Is Church & Dwight Cruelty-Free?

Does Church & Dwight test on animals or sell in China?

Church & Dwight was founded in 1846 and owns popular brands like Nair, Orajel, and OxiClean. But is Church & Dwight cruelty-free or do they test on animals? 

For a company to be considered cruelty-free they have to meet all of the following criteria:

• Do not test any of their products or ingredients on animals
• Don’t allow others to test on their behalf 
• Do not sell in a country where animal testing is required. 

After doing a bit of research, I found that Church & Dwight doesn’t meet the above cruelty-free requirements and is not considered to be a cruelty-free parent company. 

Let’s look into what all of that really means and what you can do about it.

Is Church & Dwight Certified Cruelty-Free?

When researching a brand’s cruelty-free status my first stop is the certified cruelty-free list. There are three organizations that give official certifications to brands around the world; Leaping Bunny, Peta, and Choose Cruelty-Free.

Church & Dwight is not found on any of these organizations’ cruelty-free lists. However, they are found on Peta’s list of brands to avoid. 

Does Church & Dwight Test on Animals?

The next step in my research is going directly to the company’s animal testing policy to see where they stand. Church & Dwight’s policy can be found in the ‘Our Brands’ section of their website. Here is an excerpt of what it states:

“Church & Dwight Co., Inc. is fully committed to ensuring and protecting animal welfare. We use only materials already known to be safe. It is our policy not to test on animals, and we also request that suppliers not test any materials or products on animals, unless required by law or regulation.”

Church & Dwight’s animal testing policy contradicts itself. It states that they do not test on animals and use only known safe materials. However, they will make an exception for a country’s laws.  Therefore, Church & Dwight does allow animal testing on their products.

What About China’s New Animal Testing Laws?

China has announced that as of May 1, 2021, general cosmetics such as shampoo, body wash, lipstick, lotion, and makeup can be sold without being tested on animals. However, a company is required to jump through various hoops for this to happen. As of now, Church & Dwight has not been exempt and their products can still be tested on animals by the Chinese health authority. Even if an exemption happens it is still possible that the products can be subjected to post-market testing. 

What Brands Does Church & Dwight Own?

Church & Dwight is an international company that owns several popular personal care and household brands. Below is a list of all the brands owned by them. 

Many people in the cruelty-free community choose to completely boycott any brand owned by a non-cruelty-free parent company. So, I try to provide as much information as possible so that you have the resources to make your own decision. 

So, I’ve indicated which brands are sold in China or are certified cruelty-free. I would err on the side of caution for any of the companies that don’t have additional information.

• AIM
• Arm & Hammer 
• Arrid
• Batiste
• Clean Shower
• Close-Up
• FelinePine
• First Response
• Flawless
• Kaboom
• Nair
• Orajel
• Orange Glo
• OxiClean
• Pepsodent
• Rephresh
• Replens
• Scrub Free
• Simply Saline
• Spinbrush
• Toppik
• Trojan
• Viviscal
• Waterpik
• Xtra

Wrap Up: Is Church & Dwight Cruelty-Free?

No, Church & Dwight is not a cruelty-free company. Even though they claim to not test on animals, they will make an exception to satisfy a country’s health authorities.

Therefore, Church & Dwight is not considered to be cruelty-free. They will be added to my list of brands that test on animals. 

Now I’d like to hear from you…What are your thoughts about Church & Dwight? Will you boycott them completely or use some of their cruelty-free brands? Please leave your comments below!

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