[This post updated in 2017 with current animal testing policies.]
The other day I was thinking about the products I use around here and wondered just exactly where the various companies stood on animal testing. PETA, of course, has lists upon lists, but I tend to shy away from PETA.
The thing to remember is that these companies only test on animals when law requires it. And trust me, there are LAWS demanding animal testing. You cannot fault a corporation for complying with the law. Also, having been with a research scientist for 8 years, I can assure you that the regulations for working with animals are STRINGENT. The animals are spared as much pain as is possible and they are kept in clean environments. Animal testing is necessary, sadly. Not for makeup, IMO, but companies have to comply with the law. PETA is a bunch of rabid vegans who don’t even understand that we’d still be plague and disease ridden if not for animal testing.
I challenge every PETA member to forego ALL medications, since ALL medication has been tested on an animal at some point. That’s right, ALL OF IT.
Anyway, here is the info I found.
So, I hit the internet and started going to the various large consumer companies looking for animal testing policies or any other info I could find. Here are the results:
Johnson & Johnson: has a very detailed description of their policies on their site.
Nestlé Purina (includes Friskies): I got a VERY nice email back asking me to please call customer service and I did. The lady was extremely nice and she said that yes, they do keep animals to taste the food. I figured as much. The PETA people are trying to make Purina look like satan, but I know how stringent government animal care guidelines are and I am not worried about the animals they keep for taste tests and the like. It is all noninvasive, nonvivisection type things. They even adopt out the pets once they are retired. They now have their policies on their site here. There is no specific info about animal food testing.
Proctor & Gamble: This company does have its policy up here.
You know, when one realises that a large chunk of consumer products are owned by one company (P&G) and a large chunk of the food industry is dominated by one company (Sysco) and the media is consolidating (Cox Communications) and communications is going back to a monopoly (AT&T) and retail is dominated by one company (WalMart), it makes one wonder whatever happened to originality in America?
Just damn.
originality goes out the window whenever there is a republican as president. Im not a very political person but being aware of my surroundings it doesnt take a rocket scientist to figure out that whenever there is a republican as president, top corporations start merging into giant consolidations, taxes get fucked, small buisnesses tumble, we;re in some kind of global conflict, gas prices triple, healthcare and insurance premiums go up, and anyone who makes under 40 grand a year is close to the poorhouse. but hey democrats have thier bad sides as well. accepting funds from hostile governments, downsizing national defense, excessive amounts of government grants to extremist minority groups, public education goes down the toilet even faster, and american jobs get outsourced more to india and pakistan. so whichever way we go we are fucked.