Is The Ordinary Cruelty-Free? Learn the Truth
The Ordinary is a relative newcomer in the skincare industry, having been on the scene since 2013. They’ve garnered a reputation as a company that practices radical transparency with its ingredients and supply chain. Its prices are also quite affordable.
It seems like The Ordinary is the complete package. However, many shoppers (including you, probably) also care about companies’ impact on the environment. Here’s another question you might have: is The Ordinary cruelty-free? We’ll get into that and more in this article!
Is The Ordinary Cruelty-Free?
We have good news: The Ordinary is indeed cruelty-free! Its parent company, DECIEM, is also cruelty-free. That puts the brands in rarified air, so you could say that The Ordinary is actually pretty far from ordinary.
A cruelty-free company does not test its products on animals. Very few skincare companies these days conduct tests on animals, but there’s a fairly big gap between that and actually being cruelty-free.
No agreed-upon legal definition exists for cruelty-free, but several organizations hand out certifications if companies satisfy rigorous criteria. PETA and Leaping Bunny are the two most well-known cruelty-free certifications.
Where is The Ordinary made?
The Ordinary’s head office is located in Toronto, Canada, where the company was founded. It appears that The Ordinary’s products are also bottled in Canada.
The Ordinary gets many raw materials from across the world. China, the U.S., South Africa, Peru, Morocco, and Bulgaria are just a few of the countries supplying The Ordinary with raw materials.
What Does “Cruelty-Free” Mean in the Beauty Industry?
Skincare brands are under increased pressure to be cruelty-free, which means products are not tested on animals at any point in the production process. That goes for individual ingredients and finished products.
However, because there’s no agreed-upon legal definition for cruelty-free, companies can do a number of things to muddy the waters and make it seem like they’re cruelty-free without that actually being the case. Looking for the Leaping Bunny certification or PETA’s statement of assurance is, by far, the best way to ensure you buy truly cruelty-free products. Companies don’t earn those certifications unless they can verify that they satisfy a set of rigorous criteria.
Does The Ordinary Test on Animals?
On its website, The Ordinary unequivocally states that its parent company, DECIEM, does not test on animals and has earned the Leaping Bunny certification. The Ordinary, along with HIF and The Chemistry Brand, are also PETA-certified. DECIEM claims it is pursuing PETA certification with all brands under its umbrella.
Does The Ordinary sell in regions that require animal testing?
In some jurisdictions—most notably Mainland China—many cosmetic products are required to be tested on animals before they can be sold to humans.
Because of this, brands who wish to earn cruelty-free certifications must pledge not to sell their products in China. There are some narrow exceptions to this rule, but DECIEM claims that The Ordinary’s products are not sold in Mainland China.
Is The Ordinary vegan?
We found conflicting information online, but The Ordinary’s website states that PETA has certified the brand as vegan. Some brands are not 100% vegan but have individual products that can be considered vegan.
However, it appears that The Ordinary is vegan through and through, which means it makes zero products that contain ingredients derived from animals.
Final Words on The Ordinary
We’re quite comfortable knowing that The Ordinary is both vegan and cruelty-free. PETA has certified The Ordinary on both accounts, and Leaping Bunny has affirmed its cruelty-free status.
As far as we’re concerned, that puts the company in the upper echelon of skincare brands. We hope you consider using The Ordinary for your skincare needs!
Featured image via Canva
