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Consumers Misunderstand ‘Cruelty-Free’ Labeled Products

Summary By: | Published: July 4, 2012
Estimated Reading Time: < 1 minute
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Products claiming to be "cruelty-free" could still involve animal experimentation, as current labels of "cruelty-free" have no legal requirements.

Many consumers purposefully seek out and purchase “cruelty-free” products that claim to not be tested on animals or involve child labor. However, there are currently no legal requirements for companies to adhere to the cruelty-free label. Therefore, it is possible that products claiming to be cruelty-free have been tested on animals at some point during manufacturing. This study indicates there is a need to establish a legal definition of the term “cruelty-free”, that companies should be required to adhere to the legal definition.

This study began by surveying participants’ knowledge about cruelty-free products. Participants were then provided with an article from the New York Times regarding the vagueness of the cruelty-free label. After reading the article, participants were less positive about the cruelty-free label, demonstrating that consumers who bought cruelty-free products were not always aware that this term can be misleading.

The authors concluded that consumers may be susceptible to deceptive advertising, and therefore a legal definition of ‘cruelty-free’ should be developed and enforced.

External Link:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/1203281428...
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Faunalytics is a nonprofit research organization dedicated to helping animals by providing useful information to advocates to help them increase their impact.

Citations:

University of Missouri-Columbia. (2012, March 28). Consumers misunderstand ‘cruelty-free’ labeled products. ScienceDaily. Retrieved May 18, 2019 from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/03/120328142840.htm

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Animals Used in Science Other Topics Biomedical Research English Humans Research Animals

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