Quick Answer: Is Clear Cruelty-Free and Vegan?
Clear is not a cruelty-free company but have a few vegan products. The shampoo-making brand tests on animals and is owned by the Unilever Group of Companies, a brand that tests on animals. Clear sells its products in mainland China, a country where all foreign skincare and haircare brands are required to test their products on animals before they can sell in the country. Clear has no certification from any cruelty-free certification organization.
Launched in 1975, Clear is a French brand that makes anti-dandruff shampoo products.
The company sells its products under different brand names across many countries. In Greece, it is known as Ultrex. In India, it is known as Clear. In Portugal, it is known as Linic.
Portuguese football star Christiano Ronaldo even has a partnership with Clear in the co-creation of the Shampoo for Men product.
Clear is owned by British-Dutch manufacturer Unilever, a parent company that tests on animals.
Is Clear Cruelty-Free?
Today, many companies are quick to lay claim to the cruelty-free status without having a certification to that effect.
Besides that, many claim in their animal testing policy that they are committed to ending animal testing and looking for non-animal-testing methods.
However, many of these companies have markets in mainland China, where they make post-market testing on animals mandatory.
This means more than half of companies that vow not to test on animals aren’t cruelty-free. How do you know a brand is cruelty-free, then? To be cruelty-free, a brand must not do the following:
- Test its products, ingredients, or formulations on animals
- Pay animal testers to test its products on animals
- Sell in countries where animal testing is required by law
Does Clear meet the requirements set up above? It is not clear whether Clear pays third-party companies, suppliers, or vendors to test on animals on their behalf.
What is clear is that Clear sells in mainland China and does animal testing.
According to a research essay (which we will give more details about later), Clear has been selling in mainland China since 2007.
Are Clear Products Tested On Animals?
We found out that Clear tests on animals. It markets its products in countries where it is easy for the products to be sampled on animals.
Unless China changes its legislation, this is a cardinal sin and a step back from getting the rabbit logo indicating cruelty-free developing, manufacturing, marketing, and post-marketing processes.
Do They Test On Animals When the Law Requires This?
As of 2020, Clear has no animal testing policy that can explain its commitment to animal testing and how it is working to avoid it. However, what is clear is that Clear tests on animals when required.
The brand has been selling its products in mainland China, where all foreign cosmetics, haircare, and skincare brands are required to be tested on animals before selling to Chinese citizens.
Are Clear Products Sold In China?
As mentioned earlier, Clear has been selling to customers in the Chinese market since 2007.
Does Clear Have Cruelty-Free Certifications?
Clear has no cruelty-free certifications, at least not from PETA or Leaping Bunny, two of the most recognized certification organizations internationally.
It is not on the Beauty Without Bunnies list of “Companies That Test On Animals”, nor is it on the list of “Companies That Don’t Test On Animals”.
Is Clear Owned By Another Company?
Clear is owned by British consumer goods brand Unilever.
Although the company is working towards regulatory changes so that the numbers of animals used for animal testing is reduced, according to PETA, the brand still tests on animals and sells in mainland China as of today.
Unilever is no longer blacklisted by PETA as a cruelty-free brand, as it has been removed from the list of “Companies That Test On Animals”.
However, it is not yet on the list of “Companies That Do Not Test On Animals”.
Are Clear Products Vegan?
Clear products are not completely vegan. Although they have lots of vegan products, a lot of their products are made of animal ingredients, such as glycerin and lecithin.
We analyzed several products made by Clear and found almost all of them to contain animal ingredients. The following Clear products are not vegan:
- Active Damage Resist, Ultra Nourishing Shampoo,
- Active Damage Resist, Ultra Nourishing Shampoo
- Intense Hydration Conditioner
- Scalp & Hair Conditioner, Strong Lengths
- Scalp & Hair Conditioner, Intense Hydration
- Scalp & Hair Beauty Therapy – Intense Hydration – Shampoo
- Scalp & Hair Conditioner, Ultra Shea Deep Cleanse & Nourish
- Scalp & Hair Beauty Therapy Total Care Nourishing Shampoo
Nonetheless, a good Clear vegan product made by Unilever is the Clear Scalp & Hair Conditioner, Ultra Shea Deep Cleanse & Nourish.
Summary
Although Clear has no animal testing policy and has revealed almost nothing about its current status, it is not cruelty-free or vegan. Many of Clear’s products contain animal derivatives, and the brand tests on animals.
Furthermore, Clear sells in mainland China where animal testing is required by law. Clear is owned by Unilever, a parent company that still tests on animals but is working towards a change in the regulations on animal testing.