In October 2020, Ethical Consumer searched L'Oreal's website and found a page called 'Our alternative methods to animal testing'

This page stated: "In 1989, L’Oréal completely ceased testing its products on animals, 14 years before it was required by regulation. Today, L'Oréal no longer tests its ingredients on animals and strictly follows this global policy."

It also stated: "L’Oréal has been one of the most active companies working alongside the Chinese authorities and scientists for over 10 years to have alternative testing methods recognized, and permit the cosmetic regulation to evolve towards a total and definite elimination of animal testing. Thanks to this, since 2014, certain products manufactured and sold in China like shampoo, body wash or certain make-up products are no longer tested on animals."

This indicated that L'Oreal was still selling products in China that were required by law to be tested on animals. As a result L’Oréal received Ethical Consumer's worst rating for Animal Testing and lost a whole mark in the category.

In October 2020, Ethical Consumer viewed the 'Ask Nestle' section of Nestlé's website. It contained the following statement regarding animal testing:

"Nestlé shares people’s concerns about animal testing. We are committed to reducing our use of it to a minimum, and believe it should only take place when absolutely necessary, to meet our ethical and legal obligations.

We have to use animal testing when it is required as part of the regulatory authorization process to commercialize a product, during research and development of novel ingredients, or to show their safety."

Nestlé therefore lost a whole mark under the Animal Testing category.

In March 2019 Ethical Consumer viewed the PETA list of pet food that had not been tested on animals. Lily’s Kitchen was listed.

The list outlines the companies that have signed a PETA Statement of Assurance pledging that they do not conduct, contract out or fund animal tests in the developing, manufacturing, testing or marketing of their products.

As the company had been acquired by Nestle in April 2020, this reference is for information only.

In October 2020 Ethical Consumer viewed the Nestlé website, and a Raw Materials section. The company said milk was its biggest raw material by volume.

No policy could be found regarding whether the company used milk from cows which had been grazed on pasture or kept in doors (zero grazing).

Zero Grazing is a practice whereby cows are kept indoors and fed with cut grass or total mixed rations (mixture of grains, maize silage and hay). Due to the fact Nestlé did not have an animal welfare policy which commited its farmers (its own and from those from whom it sourced its milk) to ensure cows had access to pasture during the grass growing season (minimum 100 days) it lost a whole mark under Ethical Consumer's Factory Farming category and a whole mark under Animal Rights.

According to the Asda website viewed by Ethical Consumer in October 2020, Tivall meat free products contained eggs that were not labelled as free range. The company therefore lost a whole mark in the Animal Rights and Factory Farming categories.

In October 2020 Ethical Consumer searched Nestle’s website for information about its animal products. In a Raw Materials section the company stated that "meat, poultry and eggs are purchased from suppliers worldwide". Under an 'Ask Nestle' Environment section it had more information.

Its animal welfare commitment subscribed to the ‘Five Freedoms’ as applied to animals: 1. Freedom from hunger, thirst and malnutrition 2. Freedom from fear and distress 3. Freedom from physical and thermal discomfort 4. Freedom from pain, injury and disease 5. Freedom to express normal patterns of behaviour.

It stated that it aimed to use only cage-free eggs for all its food products globally by 2025. In Europe and the USA, it aimed to make this transition by the end of 2020.

Although a step in the right direction, Nestlé's policy did not explicitly exclude the use of factory farming practices, nor did it exclude the use of zero grazing. Zero grazing is a practice whereby cows are kept indoors and fed with cut grass or total mixed rations (mixture of grains, maize silage and hay).

The company therefore lost a mark under the Factory Farming category and Animal Rights category.