PETA Grant Aims to End Animal Testing in China

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, in conjunction with the McGrath Family Foundation, have presented a $33,000 grant to the Institute for In Vitro Sciences to teach scientists at Beijing Technology and Business University how to test cosmetic ingredients without using animals. This is the second grant that PETA has provided IIVS for its international work, and first became involved with the company after discovering that Avon, Mary Kay, and Estée Lauder had been paying for animal testing. The scientists in China are being trained on procedures to replace Draize eye irritancy tests, which are preformed on rabbits. Comedian Ricky Gervais has frequently spoken out about his frustration with cosmetics companies abandoning their cruelty-free principles to enter the Chinese market, where animal testing is required.