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Update (November 13, 2025): In major progress for keeping sunscreens cruelty-free, Congress has passed a law calling on the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to accept non-animal test methods for sunscreens.
PETA scientists met with members of Congress, and have sent multiple letters to the agency, urging it to act swiftly by collaborating with sunscreen manufacturers and other scientific experts who have spent decades developing reliable cell- and computer-based test methods to assess sunscreen safety.
Let’s keep the momentum going! Please TAKE ACTION below to urge the FDA to swiftly adopt the advanced non-animal approaches offered by experts.
Original post:
For decades, sunscreens have been used by millions of people around the world to prevent skin cancer. But the FDA is pushing companies to conduct animal tests to keep their sunscreen products on the market.
The FDA is calling for these tests despite tens of thousands of people voicing their support for non-animal tests for sunscreens, multiple scientific studies showing how sunscreens can be evaluated for safety without using animals, and the FDA’s own repeated public claims that it supports modern test methods relevant to human health.
Numerous scientific papers published in peer-reviewed journals show how commonly used sunscreen ingredients can be evaluated for safety using existing information and modern, non-animal approaches. Decades of animal tests have failed to find any indication that more animal testing will accomplish anything other than costing thousands of animals their lives. This reality is clear to every government agency around the world—except the FDA.
The FDA released a troubling statement showing how misaligned the agency is with the current scientific consensus on sunscreen safety. The statement indicates that the FDA supports moving away from animal tests and mentions some animal tests that the FDA does not require. However, what the statement omits speaks volumes, and FDA fails to clarify what it does expect for the animal tests it has repeatedly indicated are required.
In other words, the FDA only reinforces its expectation for tests on animals through this misleading statement that doesn’t suggest otherwise. Its call to develop alternatives to animal testing rings hollow in light of the agency’s public records showing FDA rejecting animal-replacing proposals. Time and again, the FDA has failed to participate in making use of human-relevant strategies for ensuring sunscreen safety.
It’s time for the FDA to stop ignoring the wealth of existing data and requests from experts to discuss robust non-animal approaches that can be used now. The path forward is clear, and it does not involve cruel and ineffective animal tests.
© Doctors Against Animal Experiments
As phrased in his letter asking the FDA to explain itself, Senator Cory Booker notes that “the agency has an obligation to the public to reduce animal use” when even the FDA admits that there is no evidence that sunscreens are unsafe.
Learn more by listening to PETA’s podcast about testing sunscreen products on animals.