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Elemis is neither cruelty-free nor vegan. Whilst Elemis doesn’t test products or ingredients on animals personally (or work with suppliers who do – the brand sells products in mainland China where animal testing can be mandated by law.
Is Elemis Cruelty-Free?
Elemis cannot yet be considered cruelty-free because, although it doesn’t test their ingredients (or finished products) on animals – and neither do their suppliers – the brand now sells products in mainland China.
Elemis’ Ethical Overview
- No Elemis isn’t cruelty-free
- Yes Elemis sells products in mainland China
- No Elemis isn’t vegan
- Or palm-oil free
- And is owned by The L’OCCITANE Group
Does Elemis Sell Products in China?
Yes Elemis now sell their products in mainland China where animal testing can be required by law – in either pre or post production.
Chinese laws dictate that some imported beauty products must be submitted for animal testing before they can be approved for sale.
UPDATE: Whilst we cannot now claim that countries involved in selling products in China can be cruelty-free, China’s animal testing policy is no longer as black and white is it seemed.
What is Elemis’ Official Stance on Animal Testing?
“Elemis have been against the use of animals to test beauty products since our inception over 30 years ago. We do not test our products, active ingredients or raw materials at any point in the product, development or manufacturing process, and we require all our suppliers to fully respect the same standards.
Our number one priority is the health and safety of our consumers…
In China, where Elemis is sold, all imported beauty products must be submitted for compulsory testing on a limited animal panel in government laboratories before they can be approved for sale…”
Elemis claim to be against animal testing, but is willing to sell its products in mainland China where animal testing can be mandated by law.
Is Elemis Vegan?
Whilst Elemis does have a number of vegan products, they cant be classified as a purely vegan brand as a number of animal-derived ingredients in their products including:
- Milk
- Whey
- Honey
- Beeswax
- Eggs
Cruelty-Free Alternatives to Elemis
FAQs
As of 2019 Elemis was bought by The L’Occitane Group, a natural cosmetics company who own L’Occitane en Provence, Melvita and Erborian. All of which sell products in China.
No Elemis isn’t certified cruelty-free by any organisation because it sells it’s products in mainland China.
No Elemis isn’t Leaping Bunny certified.
Yes Elemis is vegetarian. They do use beeswax in some of their products so can’t be considered vegan, but they claim to not use any waste or slaughterhouse byproducts.
So any glycerin should be plant-based, but as they aren’t cruelty-free it doesn’t matter.
Yes Elemis uses palm oil in its products. Officially it states that it uses sustainable palm oil.
No Elemis isn’t completely natural or organic.
No Elemis isn’t completely paraben-free – although it does have a lot of paraben-free products
