Introduction
Testing of drugs and cosmetics on animals has been a relevant social and political issue for the longest time, with little progress on the problem. However, at present, there are various social movements and federal acts that protect animal rights and strive to improve the ecological situation. For instance, U. S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) formed the ICCVAM organization in 1997, which ensured that animal testing was the last measure in research. Activists from all over the world aim to secure animal rights by signing petitions, peacefully protesting, and forcing corporations to seize their testing (Culliney par. 3). Nevertheless, despite the efforts, many companies, specifically in the cosmetics industry, still conduct cruel and non-justifiable experiments on animals to achieve the best quality of their products. Ultimately, the current essay argues that animal testing is immoral and should only be administered in critical circumstances.
Immorality of Animal Testing
The primary argument against animal testing is merely the cruelty of the process, which violates most moral principles. Many of the experiments are associated with toxic chemicals, body altering, and exposure to diseases, resulting in millions of animal deaths annually (Hussain par. 21). The companies need to move away from animal testing to adhere to sustainable development and moral principles of research. Furthermore, the contemporary studies transparently demonstrate the availability of alternatives, which include computer simulation, stem cells, biochips, and 3D imagery (Kabene and Baadel par. 39). Even though these options are more expensive, they would allow preventing immoral animal testing with high degrees of cruelty.
Animal Testing in Cosmetics
Consequently, animal testing in cosmetics is the most pressing issue. Fortunately, the governments are starting to act, and California becomes the first state to officially make animal testing in the cosmetics industry illegal (Wang et al. 112). Similar initiatives are also noticeable in most parts of the democratic world as societies strive for sustainable development, which supports the environment. Unfortunately, global corporations are still vastly supported by the people who value the quality of cosmetics over animal rights. Their typical argument is that animal testing is necessary for safety assurance (Kabene and Baadel par. 4). However, the research shows that cosmetics companies have all the required information about safety from previous experiments, and animal testing is only necessary to develop new products (Kabene and Baadel par. 7). In other words, it is an issue of maximizing profits for the corporations and not the safety of the customers. Therefore, animal testing in cosmetics is immoral since the companies prioritize money over the lives of living beings.
Animal Testing in Essential Drug Research
Subjectively, the only argument for animal testing is its significance to essential drug research. Many experts admit that animal testing is an effective method for medicine development (Kabene and Baadel par. 2). Moreover, some of the critical breakthroughs in science were made possible only due to morally ambiguous studies (Kabene and Baadel par. 3). Therefore, while it is true that experiments on animals might be used to advance research, it is essential to minimize animal suffering nonetheless.
Conclusion
The current argumentative essay has proved that animal testing is immoral and should be banned, specifically in the non-essential industries. Global cosmetics corporations have utilized cheap experiments on animals for decades instead of investing in sustainable alternatives. As demonstrated in the analysis, it is an issue of maximizing profits at the cost of animal lives, which is fundamentally immoral. Lastly, even though animal testing might be crucial in medical research, governments and organizations need to minimize animal suffering.
Works Cited
Culliney, Kacey. “The Body Shop and Dove Spearhead European Citizen’s Initiative to Protect Cosmetics Animal Testing Ban.” Cosmetics Design Europe, Web.
Hussain, Grace. “Animals Testing, Exposed: Millions of Animals Suffer in Labs Every Year.” SentientMedia, Web.
Kabene, Stefane, and Said Baadel. “Bioethics: A Look at Animal Testing in Medicine and Cosmetics in the UK.” Journal of Medical Ethics and History of Medicine, vol. 12, 2019.
Wang, Yue, et al. “The Ethical Issues of Animal Testing in Cosmetics Industry.” Humanities and Social Sciences, vol. 8, no. 4, 2020, pp. 112-116.