Illinois has joined California, Nevada, and more than 30 countries worldwide in banning the sale of animal-tested cosmetics. SB 241, sponsored by Senator Linda Holmes (D-Aurora) and signed by Governor J.B. Pritzker on August 9, prohibits the import or sale of any cosmetic if the final product or any ingredient was tested on animals after January 1, 2020.
The European Union has already passed laws banning the testing of cosmetic ingredients on animals and the sale of animal-tested cosmetics. To meet EU standards and growing consumer demand elsewhere for cruelty-free products, hundreds of successful cosmetics companies of all sizes already rely on non-animal testing methods.
However, more needs to be done to accelerate the pace of change. With Congress failing to enact a nationwide ban (see AWI Quarterly, spring 2018), states are stepping in to provide the impetus for cosmetics companies to invest in non-animal alternatives that will help them stay competitive in a changing global market while sparing animals from tests that cause significant suffering.