and testing chemical drops in their eyes.
“The purpose is to help protect children less than three years of age from exposure to harmful substances contained in plastic materials of toys,” said the notice.
A document, “Methods for Testing Skin-Irritant Properties,” suggests researchers remove a patch of rabbit fur, apply the solution to be tested to the bare skin, and “wrap the entire trunk of the rabbit with an impervious material such as rubberized cloth for a 24-hour period of exposure.”
A positive test would be indicated by “visible destruction or irreversible damage in tissue.”
Laureen Harper, the wife of former Conservative Leader and past-Prime Minister Stephen Harper, endorsed a similar private Conservative bill in 2015, along with the Humane Society. That bill would have outlawed cosmetic animal testing and would not allow Canadian manufacturers to use ingredients tested in labs outside the country.
In 2017, a Senate social affairs committee heard testimony that only China mandates toxicity tests on live animals. The committee was told 41 other countries, as of that date, had strict limits on animal testing, including the United Kingdom, Australia, South Korea, and all states belonging to the European Union.
