Avon doubles down on anti-animal testing stance with new HSI allegiance

Avon has become the latest brand to call for a worldwide ban on animal testing in the cosmetics industry.

The beauty giant, which stopped the practice 30 years ago, has announced that it is backing animal rights organization The Humane Society International's #BeCrueltyFree campaign. The initiative is pushing for legislative reform to ban cosmetics testing on animals by the year 2023 in major beauty markets around the world.

"We're confident that through collaborations with HSI and other committed partners we will accelerate the transition to alternative approaches to animal testing and result in a worldwide ban in the foreseeable future," said Louise Scott, Chief Scientific Officer at Avon, in a statement.

"Avon's reach will provide a significant boost to our efforts to abolish cosmetic cruelty across the globe," added HSI Vice President for Research & Toxicology Troy Seidle.

Avon is not the only major brand backing HSI -- earlier this year, the personal care conglomerate Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) also pledged its allegiance to the cause. Meanwhile, Unilever-owned skincare and haircare giant Dove was awarded cruelty-free status by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) last year, as was the spa brand Bliss. Coty's Covergirl brand received the same status from Cruelty Free International, an organization that has also joined forces with The Body Shop to protest against cosmetic animal testing.