Our Policy
My name is Lesley Ricketts I started the Bodyline brand from my
kitchen sink in 1976. I wanted to make products using the power of
fruit, flowers, vegetables, herbs, spices and essential oils.
Chemicals and synthetics are in all products but I wanted to replace the
chemical that cleansed, moisturised and conditioned with a vegetable based alternative.
When I began my business, widely used ingredients by cosmetic companies
included Spermaceti, an oil taken from whales, extracts from unborn
animal placentas taken from cows 3-4 months pregnant and various
slaughterhouse ingredients such as Stearic Acid and Glycerine. These
were the type of ingredients I was regularly offered by suppliers.
I thought the cosmetics industry was a grizzly place to be, and much to
the amusement of suppliers I was determined to find alternative methods
that did not involve animal testing or the use of animal ingredients.
Initially I found Palm Oil derived alternatives for Stearic Acid and
Glycerine and synthetics also played an important part in removing some
of the best-known perfume ingredients. Civet was collected from cats;
the dreadfully painful process involved scraping the secretion from the
sex glands of civet cats. The scent of musk was obtained from the musk
deer; thousands of these creatures were killed each year to provide the
top notes for some expensive perfumes. Castoreum comes from beaver and
ambergris from the sperm whale.
From the day I started my business it has been my policy not to purchase
any raw material from a company which tests on animals. Our company does
not operate a fixed cut off date criteria, because I do not believe they
work. It simply focuses attention on the ingredient and not the company
that produces it. This policy allows cosmetic companies to purchase
ingredients from suppliers that are still using animal testing. Over the
years I have come across many instances of suppliers offering a raw
material say factor x, which it is claimed, has not been tested since a
certain date. It then comes to light that the company also produce
factor y, which is exactly the same item as factor x, but with a
different name. Factor y is tested on animals and the dossier of animal
testing safety material is used to support sales of factor x, for the
cosmetic companies who insist on this form of testing. Cosmetic
companies who claim to produce cruelty free products and purchase their
fixed cut off date raw materials from suppliers who use animal testing
on other ingredients are not in my opinion working in the spirit of what
I set out to achieve in 1976. That however is my opinion and how other
companies choose to operate is a matter for them, although I am pleased
to see more companies are now choosing to adopt my policy.
Over the years the Bodyline product range has only ever been made in
small fresh batches, however I have also designed and produced products
for most of the UK major high street retailers under their own label. I
have kept to the same philosophy whether producing product in 1-litre
beakers or in 10-ton batches for large stores.
Large volume production made us attractive to suppliers, and gave us the
opportunity to stop some suppliers from animal testing completely. This
is something we would not have been able to achieve if we had adopted an
alternative policy.
All Bodyline products are suitable for vegetarians and most are suitable
for Vegans. I hope you will get as much pleasure in using my products as
I get from making them.
Lesley Ricketts
Bodyline has been listed as a manufacturer of cruelty free cosmetics by:
